Streamlining schools: an interstate compact
Transferring to a new school system can cause head- aches for many military children and families. More than half of military personnel support families, and the effects of permanent-change-of-station (PCS) moves and deploy- ments on children can have a significant impact on the long-term life choices of military families, according to the Council of State Governments. Most military children will attend schools in six to nine different school systems between kindergarten and 12th grade, and 70 percent of military children go to schools in their communities rather than on military installations. As a result, they’re affected by different policies among schools. In high school alone, the average military child faces transition more than twice. To address the disparity, MOAA and organizations such as the Military Child Education Coalition first identified several state-specific school policies as the biggest frustra- tions for military children and then helped sponsor legis- lation. MOAA chapters banded together nationwide and are continuing to lobby state legislatures for standards that streamline the school-transition process. By signing the Interstate Compact for Educational
Opportunities for Military Children, states agree to eliminate obstacles like enrollment, placement, and graduation requirements when a military family has to
PCS to another state. States also contribute $1 per mili- tary child to participate in the compact. Grassroots lobbying campaigns by MOAA’s strong net-
work of affiliated chapters swept the country in 2009 and 2010. Members of MOAA’s 414 chapters called or wrote their state legislators and got their states on board. Some states faced unique hurdles. For example, if a state had thousands of military children, the $1-per-child fee for compact membership became a significant funding issue. Persistence has paid off, says Ed Kringer, director of
DoD’s state liaison office. Kringer particularly was pleased with MOAA’s Wisconsin Council of Chapters for its work. Wisconsin only has 700 military children, but gaining a voice for them was essential. “Although the compact has received critical sup-
port from MOAA chapters in many states, what comes especially to mind are last year’s efforts by [Lt. Col.] Rick DeMoya [USA-Ret.] and the Wisconsin chapters,” Kringer says. “We had basically run out of airspeed, and without their efforts, the compact would not have passed and been adopted [in Wisconsin] last year.” For the 2011 legislative session, DoD again identified “school disruption” as a key quality-of-life issue for states to consider. To find out which states have signed, visit
www.moaa.org/interstatecompact.
54 MILITARY OFFICER APRIL 2011
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