From left to right, Carmen Sanchez, Karen Terry, Ophelia McLain, and Peg Kinsell discuss support for military-connected families who have children with disabilities. (Photo courtesy of K-12 Dive)

At the 2024 OSEP Conference: Partnerships Key in Supporting Military-Connected Students with Disabilities

Children with disabilities whose families are in the military face unique educational obstacles due to their high mobility rate. Educators and other partners need to reach out to these families early and often to offer support. During the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Special Education Programs annual conference, a panel of speakers including SPAN's Policy Director, Peg Kinsell, shared strategies for supporting military-connected families.

“Military kids don’t just have one issue,” Kinsell said. “They don’t just have a special education issue or ... a developmental disability or healthcare issue. So it’s important, I think, that we frame all the work we do in partnership with other organizations and departments that can support our kids.”

Click here to read more from K-12 Dive about what was presented during the session, including examples of support that partners can provide to military-connected families

To learn more about Peg's work with SPAN and our Military Family Support 360 Center, click here.

Free Training for NJ Community Health Workers is a Tribute to Public Health Champion

Colette Lamothe-Galette is often described as a bright light, a beautiful spirit, a public health champion; a loving daughter, sister, wife, mother and friend passionate about helping people live better lives. Lamothe-Galette, a New Jersey native, died April 4, 2020, an early victim of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Lamothe-Galette was the first to oversee the Office of Population Health in the NJ Department of Health, which seeks to improve the health of all residents. To honor her, the New Jersey Department of Health built a comprehensive program that provides free community health worker training. The Colette Lamothe-Galette Community Health Worker Institute has since graduated nearly 800 people who work in various ways to bridge the gap between hospitals, doctors and other clinicians, and their patients’ communities.

Community Health Workers are a growing segment of the public health workforce nationwide, serving in a range of frontline roles — connecting people with vaccines or maternal health care, for example, or helping reduce diabetes risk — with a focus on social justice and empowering patients.

SPAN NJICCP Early Childhood Trainer and Community Health Worker, Cindy Weber, who graduated from the Institute last year, states, "It's less about the science, the biology, or the medicine. It's more about caring for your community. It's empowering to be the change in your community that you know is needed."

To learn more about the training and about Lamothe-Galette, click here.