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Conversations about the challenges military-connected kids face as they navigate multiple education systems from birth through high school.
Episodes
Thursday Apr 28, 2022
Thursday Apr 28, 2022
Description: Hannah shares how being a military connected kid helped in her quest for swimming in college.
#FindHome
Show Notes:
https://fausports.com/sports/swimming-and-diving/roster/hannah-garner/11199
Bio:
Howdy! My name is Hannah Garner. I am a full-time Division 1 student-athlete at Florida Atlantic University with a marketing major and minor in Hospitality and Tourism. In addition, I am a military brat. I have moved a total of eight times plus moving to college. One of those times was during high school which is the peak season for college recruitment. In my free time, I like to paint, volunteer, and read.
Thursday Apr 21, 2022
Thursday Apr 21, 2022
Description:
Hannah chats about her identity struggle when her dad retired from the military and how she found a way to stay connected to her military roots.
Show Notes:
Third Culture Kids: http://www.crossculturalkid.org/
Capstone Paper:
Hannah Rauhut
Hannah is a born and bred military brat with a passion for sharing the stories of military families like her own. Shortly after she graduated from Messiah University with degrees in English and Communication, her dad retired from the Army and she had to surrender her military ID, prompting a low-key identity crisis. In an effort to stay connected to her military roots, she joined the NMFA team with the hope of building and supporting relationships within the military community. Hannah lives with her husband (a Navy brat—enough said) in Germany where they work with military middle and high school teens through Club Beyond (Young Life Military).
Thursday Apr 14, 2022
Thursday Apr 14, 2022
Alana shares the highlights and the challenges related to being a third culture kid.
Bio:
Alana has been a Military Kid since the day she was born on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, January 2010. 12 years later, Alana is and will continue to be a military kid until her dad decides to retire.
At 5 months old, Alana moved from Hawaii to California, where she lived for almost 3 1/2 years and due to different circumstances had to relocate to three different homes. As a baby she was already experiencing daddy’s many absences due to his military training and long deployments, one being Afghanistan. A few days before her 4th Birthday she was getting ready to take a long flight to her new home in Okinawa, Japan, where she lived for about 3 years and learned to embrace Okinawa’s culture. After Okinawa, she moved to Iwakuni, Japan where she lived for 3 1/2 years and developed a love for Japanese food, and the mainland Japan culture. Today, Alana is living back in the place where all started, Oahu, Hawaii. She currently lives on Marine Corps Base Hawaii and has been for 1 1/2 years. She attends Mokapu elementary school as a 6th grader, also on base, where she interacts with many other military kids.
As a military kid, Alana has had many adventures and experiences but has also had to overcome the many challenges that come with it. ***
Thursday Apr 07, 2022
Thursday Apr 07, 2022
Jasmine talks candidly about her struggle with anxiety and her determination to normalize the conversation about mental health.
Show Notes:
https://www.militaryonesource.mil/
https://www.cohenveteransnetwork.org/
https://www.barryrobinson.org/
Bio:
Jasmine has been a Military Kid on and off since the day she was born on Marine Corp Base Camp Pendleton in California, November 7, 2005. 16 years later she continued to be a military kid while her mom serves in the United States Air Force.
Soon after birth, Jasmine’s dad finished his commitment with the United States Marine Corps and settled on living in their hometown. Jasmine grew up near family in southern California until the age of eight when her mom’s job relocated her and the family to Okinawa Japan. Relocating to a new country was challenging for Jasmine but over the three years of living there she learned to embrace and love the Okinawan culture. Three years later Jasmine’s mom left for training and Jasmine prepared for a PCS to Royal Air Force Base Lakenheath in England. Living in England afforded Jasmine more experiences but with that came the challenge of transition once again. Jasmine attended Middle school and her first year of high school on Lakenheath and embraced the culture and sense of community of living on base. In October of 2020, Jasmines family relocated to the outskirts of San Antonio Texas. Making the transition stateside was the most challenging, as Jasmine had become accustomed to living overseas. Mid Freshman year she transitioned to a local high school in her new town but then sophomore year she started at Randolph High School on JBSA- Randolph where she currently attends as a sophomore. Jasmine is part of the AFJROTC program, S2S, Girl Scouts, and enjoys powerlifting and swimming.
Jasmine loves being a military kid and is thankful for the travels, learning, friendships, community and being close to her family but acknowledges that it has also brought challenges for her to work through.
Thursday Mar 31, 2022
Thursday Mar 31, 2022
Our “Purple Up” series kicks off with an overview of MCEC's events in April celebrating Month of the Military Child.
Use #MilKidStrong on social media to recognize a military-connected child in your community and share their story; #MOMC and #MonthoftheMilitaryChild for discussion throughout the month and #PurpleUp for promotion and celebration of Purple Up Day on April 14th in your area.
Show Notes:
Month of the Military Child (MOMC) Digital Toolkit:
https://www.militarychild.org/MOMC_Toolkit
Resources to Support Ukrainian Military Children & Their Families
https://www.militarychild.org/resourcesukrainianfamilies
Hiring Our Heroes
https://www.hiringourheroes.org/career-services/military-spouse-resources/
Bio: Lisa Witte
Lisa Witte is MCEC’s Director of Marketing and Communications. A native of Iowa, she has lived the military lifestyle for over twenty years as her family has moved around to different Navy duty stations. Lisa has an extensive background in advertising and has worked at agencies on both the East and West Coasts on national brand accounts. At MCEC, she is responsible for promoting awareness of MCEC’s services and communicating on behalf of the organization. She has a degree in Advertising from Iowa State University, and resides in San Diego, CA with her husband and two children.
Thursday Mar 24, 2022
Thursday Mar 24, 2022
Description: The Staff of STOMP-Specialized Training of Military Parents will discuss the important role that parents have in advocating for the emotional, medical, and educational needs of their loved ones with exceptional needs.
Show Notes:
https://wapave.org/links-for-military-families/
The podcast was made possible thanks to the generosity of the North Country Spouses Club and the Spouses’ Club of Fort Eustis.
https://www.northcountryspousesclub.com/
Bios:
Guest Host: Marie McGarry
Marie, a native of Massachusetts, has lived in in 5 different States and two foreign countries during her 20 years as a military spouse. She currently calls Springfield, VA home.
Marie has a son and a daughter, both in High School. Marie has a master’s degree in Literacy Curriculum and Instruction and was an Elementary School teacher for 11 years.
Marie has been an Educator with the MCEC® since 2017. In her free time Marie enjoys reading, cooking, and traveling.
Dee Bosworth:
Over twelve years of marriage to her Active-Duty sailor, Dee has been a Navy Command Ombudsman for six years (cumulatively) while raising their child with exceptional needs. She is a mom, teacher, therapy facilitator, and active volunteer with state and national programs for persons with disabilities. As a Political Science major and a graduate from her state’s Partners in Policymaking Program, Dee is passionate about advocacy and empowering military parents to advocate for a better world for our loved ones with exceptional needs
Keishawna Smith
Keishawna A. Smith is the wife of retired disabled combat veteran and mother of two children with special healthcare needs. Keishawna began working in the disability community when her first child was born at Ft. Hood, Texas. Later, she became involved with the Mississippi Parent Training and Information Center (MS PTI) as the Executive Assistant to the Director. She added on the responsibility and position of Parent Educator/Advocate, where she educated parents about their rights and responsibilities under IDEA/ADA. She has also been the Parent Coordinator for the Mississippi Family 2 Family Health and Information Center, helping families navigate health care systems and advocating for children with special health care needs across the state. She also serves on the Board of Directors for the Mississippi Sickle Cell Foundation and was a consultant with Community Links coordinating for The Respite Connect (TRC) Program.
A major charge for Keishawna is to help parents/caregivers become better advocates for their children and their communities by assisting them in navigating health care and educational systems, accessing resources, and discovering the power of their voice. She wants to make sure that parents/caregivers are involved and have a seat at the table regarding their child(ren)’s health, education, and overall well-being.
Thursday Mar 17, 2022
Thursday Mar 17, 2022
The Staff of STOMP-Specialized Training of Military Parents discuss the important role that parents have in advocating for the emotional, medical, and educational needs of their loved ones with exceptional needs.
Thanks to the Naval Officers Club of San Diego for sponsoring this episode.
https://noscsandiego.com/
Show Notes
https://stomp-trainings.padlet.org/STOMP30/ony2yec5gpky800o
https://wapave.org/toolkit-basics-where-to-begin-when-a-student-needs-more-help/
Bios:
Guest Host: Marie McGarry
Marie, a native of Massachusetts, has lived in in 5 different States and two foreign countries during her 20 years as a military spouse. She currently calls Springfield, VA home.
Marie has a son and a daughter, both in High School. Marie has a Master’s Degree in Literacy Curriculum and Instruction and was an Elementary School teacher for 11 years.
Marie has been an Educator with the MCEC® since 2017. In her free time Marie enjoys reading, cooking, and traveling.
Dee Bosworth:
Over twelve years of marriage to her Active-Duty sailor, Dee has been a Navy Command Ombudsman for six years (cumulatively) while raising their child with exceptional needs. She is a mom, teacher, therapy facilitator, and active volunteer with state and national programs for persons with disabilities. As a Political Science major and a graduate from her state’s Partners in Policymaking Program, Dee is passionate about advocacy and empowering military parents to advocate for a better world for our loved ones with exceptional needs.
Jolynn Lee
Jolynn Lee is the spouse of a Marine Veteran and a mother to three adult military-connected children. With two children still at home, Jolynn is also the mother of a child with exceptional needs. Jolynn worked as a Special Education teacher for 11 years and has a Master’s degree in counseling. She has utilized her military-life experiences to facilitate a site branch of Reboot Combat Recovery, a 12-week PTSD recovery program for military personnel, veterans, and their families. Motivated by a passion for supporting military families in need, Jolynn is eager to help bring awareness and training within the military community. She knows first-hand the challenges faced raising a child with exceptional needs. One of her favorite mottos is, “People only know what they know, but we can work together to expand that knowledge base as we learn and grow together.”
Thursday Mar 10, 2022
Thursday Mar 10, 2022
Description: The health and satisfaction of Army Families today directly impacts the future of the fighting Force of our Nation. Representatives from the US Army Public Health Center discuss the Health of the Army Family report and their hope it will bring attention to the Army Family health and aid in the understanding of the health needs and concerns of Army Families.
Show notes:
Army Public Health Center: https://phc.amedd.army.mil/Pages/default.aspx
2020 Health of the Force report: https://phc.amedd.army.mil/PHC%20Resource%20Library/2020-hof-web.pdf
Army Health and Wellness Portfolio: https://phc.amedd.army.mil/organization/hpw/Pages/default.aspx
Health of the Army Family: https://phc.amedd.army.mil/Periodical%20Library/haf-2021-report.pdf
Bio:
Dr. Theresa Jackson Santo is the Division Chief of the Public Health Assessment Division within the Health Promotion and Wellness Directorate at the United States Army Public Health Center in Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD. Her division’s mission is to build, document, and apply the evidence base of community-based programs, policies, and practices within the U.S. Army. Her multidisciplinary team of more than 2 dozen scientists, epidemiologists, program evaluators, and public health practitioners executes formative and summative evaluations for a multitude of interventions each year within the United States Army. These projects strive to systematically assess what’s working, what’s not, and how the Army’s public health enterprise can be improved to best meet Soldiers’ needs and achieve favorable outcomes. Dr. Santo holds a Master of Public Health from the University of North Carolina and a PhD in Public Health from the University of Maryland. Her professional passions include mixed methods designs, survey development, applied program evaluation, and public health program planning. In her personal life, Dr. Santo has four children ages five and under, including her newest addition, Abigail, who was born in January of this year.
Ms. Laura A. Mitvalsky is the Director of the Health Promotion and Wellness Directorate at the United States Army Public Health Center in Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md. Her directorate’s mission is to advocate for global force fitness through strategically developing, integrating, standardizing and evaluating health promotion and wellness services within the Army public health system. Ms. Mitvalsky directs all programmatic and administrative activities for health promotion and wellness at Army Public Health Center and has enterprise oversight for four program areas within her directorate: Health Promotion Operations, Army Wellness Centers, Integrated Health Education, and Public Health Assessment. She leads approximately 75 scientists, program and policy officers, program developers, health educators, and more, across CONUS and OCONUS locations to realize the directorate’s vision and mission. She has served in this role for nearly 11 years; prior to this, she worked on various health promotion and wellness initiatives for the Army, including developing the Army’s first standardized commander’s councils to strategically and systematically integrate health, readiness and resilience at Army installations. In September 2019, she was named Aberdeen Proving Ground’s Supervisor of the Year in recognition of Women’s Equality Day. She was recognized then for her mentorship, positive guidance to employees, especially to female employees, both within and outside of the Army Public Health Center. Her professional passions include making strategic connections and taking a systems perspective to help individuals, units, and communities realize optimal health and wellness. Ms. Mitvalsky is a Florida native and spent many years living overseas. She is the proud parent of two college-aged children.
LTC Virgil Rivera
LTC Virgil Rivera is currently serving as the deputy chief for the Health Education and Application Division under the Health Promotion and Wellness Directorate. His primary duties are focused across a variety of Army enterprise level projects. Additionally, he has been selected to serve as the lead action officer for the Health of the Army Family strategic objective. LTC Rivera is a board certified diplomate and supervisory licensed clinical social worker where he recently completed the Child and Family Fellowship under the National Capital Consortium, Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. Some of his previous assignments include chief of the Family Advocacy Program behavioral health service line at Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center, behavioral health officer for the 3d Cavalry Regiment, deputy chief for the Health Facilities and Plans office for Regional Health Command Europe (formerly Europe Regional Medical Command), aide-de-camp, and platoon leader during his time with the 173rd Airborne Brigade in Vicenza, Italy. He graduated with a bachelor’s of science from Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio and completed the U.S. Army masters in social work program at Joint Base San Antonio. He is also a graduate of the U.S. Army Medical Department Captains Career Course, Command and General Staff College, and has deployed twice to Afghanistan. LTC Rivera is a first generation Army officer and third generation soldier as his family originates from the Philippines. His late grandfather was a Philippine Scout and a survivor of the Bataan Death March while his late father served in the signal community during the Cold War period. He is married to LTC Kelly Rivera who is also a U.S. Army social work officer and they have two children.
Thursday Mar 03, 2022
Thursday Mar 03, 2022
Description: Rylie, a cadet at the West Point Prep School, chats about her experience with MCEC’s Student to Student and how it has influenced her future.
Show Notes:
https://www.westpoint.edu/usmaps
https://www.militarychild.org/programs/student-2-student
Bio:
Hi! My name is Rylie and I attend the United States Military Academy Preparatory School (USMAPS/ Prep School). I am a military child. Within my life I have moved 7 times and have attended 6 different schools. I first joined the Student 2 Student program in 8th grade and have been an active member all throughout high school. Being apart of the Student 2 Student program has taught me several valuable life skills I still use to help me succeed within USMAPS.
Thursday Feb 24, 2022
Thursday Feb 24, 2022
Mil-Kid Tyler and his dad, share their experience of exploring ROTC programs and the Army Service Academy.
Show Notes:
West Point Summer Leader experience: https://www.westpoint.edu/admissions/summer-program?gclid=CjwKCAiA9tyQBhAIEiwA6tdCrExoQnrhKQUts-ch-oz40D1sQBjjURwYFuCtoT7mTlIN-s3znXmVqxoCpGYQAvD_BwE
DOD INSTRUCTION 6130.03, VOLUME 1 MEDICAL STANDARDS FOR MILITARY SERVICE: APPOINTMENT, ENLISTMENT, OR INDUCTION: https://www.esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/DD/issuances/dodi/613003v1p.PDF?ver=7cPFjXiGqfqNSF2HHw-X6w%3D%3D
West Point Application Timeline: https://www.westpoint.edu/sites/default/files/pdfs/ADMISSIONS/Admissions%20Timeline.pdf
College Application Process Webinar https://events-na5.adobeconnect.com/content/connect/c1/968319730/en/events/event/private/1825780098/3001957119/event_registration.html?sco-id=3157525450&_charset_=utf-8
Bio: Tyler
Tyler is currently a sophomore at the United States Military Academy and majoring in Economics. He grew up as a military child in the Army and had seven moves before he entered West Point. His choice to attend a service academy built upon a family tradition of service, as his father, grandfather and great-grandfather were all career military officers. He hopes that his experience applying to both USMA and Army ROTC can help others navigate the unique requirements of those and similar programs.