Posts Tagged ‘schools’

Officials from 15 north Alabama school districts met with legislators Thursday to discuss how they could obtain a share of $175 million in funds to build and renovate schools trying to accommodate swelling enrollments due to BRAC growth at Redstone Arsenal. In April, the Alabama legislature amended the 2010 law establishing the state bonding authority to make it easier for the school systems to qualify …

The Defense Department recently awarded $60 million to upgrade and replace schools at two military installations, the first two grants under a $500 million federal appropriation intended to construct, renovate or expand facilities at 161 public schools located on military installations. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta announced the awards Tuesday at a seminar sponsored by the Military Child Education Coalition to demonstrate the department’s effort to invest in the education of military children …

The era when doctors routinely made house calls has long passed, but an Army program is paying for mental health professionals to visit on-base schools at Joint Base Lewis-McChord to work with children having trouble coping with their parents’ deployments and other issues. The specialists, which include clinical social workers and other experts, visit the six on-base elementary schools at the installation operated by the Clover Park School District. They provide individual therapy, family therapy, medication management and other treatment …

Gov. Deval Patrick signed legislation last week making Massachusetts the 43rd state to adopt an interstate agreement intended to smooth the transition between school districts when military children move. The Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for Military Children addresses key educational transition issues encountered by military families, including enrollment, class placement, attendance, graduation requirements, eligibility and extracurricular opportunities …

The Massachusetts Senate last week unanimously approved legislation extending benefits and increasing access to a range of services for military personnel, their families and veterans. The Valor Act would provide an array of benefits to help veterans and active military members obtain improved business, educational and housing opportunities …

In a letter sent in conjunction with the Month of the Military Child, Education Secretary Arne Duncan asks public school superintendents to better address the needs of military-connected students. “We want all military-connected school children to have an equal and fair opportunity for academic success. This requires that those individuals who make up our nation’s educational system — our teachers, principals, school nurses, coaches, and counselors — understand the unique situations the children of our service members experience …

Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal last week signed legislation making the state the 42nd to adopt an interstate agreement ensuring the uniform treatment of military children transferring between school districts. The goal of the Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for Military Children is to make transition easier so that military children — who typically attend from six to nine different school systems from K-12 — are afforded the same opportunities as other children …

While the House Armed Services’ Readiness Subcommittee on Friday rejected the Pentagon’s request for two new BRAC rounds, at the same time it called for GAO to review how defense communities that experienced significant mission growth in the past handled the associated strains on their transportation infrastructure, schools, utilities and housing. “Now that the Department of Defense has completed its fifth BRAC round and the potential exists for future infrastructure, force structure and installation mission changes, local communities may once again have to manage potentially significant installation change …

Military families living on installations should have more flexibility to choose the schools for their children when they attend schools operated by local school systems, according to report language in the portion of the draft fiscal 2013 defense authorization bill to be marked up today by the House Armed Services’ Military Personnel Subcommittee. While some school systems allow families to choose the particular school their children attend through inter- or intra-district transfer programs, many do not and are assigned schools based on geographic boundaries …

A measure providing bond money from the state of Alabama to school districts affected by BRAC mission growth was approved in committee this week and is expected to go to the House floor shortly. House Bill 407 would make it easier for school systems to qualify for special renovation or construction bonds by removing the requirement for the schools to first raise their sales or property tax rates …