A bridge between families, educational organizations

  • Published
  • By Larry Lumpkin
  • Eglin Air Force Base School Liaison Officer
EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. --  Dear parents and guardians - how many of you have ever used the services of Eglin's School Liaison Office or knows what a school liaison officer is or does?

A working definition may read like this: an SLO simply tries to improve communications between military families and the community's educational organizations. These may include public, charter and private schools, homeschooling associations and virtual learning sites.

Additionally, the SLO's services are offered to members in all military and Reserve service branches, DoD civilians and contactors. 

As Eglin's SLO, my role and goal is to help match you with the appropriate people or resources to resolve whatever issues may arise. These include: 

- Representative and spokesperson for your child whenever a difficulty or grievance has been noted either by the parent/guardian or school system

- Public educator, bringing understanding to those within the community who may not be aware of the special stressors and hardships placed upon military families, such as deployment of a parent or the effects of frequent transferring from one military location to another

- Resource person whenever questions arise concerning state or federal laws as related to military families and the education of their children, including helpful provisions within the Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for Military Children

- Special Aid in providing another component in preparing and strengthening the readiness of our men and women in military service, providing the assurance that meeting the needs and requirements of their families are of great importance to the overall mission and cohesion of their respective units

- Services provided by the Exceptional Family Member Program on base or programs within the community and school system where your child may be enrolled

- Programs available to our military students such as the Military Family Life Counselors in the schools, Tutor.com/military and the Military Child Education Coalition contributions such as Student2Student for newcomers in middle and high schools

- Provides contact information for the SLO at your next installation prior to moving, to gain a clearer picture of local educational opportunities and available resources

I invite you to continue supporting this service by contacting me in person, by phone or email with your concerns, ideas and input. It takes the active participation and talents of all to make this effort a success.  Whenever assistance is needed to insure the educational requirements of your child or children are being met, please contact me.

The School Liaison Office is located at 301 W. Van Matre Ave., across from the Post Office in Bldg. 250, Room 153. My phone is (850) 882-4319.