As Month of the Military Child comes to a close, there are several ways to incorporate the lessons that military children have learned through their connections to veterans and their families. One obstacle that many military-focused student groups face is event attendance. Oftentimes, these groups only cater to veterans on campus. However, the military family is much larger than just veterans. It includes spouses, dependents, and supporters. Military children, frequently the individual that faces both the civilian world and military world the most, have a lot of knowledge to share about how to cater to both populations. So, how should student veteran groups increase involvement across campus?

Research shows that only one half of 1% of Americans have served on active duty at any given time during the past decade, partly due to phasing out the military draft in 1973. Additionally, only 33% of young adults between the ages of 18 and 29 say they have an immediate family member who served in the military. As the veteran and military-affiliated population decreases in size, it could be expected that population attendance for military-focused events would also decrease. However, there are ways to mitigate this decrease and invite more people to these events. Rather than centering advertisements on attracting the attention of student veterans, groups and institutes of higher education can also try to find pockets of military-affiliated students and connect them with the military community on campus.

Generally, these military-affiliated students, military children in particular, could constitute a strong lead for increasing numbers at events, as well as provide them a group that understands the way of life that they lived during their childhood, and possibly still partly live while at school. Military children are known for their resilience and ability to adapt to new circumstances, which could prove useful in situations where few people are acquainted with each other. Military children are good at establishing connections with others, and may be helpful with strengthening this community on campus, regardless if one served or not. Moreover, military children create special relationships with other military children, as this community can appreciate each other’s distinctive upbringings.

In addition to increasing numbers at events, military dependents could also be useful at new student orientations. Since many military dependents also use VA education benefits, having someone that understands the life of a military dependent (children, spouses, etc.) available to speak to at orientations for new students could prove handy to help others understand their benefits and the culture on campus as a fellow military-affiliated individual. Most student veterans are ages 24-40, which is much older than the traditional first-year student. However, military children are more often the same age as traditional students when they come to college. Military children have such a unique perspective on the world and how to meet new people, they can often relate to and easily talk to new people. These students could be a great resource for first-year military children as they acclimate to a new environment.

Similarly, military children can be highly useful in Green Zone Trainings. Green Zone Trainings help educate the larger campus community, particularly staff and faculty on the unique stressors and challenges that student veterans face when transitioning from military service to civilian and student life. Although military children may not know what it is like to be on active duty, they do hold valuable knowledge about military family life that those serving may not always understand. Additionally, they can expand the understanding of what being a military child entails and how these students may differ from the traditional student as well. Incorporating military children and their experiences into Green Zone Training on campus may be helpful in better understanding the military culture holistically.

There are several ways that military children can bring together the military community on campus. Including this subsection of the military-affiliated community will increase campus knowledge of the military experience, as well as connect military children with other military children. The world is a small place, and the military community is even smaller. It happens often that military children learn their families were stationed at the same place at the same time, and this similarity forms connections, despite the possibility of never crossing paths. Inviting military children to military-focused events not only increases attendance numbers, but also creates the possibility for new friendships to develop.

Article Topics

Military Focused Events Military Friendly Institutions Serving Military in HigherEd Workplace Inclusion

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