A Little Goes a Long Way: Highly Mobile Military-Connected Parents’ and Students’ Perspectives on School Supports for School Transitions

In the United States, military service members and their families move often. High rates of mobility in military-connected (MC) families means frequent school changes, which can take a toll on children. There is a nascent but growing literature on the role that school supports can play in helping MC children with school transitions. To better understand the role of school supports for MC students and families who frequently change schools, we interviewed 40 MC families with elementary and middle school aged children. Analysis of these qualitative data yielded the following themes: (a) with each move, MC parents faced navigating rocky academic transitions; (b) they also observed the heavy emotional toll on their children; (c) for both parents and students, making new social connections is critical to a successful transition; (d) even small gestures of understanding and acts of support by school staff were appreciated by MC families; and (e) most MC families, though not all, emphasized the value of military-specific school supports.