Military Moves Prove Stressful for Families with Children on IEPs

Published: July 3, 2021

 

Did you know that 600,000 military and veteran families move with the military annually? While experiencing new locations is often cited as a highlight of military service, moving so often also presents real challenges, especially when you consider the family members who move with them. The reality is that today’s modern military is a diverse group; many with spouses, children, and animals, leaving a lot to consider with each move. 

Jessica, an Army spouse and mom of three, is approaching her family’s fifth move together in her 15 years of marriage. And that doesn’t include the additional move her husband made overseas while the family stayed stateside. In many ways, Jessica is grateful for their military life providing them with the opportunity for travel. “When I was a kid, the biggest trip we took was to the next state over,” Jessica shared. “My kids have been to Venice, Rome, Paris, Disney World, the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, and more. What they have been able to experience is amazing. We’ve been able to take them all over!” 

However, while the adventure of moving and experiencing so much is exciting, as Jessica’s children get older, more concerns and fears are emerging with each relocation. Now, with her oldest being 11, Jessica’s kids have stronger friendships, are more involved with activities that are important to them, and have Individualized Education Plans (IEPs) that will need to be transferred. When it comes to the added concerns of transferring an IEP, Jessica’s family is certainly not alone. According to the 2020 Military Family Lifestyle Survey, more than a quarter of active-duty family respondents (28%) have a child enrolled in a special education program. And half of active-duty families with a child enrolled in special education, who PCSed since March 2020, reported they had trouble transferring their child(ren)’s IEP (51%) or 504 Plan (48%) to their new school.

For families with kids who have special education needs, the idea of transferring schools can create a lot of anxiety. Now that all of her children are school aged, Jessica is feeling that stress. “Finding the right teacher for my kids with special needs can make or break the school year,” Jessica said. “Every time we get to a new school that doesn’t know them, it’s a roll of the dice, and it’s scary.” The idea of changing schools is so worrisome for some military families that they’re choosing to live apart from their service member to create stability for their children. In fact, nearly a quarter (23%) of active-duty family respondents to the 2020 Military Family Lifestyle Survey reported they had geo-bached (when a military family chooses to live in a different location from the service member) in the last five years. The most common reasons are for spouse employment or their children’s education. 

Military families already have to spend so much time apart. They should never feel more time apart is necessary for their well-being. Instead, it’s important they feel confident that with each move, they will be taken care offrom the service member to the military spouse and the children. Another reason why that’s so important? Because we know when family members on the home front don’t feel supported, mission readiness suffers. 

Therefore, Blue Star Families is working hard every day to ensure families have the resources and support they need to thrivewherever their journey takes them. For starters, we’re encouraging families to make the most of their time traveling. They can add stops along the way at one of the many Blue Star Museums and Blue Star Parks offering free entry to military families during the summer, which is peak season for military moves. Jessica and her family plan on doing just that. “I’m using the Roadtripper app to plan an awesome road trip for our move,” Jessica said. “We’re including a few Blue Star Museums and national parks, plus a surprise trip to Disney and Orlando Studios (for Wizarding World for my Harry Potter-obsessed 11-year-old), a beach camping trip, water parks, zoos, and more.”

But what about when families like Jessica’s arrive at their new location? Blue Star Families aims to be there to welcome them and provide a multitude of ways to learn about their new community, make connections, and build enduring friendships. For Jessica, volunteering with Blue Star Families after her last move not only allowed her to create powerful friendships but also led to her finding remote employment that she could take with her each time she moves in the future. 

To help create a smooth transition, Blue Star Families is also educating the civilian community on how to best support military families. It’s important for civilians to know that supporting the military community can be as easy as introducing yourself. For Jessica, the biggest support when arriving at a new location is simply advice on where to go. She shared: “I think one of the things I have valued the most from civilian neighbors is just getting the local information. When we move to a new place, I have to find all the resources and services over again. Neighbors have helped me find a new sitter, a new lawn guy, a new hair stylist, and new activities for the kids. Learning about summer camps, a nearby beach, park, or playground is so helpful. I’ve been lucky to have a few neighbors who went even further to make sure my kids were in the same class as their kids so we could carpool or have set up playdates for the kids. Especially when my husband deployed shortly after our last PCS having a neighbor who could carpool and get kids to their activities made such a big difference.” 

As your family approaches a military move, now or in the future, Blue Star Families will be with you every step of the way to provide supportfrom transferring employment to finding friends. Because the bottom line is, as military families like yours move to new communities, they should feel not only welcome but also a genuine sense of belonging. 

To learn more about the resources available to you and your family, visit bluestarfam.org