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Supporting Military-Connected Students Through Connection

Published on July 8, 2026

A schoolgirl with her classmate are walking on the street after school with their homework and backpacks.

All students experience transitions during their school years. They move from one grade to the next, adjust to new teachers and routines, and eventually transition into new school buildings with different schedules, expectations, and peer groups. With consistent support, many students adjust to these changes over time.

Military-connected students may experience additional transitions that many of their peers do not. These transitions can include frequent school changes, parental deployment or separation, shifting family routines, and adjustment to new communities. School professionals cannot eliminate all of these challenges, but they can create consistent, supportive structures that make school feel more predictable and connected.

One strategy schools can use is mentoring.

Mentoring creates structured opportunities for connection. School-based mentoring programs pair students with peers or supportive adults to improve academic, behavioral, social, or emotional outcomes. For military-connected students, mentoring can provide structure during transitions, help students learn school routines, and offer a reliable point of connection in a new environment.

Research suggests that mentoring programs can support school connectedness, improve attitudes toward self and others, and promote a stronger sense of belonging (Karcher, 2008). Mentoring has also been associated with increased self-esteem, social support, empathy, and cooperation (Portwood et al., 2005). For a student who is new to a school or community, a mentor can be someone to ask questions, sit with at lunch, or explain school routines. For a student experiencing a parent’s deployment or another family transition, mentoring can provide consistency and a positive connection at school.

Mentoring programs do not need to be large or complicated. Schools can adapt existing structures to support military-connected students, such as student ambassador programs, cross-age buddy systems, peer support programs, or small-group lunch opportunities. Even simple, well-planned approaches can help students build positive relationships and feel more connected to school.

Mentoring programs often include the following elements, including:

School oversight and involvement in the program (Burton et al., 2022).
Consistent staff support for mentors and mentees (Burton et al., 2022).
Structured meetings that consider the mentee’s interests and preferences (Rhodes & DuBois, 2008).
Training and ongoing guidance for mentors, as identified by Karcher (2008) and Rhodes and DuBois (2008).
Mentors who demonstrate positive social behaviors and attitudes (Burton et al., 2022).
Cross-age peer mentoring, in which the mentor is older than the mentee (Burton et al., 2022).
Opportunities for group activities or shared experiences (Rhodes & DuBois, 2008).
Mentoring relationships that continue over time, ideally for at least one school year (Rhodes & DuBois, 2008).

Schools do not need to start from scratch. In many cases, mentoring opportunities can be built into existing systems. For example, schools might:

Pair newly enrolled military-connected students with trained student ambassadors.
Create structured lunch groups for students who are new to the school.
Use cross-age mentoring between older and younger students, such as a “book buddies” program.
Train peer mentors to help students understand school routines, expectations, and available supports.
Connect students with a trusted adult or peer mentor during times of transition.

Before beginning or expanding a mentoring effort, schools can consider the following planning questions:

How often will mentors and mentees meet?
What activities or discussion topics will guide meetings?
Who will supervise and support mentors?
How will students be identified for mentoring?
How will the school support positive mentoring relationships?
How will staff know whether the mentoring structure is helping students feel more connected?

Thoughtful planning can help schools address common implementation challenges and increase the likelihood that mentoring efforts can be sustained and support students.

Schools interested in strengthening support for military-connected students can use the professional learning modules available on the School Resources website. The modules address military culture and common experiences of military-connected students, including transitions, deployment-related stress, and family separation. School Resources also offers peer mentoring training for those interested in learning more.

Educators can also sign up for the School Resources newsletter to receive updates about new training opportunities and materials.

Reference(s):

Burton, S., Raposa, E. B., Poon, C. Y. S., Stams, G. J. J. M., & Rhodes, J. (2022). Cross-age peer mentoring for youth: A meta-analysis. American Journal of Community Psychology, 70(1–2), 211–227. https://doi.org/10.1002/ajcp.12579

Karcher, M. J. (2008). The study of mentoring in the learning environment (SMILE): A randomized evaluation of the effectiveness of school-based mentoring. Prevention Science, 9(2), 99–113. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-008-0083-z

Portwood, S. G., Ayers, P. M., Kinnison, K. E., Waris, R. G., & Wise, D. L. (2005). YouthFriends: Outcomes from a school-based mentoring program. The Journal of Primary Prevention, 26(2), 129–188. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10935-005-1975-3

Rhodes, J. E., & DuBois, D. L. (2008). Mentoring relationships and programs for youth. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 17(4), 254–258. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8721.2008.00585.x

Bridging the Summer Gap: Strengthening Family–School Partnerships for Military-Connected Students

Published on June 5, 2026

Preschool teacher in kindergarten classroom greeting new student, helping to easily assimilate with others.

As the school year comes to a close, educators are often focused on finishing end-of-year responsibilities, celebrating student growth, and preparing for the year ahead. Summer can be a welcome season of rest, family time, and new experiences. For some students and families, it can also bring changes in routines, reduced access to school-based supports, and new responsibilities at home.

For military-connected students, summer may also overlap with Permanent Change of Station (PCS) moves, training schedules, parental deployment, reintegration, or other military-related transitions. These experiences look different for every family. Many military-connected students bring important strengths, including adaptability, responsibility, flexibility, and experience navigating change. At the same time, frequent transitions and separations can create stressors that affect students across home, school, and community settings (Palmer, 2008).

Resilience is often described as a student’s ability to adapt during challenge. Developmental research suggests that resilience grows through the supports, relationships, routines, and resources surrounding the student (Bronfenbrenner, 1977; Masten, 2014). In other words, students are strengthened by the people and systems around them, including families, educators, peers, schools, and communities.

For school personnel, this is encouraging. Summer support does not always require a new program or a large initiative. One meaningful way to support military-connected students is to strengthen family-school partnerships before, during, and after summer transitions.

Family-School Communication as a Bridge

Strong family-school partnerships help students feel known, supported, and connected. When educators and families communicate consistently, schools are better able to understand student strengths, anticipate needs, and provide timely support. This can be especially valuable for military-connected families who may be preparing for a move, adjusting to a parent’s absence, welcoming a parent home, or navigating changes in family routines.

Research on military-connected youth highlights the importance of developmental supports such as competence, confidence, character, connection, contribution, coping, and control (Easterbrooks et al., 2013). Schools can help strengthen these supports by creating communication routines that are predictable, respectful, and easy for families to access. Even small gestures can make a difference. A timely update, a positive message, a clear point of contact, or a welcome note before the school year begins can help families feel connected to the school community.

Family-school communication can also serve as a continuity-of-support strategy. Summer may pause many school-based routines, but it does not have to pause connection. When schools maintain simple communication practices, families know where to find information, who to contact, and how the school will welcome their child back in the fall. When families share important context, educators gain a fuller picture of what a student may be experiencing outside the classroom.

Building on Family Strengths

Military families often bring strong internal resources, including problem-solving skills, flexibility, commitment to service, and connection to military and community networks. Research has shown that military-connected youth and families can demonstrate resilience even when facing elevated levels of stress or risk (Sullivan et al., 2021). Schools can support this resilience by engaging families as partners and recognizing the strengths they already bring.

This strengths-based approach matters. Family-school communication is most helpful when it is balanced, welcoming, and relationship-centered. Families benefit from hearing about student progress, effort, strengths, and positive moments, as well as concerns. When communication happens regularly and respectfully, families are more likely to experience the school as a supportive partner.

For military-connected families, this kind of partnership can offer reassurance during times of change. It communicates an important message: your child is known here, your family is welcome here, and we are ready to support you.

Practical Ways Schools Can Support Summer Continuity

Building strong family partnerships can begin with small, intentional actions. These efforts help families feel welcomed, informed, and supported during times when school routines may feel farther away.

Schools and educators might consider:

Sending positive updates to families before the school year ends
Sharing summer resources, community programs, or school-based points of contact
Keeping classroom or school websites updated with key information when possible
Sending welcome messages before the new school year begins
Encouraging families to share upcoming transitions, concerns, or questions
Creating consistent routines for email, phone, text, or website communication
Documenting important conversations so student context can follow the student across staff members, grade levels, or schools

These actions can help maintain a sense of connection during a season that may feel less structured for some students and families. They can also help schools begin the next academic year with stronger relationships, better information, and clearer pathways for support.

Helpful Trainings

The School Resources to Support Military-Connected Students website includes trainings designed to help school professionals strengthen family-school communication. These resources may be especially useful for educators, counselors, administrators, and support staff working with military-connected students and families.

School professionals who want to build a strong foundation may begin with:

Educators who want to choose the right communication method may find these trainings helpful:

School personnel supporting families through sensitive or complex situations may also benefit from:

Educators who want to provide families with consistent access to classroom information may find Using a Classroom Website especially useful.

Together, these trainings can help school professionals communicate in ways that are consistent, respectful, practical, and responsive to family needs.

Conclusion

Meaningful support for military-connected students grows from the strength of the relationships and systems surrounding them. During summer transitions, family-school partnerships can serve as an important bridge between the school year that ended and the one about to begin.

Summer support does not always require a new program. Sometimes, the most helpful step is making sure families know who to contact, where to find reliable information, and how the school will welcome their child back in the fall. By strengthening communication routines and engaging families as partners, schools can become a steady source of connection and support for military-connected students throughout the year.

If your school or team has questions about strengthening family partnerships, supporting military-connected students, or locating appropriate resources, we encourage you to reach out to us at schoolresources@psu.edu. We’d love to help.

Reference(s):

Bronfenbrenner, U. (1977). Toward an experimental ecology of human development. American Psychologist, 32(7), 513–531. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.32.7.513

Easterbrooks, M. A., Ginsburg, K., & Lerner, R. M. (2013). Resilience among military youth. The Future of Children, 23(2), 99–120.

Garbacz, S. A., Minch, D. R., Jordan, P., Young, K., & Weist, M. D. (2020). Moving towards meaningful and significant family partnerships in education. Adolescent Psychiatry, 13(2), 110–122. https://doi.org/10.2174/2210676610666200324113209

Masten, A. S. (2014). Global perspectives on resilience in children and youth. Child Development, 85(1), 6–20. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.12205

Masten, A. S., & Cicchetti, D. (2010). Developmental cascades. Development and Psychopathology, 22(3), 491–495. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0954579410000222

Palmer, C. (2008). A theory of risk and resilience factors in military families. Military Psychology, 20(3), 205–217. https://doi.org/10.1080/08995600802118858

Sullivan, K. S., Hawkins, S. A., Gilreath, T. D., & Castro, C. A. (2021). Mental health outcomes associated with risk and resilience among military-connected youth. Family Process, 60(2), 507–522. https://doi.org/10.1111/famp.12596

Reducing the Hidden Demands of Student Transitions

Published on May 14, 2026

Teenagers unpacking boxes in a living room

For many military-connected students, change is a regular part of life. Students may experience Permanent Change of Station (PCS) moves, school changes, parental deployment, training-related separations, reintegration, or shifts in daily family routines. Many military-connected students develop strong adaptability through these experiences. Even so, repeated transitions can create extra demands that affect learning, behavior, relationships, and well-being.

These demands can be practical, emotional, social, and academic. A student entering a new school may need to learn a new schedule, find classrooms, understand different academic expectations, adjust to new teaching styles, join established peer groups, and learn the norms of a new school community. A student experiencing deployment or reintegration may also be adjusting to changes at home, shifting family roles, worry about a parent or caregiver who is a Service member, or changes in routines that once felt predictable.

School professionals can support students by reducing unnecessary uncertainty, building early connections, and making routines, expectations, and support pathways easier to understand from the start.

Understanding Transition-Related Demands

Transitions affect students in different ways. Some students may feel excited about a new school, new opportunities, or a fresh start. Others may feel anxious, lonely, frustrated, sad, or uncertain. A transition that feels manageable for one student may feel overwhelming for another.

This is especially important for military-connected students because transitions may occur more often, may happen during the school year, and may overlap with other stressors. A school change, for example, may be more difficult when a student is also experiencing deployment-related worry, changes in family routines, separation from familiar friends, or adjustment to a new community.

Military connection provides important context, but each student’s needs should be understood individually. Many military-connected students move through transitions with confidence and strong support. Others may benefit from additional help. School professionals can begin with strong universal supports and use individual evidence of need to determine when more targeted support may be helpful.

Making the Invisible Parts of School Visible

Every school has routines, expectations, traditions, and informal norms that returning students may already understand. New students may need those expectations explained directly. This can include where to go in the morning, how lunch works, what to do when help is needed, how assignments are submitted, how teachers communicate with families, and what students are expected to do during transitions between classes.

School professionals can reduce uncertainty by:

Greeting new students warmly and consistently.
Explaining routines before expecting independence.
Providing a simple orientation or welcome checklist.
Giving students a clear point of contact for questions.
Checking in during the first few weeks of enrollment.
Helping teachers understand information that may support a smooth transition.
Asking families what has helped during previous school changes.

These supports may seem small, but small sources of clarity can reduce the amount of energy students spend trying to figure out how school works. That gives students more capacity to focus on learning and relationships.

Helping Students Build Early Connections

A sense of connection can help students participate in class, seek help, and build confidence in a new environment. Students who feel known, welcomed, and included may be better positioned to adjust during periods of change.

Schools can help students build early connections through buddy systems, student ambassadors, small-group activities, classroom routines that encourage peer interaction, and regular adult check-ins. These practices can be especially helpful for students who arrive mid-year, when peer groups and classroom routines are already established.

Connection also includes relationships with adults. A brief check-in from a teacher, counselor, school psychologist, school social worker, administrator, or other trusted staff member can help a student know who to approach when questions or concerns arise. For some students, this relationship may provide enough support. For others, it may help school staff identify when additional support is needed.

Using Predictability as a Support

Predictability can help students feel more secure during periods of change. When life outside of school feels uncertain, consistent school routines can provide stability.

Teachers and staff can support predictability by clearly explaining classroom rules, following consistent routines, previewing changes when possible, and using visual schedules or reminders. When routines need to change, a brief explanation can help students prepare and adjust.

Predictability allows students to know what to expect, what is expected of them, and where to go for help. For students experiencing transition-related stress, that clarity can make the school day feel more manageable.

Matching Support to Student Need

Some students may benefit from additional support during a transition. School counselors, school psychologists, school social workers, and other support staff may offer individual check-ins, small-group support, coping skill instruction , family communication, or referrals to school or community resources when needed.

The level of support should match the student’s individual situation. Military-connected students may share some common experiences, but each student’s response to transition depends on many factors, including age, temperament, prior experiences, family support, peer relationships, academic needs, and the nature of the transition.

A strong approach begins with universal supports for all students and adds more targeted supports when there is evidence that a student needs more help. This helps schools respond with care while avoiding assumptions based only on military-connected status.

Creating Transition-Ready Systems

Because all students experience transitions, schools benefit from having systems in place before individual concerns arise. A transition-ready school builds routines that make entry, adjustment, and connection easier for every student.

Schools can prepare by creating:

A new-student welcome process.
A checklist for orienting students and families.
A plan for sharing relevant information with teachers.
A predictable schedule for follow-up check-ins.
A process for identifying students who may need additional support.
Staff learning opportunities focused on military-connected student experiences.

These systems can support military-connected students while also strengthening the school environment for any student navigating change.

Resources to Support Military-Connected Students

Educators do not have to build these supports alone. The School Resources website offers professional learning and practical tools focused on military culture, deployment, transitions, resilience and well-being, and other experiences that may affect military-connected students.

These resources can help school professionals better understand military-connected student experiences, strengthen schoolwide supports, and identify practical strategies that fit the school environment.

By reducing unnecessary uncertainty, strengthening connections, and establishing clear support pathways, school personnel can help students feel safer, more connected, and better prepared to learn during periods of change.

Beyond the Gates: Finding Community and Support as a Military-Connected Child

Published on April 13, 2026

This guest blog was written by Mary Kemmer, a Penn State student and proud military-connected child.

Families serve, too. They face the demands of military life, serving their country as they are challenged by new duty stations, uncertainties, and commitments. They do the emotional labor of supporting servicemembers and making a nomadic life more sustainable. As a child of an Army officer, I saw the service of the military family in action, not just as they elevated morale and ensured mission readiness, but as they did the work of friends, neighbors, and community members. Military families and children serve their country, but they also serve one another.

In 2014, my family moved to Newport, Rhode Island while my father attended the Naval War College. A nine month program, most families spend about a year in the area, making friends with classmates and remaining embedded in the military community through a common purpose. We spent our year on an island called Jamestown, attending a civilian public elementary school but associating, primarily, with our friends and community of military-connected peers from the War College. After my father’s graduation, however, he received unaccompanied orders. These orders meant two things: that I would spend the next year of my life without my dad and that my mother, sister, and I would remain in Rhode Island while our friends—our support system, our community, and our chosen family—moved away.

Our military community PCS’d, and we were left to navigate civilian life on our own. I remember sitting in a parent-teacher conference with my mom during that fall, trying to answer to my fifth grade teacher about “why it sometimes appeared that I wasn’t focusing during class.” I blamed it on my dad’s absence and the conversation moved on. My teacher was a well-meaning woman with high expectations for her students and a solid grasp on the needs of Jamestown’s community but who was unprepared to support a military-connected child in her classroom.

That year was a challenge; my family needed support but had few opportunities to receive it. In my experience, the military family can find themselves stuck in a limbo when stationed stateside—they’re still away from home and subject to the uncertainty and challenges of military life but may have limited access to the community and neighbors who can help. This meant that my mother single-parented without the community of people who understood what it meant to be military-connected. My sister and I navigated a school that wasn’t built to include us and tried to make friends with kids who told us they “already had enough.”

There was one other family, though. A retired Navy family, they were permanent to Jamestown, so they hadn’t moved away when the rest of our friends were reassigned. During one of the hardest years of my childhood they did what the military community does best—they stepped up. Under their wing, I spent countless hours after school watching movies, learning, playing, being a kid, and receiving the support I needed. Their home became my safe place because it was filled with people who knew what it was like to miss a parent on orders and how hard it was to find a place in the Jamestown community. In many ways, their kindness compels me to work for and with military-connected children now. I know what it means to feel seen and supported by one of our own and, as a military child, that is a special power and experience I now hold.

After our time in Rhode Island, my family spent seven years stationed 4,000 miles away from familiar restaurants, pastimes, people, and schools. Luckily, we were deeply embedded in the military community. Like that Navy family on Jamestown, the military community filled in and stepped up: neighbors celebrated holidays together, classmates’ parents stitched together a support network, and formal supports like Army Community Service and Military Family Life Counselors eagerly served the families that serve, too.

My experience changed again when I was pulled back into civilian life as I began my freshman year at Penn State. As I had in Rhode Island, I felt the profound absence of my military community; I left a lifestyle, camaraderie, and sense of purpose when I moved to Pennsylvania. When you live the first eighteen years of your life behind post gates, you don’t realize how they’ve shaped your sense of self, safety, and daily life until they’re gone. The quirks of military life disappear and so do the people, leaving you with the experiences and memories of a military childhood without the people who can empathize. As such, I began to look for the people and programs who understood my experiences as a military child amongst my new Penn State community.

The military-connected students I met became my support network, empathizing with the challenges of navigating GI-Bill benefits, traveling internationally to get home, having a parent retire from the Army, and returning to a country I’d been so far from for so much of my life. I found my military community in a civilian world. My support network grew once more when I received the opportunity to work with the Clearinghouse for Military Family Readiness. For me, the Clearinghouse acts as a bridge between my past and what I envision for the future of the military-connected community.

Approximately 80% of military-connected students attend K-12 U.S. public schools, warranting the training and preparation of the educators who support them. I picture children like myself and my sister, challenged by military life and in need of friends, teachers, and professionals who know how to help. I’m reminded of that parent-teacher conference that fell short, and I wish that my teacher had known what to say to meet my needs. I’m lucky, though, because now I get to collaborate with the people who are working to ensure military-connected students don’t share my experience. Resources from the Clearinghouse ensure all teachers—not just those who have a military-connected background in common with their students—can support military-connected children. I believe these steps will ensure families like mine are supported and prepared to meet the challenges that lie ahead of them.

It’s true that military families serve their country and each other. It’s true that the community is strong, unfailingly generous, and cultivated through shared lived-experience and purpose. I also think, however, it’s true that through increased visibility and research, our community is growing to include those beyond post gates.

Storytelling & Student Voice

Published on April 8, 2026

Female caucasian elementary school student with long blond hair holding papers and walking to class.

April is recognized as the Month of the Military Child. This recognition creates a specific and special time to acknowledge and appreciate the resilience of students in military families and learn about their experiences. Military-connected students may navigate frequent moves, school changes, and separation from loved ones during deployments. These stressors can contribute to difficulties students may experience in managing or adapting to academic and social environments. Many schools are already aware of these challenges; however, the appreciation that the Month of the Military Child features can offer school professionals opportunities to refresh resources pertaining to military-connected students, focus on education about military culture and the impacts on students, and creatively consider how military-connected students’ experiences can be highlighted and valued in school communities.

While military-connected students often face many challenges, they should never be defined by their limitations or barriers. Military-connected students bring unique perspectives and strengths to school environments, and encouraging them to talk about and share their experiences can be beneficial for them, their classmates, and the school community. Offering these diverse perspectives can build connection and belonging among military-connected students and their peers and foster confidence and resilience in all students.

Schoolwide Opportunities

Observe the Month of the Military Child by holding events such as PurpleUp! Day to raise awareness and show visible support for military-connected students. Schools could create bulletin boards, include special morning announcements, or organize assemblies that highlight student experiences and contributions. Teachers, on a more personal level, could incorporate prompts that invite military-connected students to share their experiences, such as discussing places they have lived, what students want people to know about them, or an event or circumstance that makes them proud, in writing assignments, art projects, or presentations.

Small-Group Interventions

For military-connected students who are new to an area due to geographic transitions, include these students in a supportive small peer group, such as a lunch bunch or a more formal friendship skills group. Students experiencing difficulties due to a parent’s deployment, injury, or death may benefit from participating in a support group or a grief group. Engaging in small groups can help encourage military-connected students to share their experiences and make connections without feeling pressured to share on a wider scale.

Partnering with Families

Families can be valuable sources of information about military experiences and can help schools understand what support might look like for their child. Schools could invite family input through surveys, informal conversations, or participation in school events. Teachers could invite parents to come in and answer student questions about military service, life in other countries, or other topics related to their work experience.

Inviting military-connected students and families to share their experiences and build connections in schools commemorates the Month of the Military Child. School personnel may want to refresh their knowledge of topics related to military-connected students. Informal or formal trainings for teachers and school staff can increase awareness, promote empathy, and highlight strategies that can be used to expand student well-being. Whichever events or activities you and your school choose to engage in to support military-connected students this April, remember, carrying awareness and encouragement forward throughout the rest of the year is the main goal. Creating spaces for military-connected students to share their experiences and ensuring teachers and staff understand the specific needs of military-connected students will build a school community where every student is supported.

More resources on supporting military-connected students can be found here, and a short guide to creating small-group interventions can be found here.