Photo By Staff Sgt. Magen M. Reeves | Stephanie Grout, 325th Force Support Squadron school liaison program manager, walks...... read more read more
Subscribe
The 325th Force Support Squadron has many different support functions including helping Airmen and their families navigate the ever changing world of family support and child care.
Tyndall Air Force Base’s Child and Youth Programs umbrella includes several different aspects of child and family welfare such as the school liaison program.
“My role is to assist and support inbound and outbound Airmen with their educational transition needs [for children],” said Stephanie Grout, 325th FSS school liaison program manager. “I also serve as an educational informant for leadership on base providing a bridge between the base leadership and the school district.”
Grout helps families navigate transitional periods such as a permanent change of station or changing schools within a district. Grout also assists with children in an Individualized Education Program, a plan or program developed specifically to help with an identified disability focused on specialized instruction and other needs, and children of deployed members. These factors can affect a child’s behavior in school, academic eligibility, enrollment, placement and graduation.
Tyndall is located within the Bay School District, which has 36 schools comprised of approximately 27,000 students, near 5,000 of which are military dependents.
“We have had to build strong relationships and find out what we can do together,” said Tammy Turnmeyer, 325th FSS CYP flight chief. “We’ve done mentoring, worked with the district and collaborated to offer education based camps.”
This network has led to a plethora of scholarships, mutually beneficial in-school programs for both military and civilian students, mentorship programs and supportive volunteer opportunities.
A few of the initiatives introduced include the A+ Toolkit, an Air University hosted platform, which helps depict positive educational facts and statistics, and Anchored for Life, a one-on-one mentorship program designed to be a long-term relationship between mentor and mentee.
“Military child [care and support] is becoming a more structured program to help with continuity and to be more consistent so it’s easier for parents,” said Turnmeyer.
Military children often times have to deal with military-related issues or stressors that can differ from their civilian peers. In an effort to strengthen positive enforcements, Grout and her team are continuously looking for new and sustainable ways the integrate service members into the educational community.
“It takes all of us to navigate the current mental health crisis, by getting back to the basics of kindness, communicating effectively, being present and making positive waves,” said Grout. “The whole community has to come together do whatever we can and that allows everyone to grow.”
| Date Taken: | 01.31.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 01.31.2022 17:17 |
| Story ID: | 413742 |
| Location: | TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, FLORIDA, US |
| Web Views: | 42 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Supporting Tyndall’s military children, by SSgt Magen M. Reeves, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
