LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Va. –
School liaison officers are the connection between military families and school administrations. They provide support during permanent changes of station and deployments to ensure dependent children receive every opportunity for quality education.
Joint Base Langley-Eustis parents can seek assistance from two liaisons - one at Fort Eustis and the other at Langley Air Force Base - who have made it their goal to cater to the exceptional requirements of children of military parents.
"We're here to assist with the partnerships between schools and our military community," said Christine Stiefel, Fort Eustis School Liaison Officer. "We aim to prevent, identify and resolve impacting concerns for our military students in transition and during deployments."
"Hampton Roads is a superb place for families. Our location offers unlimited points of interest in the surrounding communities with local schools committed to providing a quality education for our families," said Glendeline Lee, 633rd Force Support Squadron school liaison officer. "My role is to improve transitional support for school children of military personnel by establishing partnerships between the base and local schools, advocating for military children, increasing awareness of the unique needs of military students in kindergarten through 12th grade."
There are two school systems that serve Langley AFB, and one that serves Fort Eustis. Main base housing residents attend Hampton City Schools, consisting of 36 schools, while the nearby Bethel Manor residents attend York County Schools, comprised of 19 schools. Lee also provides support for Poquoson Schools. The Fort Eustis liaison services Newport News, Williamsburg and James City county families.
"Through educating families about our local school and installation policies, while providing scholarship and college or vocational information we prepare families for their next journey," Stiefel said.
Recognizing that one size does not fit all, parents are also offered a variety of options to meet the needs of individual students and their parents including magnet schools and at-home instruction.
For parents seeking home instruction options, a Notice of Intent to Provide Home Instruction must be submitted to the appropriate school district office. School district offices can provide necessary forms.
To participate in the Home Instruction Program, parents must choose one of the following options:
- The teaching parent can have a Teaching License, High School Diploma; hold a baccalaureate degree or higher, from an accredited institution or none of the above and request written consideration. The parent may be asked to submit a program of study or curriculum with the notice of intent.
- Meet the qualifications for a teacher prescribed by the Virginia Board of Education. The parent may also be asked to submit a program of study or curriculum with the notice of intent.
- Enroll the child or children in a correspondence course approved by the Superintendent of Public Instruction. Evidence of enrollment must be submitted with notice of intent.
- Provide a program of study or curriculum which, in the judgment of the Division Superintendent, includes the Standards of Learning objectives adopted by the Board of Education for Language Arts (English) and Math and provide evidence that the parent is able to provide an adequate education for the child.
For further information about home schooling, parents can contact the appropriate school district office.
Parents should bring the following documents to the new school at the time of student registration:
- Student's original birth certificate
- Record of immunizations
- Document of recent physical, within one year of entry
- Proof of residence
- Student's social security card
- Individual Education Plan for students with special needs
- Legal documents, as needed (court custody, adoption, foster, etc.)
- Previous school records or correct address for request of records
Once children are enrolled and the family gets settled, parents are encouraged to seek volunteer opportunities within their children's schools and can contact them directly in order to do so.
For more information, call the Fort Eustis liaison at 878-3514 or 225-1885 for the Langley AFB liaison. Parents can also reference the JBLE Handbook for Parents of School Age Children at
http://new.jbleforcesupport.com/docs/SLO/jble_slo_handbook_2013_2014.pdf.