School Liaison Naval Station Everett

Posted by Gary O'Rielly 
on Aug 6, 2013
 
Our guest speaker August 2nd was Jason Gooding, the Liaison Officer for Naval Station Everett. In the local area there are 1,500 military-connected students attending schools in the area. In Lake Stevens, there are 390 alone. Since military families move roughly every three years and their children attend up to nine schools over their Kindergarten through Senior year of school it is imperative that there is coordination between the Navy, local School Districts and the communities. As a School Liaison for Naval Station Everett, Jason assists military families transition into the local area schools, provide Special Education Systems navigation, facilitate Deployment Support and connect schools, military and community organizations to leverage resources.
 
According to an Army study in 2000 there are academic challenges faced by the transitioning children and youth. One of the major hurdles is the inconsistencies from state to state. Another is the stress on military kids who must be resilient in the face of a family member's deployment. Military families are assets not liabilities. These families gain insights from one another. Jason conducts school briefings for the schools so that they understand how these families are affected. Since family stress is difficult to deal with many times the teachers are the only alternative.

There is an emotional cycle revolving around deployment and tensions can build up before deployment and upon return as these families try to resume a normal routine. Jason noted that military students are likely to have more mental health visits than the regular area kids. There are seven core functions for the Navy School Liaison Officer: school transition services, deployment support, special ed system navigation, partners in education, post-secondary preparation, homeschool linkage and support & command, parent, educator and community liaison. Jason is in the process of starting a SeaPearch/ROV Program at Mt. Pilchuck Elementary--the one elementary school in our school district that has the highest percentage of children whose parents are service members. The program begins at the elementary level. This will help students with the S.T.E.M. curriculum and develop interest in robotics and water-based careers. There is a program like this attached to the Naval Station in Bremerton. This program has grown from about 200 students to over 2,000 in the past few years.

Jason was born in an army hospital in El Paso, Texas. He moved several times while still young before finding a permanent residence in the Seattle area. He has been a member of the Child and Youth Education Services team in his role as School Liaison Officer for the US Navy since June 2009. He has a Masters of Arts and Education Counseling from Seattle University and a Bachelors of Arts in Sociology from the University of Washington.