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The U.S. Department of Defense Education Activity (DODEA) reports that military kids move six to nine times during their school years. For parents, this is a daunting statistic, as each school environment affects children's educational careers.
While interruptions aren’t ideal, each PCS move allows a military family the opportunity to try new schools that meet their kids' needs. Ultimately, the intent is to choose the best school that readily mixes with other important factors, such as BAH, neighborhood culture, and commute times.
It’s not easy to parent military children during a PCS transition because the big decisions like when and where to move to and from aren’t entirely in mom or dad’s control. Choosing a school that meets their needs is one of the best ways to support military kids during a PCS move.
School Deadlines and Networking
Military families often rely on the personal experiences of others to determine the best way to begin their school hunt, but there are research tools designed to simplify and streamline the process. During the search, two factors remain steadfast when school shopping: timeliness and word-of-mouth reviews.
Timelines for PCS School Transition
There will always be a school registration deadline, regardless of the school type—public, private, or homeschooling. In particular, the most popular magnet or charter schools often require a lottery for acceptance and specific registration dates that can open as early as the winter before the following fall school year. It’s wise to understand those processes as soon as the "Where are we moving next?" questions begin.
Personal School Reviews
Personal experiences and referrals from friends are invaluable. Begin networking and exploring. Read blogs, Facebook pages, and neighborhood forums relevant to the new school zones. Post a general inquiry about what the schools are like in the area, and the answers will pour in.
Parents love to talk about their kids’ lives! Examine the general trend and ignore the worst and best comments to formulate an opinion based on the overall tone of the reviews.
Learn more here about the Youth Sponsorship Program, designed to help military children adjust to a new location.
The Best Places to Research Schools
Use this PCS school checklist, filled with trusted resources for military kids, which helps each move and school roundup feel a little less mysterious. Start with these websites to build a school research strategy.
State-to-state moves are more complicated than intra-state moves. For example, the knowledge gained from the school district in California will likely not be relevant to the new school system in Florida.
This Department of Education site compiles important testing scores, national rankings, and state comparisons. It allows parents to see how public and private schools stack up by assembling results from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP).
The Military Child Education Coalition provides families with this resource to navigate the entire moving process, not only school searches. In addition to an extensive library full of military child-related topics, there are many articles on easing transitions to a new home and a new school. There is also a guide to understanding the Military Interstate Children’s Compact Commission.
State Boards of Education explain an overall view of education philosophies and goals for each school year. Budget information and state standard testing information are also available. The local school district websites describe in detail a wide variety of topics, from specialized education programs to before- and after-school care to school boundary calculators. Don’t underestimate the importance of investigating boundary lines and proposed future changes.
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Local School Resources
The best information is probably right outside the front door. Don’t ignore local resources; they provide the little details that big resources don’t include.
Neighborhood News Outlets
Online newspapers report on school happenings. In addition, local news websites such as Patch relay neighborhood and school events weekly, often with an archive of previous stories. This is an efficient way to learn about school-specific issues, such as scheduled building improvements or the new bell schedule that will take effect at the high school.
In-Person Visits
Military families should consider visiting prospective schools for a tour and scheduling time for questions with the principal. During the meeting, talk about the average number of children in a class, extracurricular opportunities, curriculum inquiries, and other pertinent military child programs.
Parent Organizations
PTAs and PTOs provide information regarding parental involvement, fundraising needs, and representation at school board meetings. Some may even have a committee, like a welcome wagon for new military families, providing useful school and neighborhood information.
School Liaison Officer
Most military installations provide a School Liaison Officer (SLO) to help navigate the school transition process for military children and their specific needs, including learning about enrolling in DODEA schools and their individual requirements.
The SLO can also offer advice on private and public school research and homeschool activities, and often has relationships with local principals and teachers.
Well-known school ranking sites such as GreatSchools and SchoolDigger are also helpful for a military family to gather more information about specific schools, their rankings, and family reviews, but often don’t provide the full picture of each school.
Use the many resources for military families, along with this checklist, to find a school where military kids can thrive!
By Dawn M. Smith
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