School liaison officer helps families move forward

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Zachary Perras
  • 354th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
EIELSON AIR FORCE BASE, Alaska --  The military lifestyle is defined by transitions - from deployments to changing duty stations, movement is constant.

For dependents of military members, particularly children, the continuous change presents unique challenges. Arriving at a new school can be stressful, and because of this, the Air Force established the school liaison officer position to ease children through the transition between bases.

Deanna Croxen, 354th Mission Support Group SLO, said the critical aspects of the position helps assist families with developmental, emotional, physical and intellectual challenges regarding their children during a time of change.

This assistance helps carry the Air Force mission forward, Croxen said.

"When a family is taken care of, [Airmen] are empowered and focused on the mission," she explained. "Building a resilient Air Force family is key to our success."

Croxen said the purpose of the position is to promote and institutionalize systems which improve transitional support for military families by establishing partnerships between the base and local schools.

The SLO advocates for the educational needs of military children and develops initiatives that increase awareness of the needs of children and their families. They act as representatives to provide aid in addressing and resolving educational issues in accordance with all policies in the school children attend.

When military families move, they encounter different schools throughout different states. Each potentially has different registration processes, course offerings or graduation requirements. Since this can be overwhelming, the SLO is available to ensure successful change.

"Under the [Pacific Air Forces] Strategy Construct, we are challenged to ... build resilient Airmen," Croxen said. "Each day that I am able to assist a family, I enable this key component of our mission. I, and many others, contribute to this each and every day."

Families are encouraged to contact the SLO at 377-4795 with any questions or concerns in order to ease the transition for children to a new school.