Superintendent Dethloff and School Liaison Goodwin Participate in Panel on Improving Military Child Education Opportunities

San Angelo ISD Superintendent Dr. Carl Dethloff and School Liaison for the 17th Training Wing, Goodfellow Air Force Base, Theresa Goodwin represented San Angelo, Goodfellow Air Force Base and SAISD military-connected students last week at the Association of Defense Community Installation Innovation Forum in San Antonio, Texas November 2, 2021, and shared insights with forum attendees as guest panelists on the topic of Improving Military Child Education Opportunities and the pivotal role of the School Liaison Program.

“Serving approximately 800 military-connected students in SAISD, our Goodfellow Air Force Base School Liaison Theresa Goodwin is a conduit between families and classrooms ensuring the needs of our military families are met during transitions and throughout their educational journey,” said Dr. Dethloff. “In SAISD we remain committed to our military families, and one way we do that is to work collaboratively with Ms. Goodwin to lift up our military students and support their resiliency and future success.  Ms. Goodwin and I were honored to be invited to share meaningful ways to support military children at the Installation Innovation Forum.”

The panel addressed education quality as a top-tier priority for readiness and quality of life across all branches of service, and the mission of the School Liaison Program in offering an array of services and resources to support students, parents, installation leadership, schools and the surrounding community. An overriding theme for the forum and the panel highlighted the role of community partnerships in installation innovation, like the reciprocal support between SAISD and Goodfellow including programs like the hands-on STEM instruction program Starbase Goodfellow, now in its fifth year.

At the panel, Dr. Dethloff and Ms. Goodwin spoke on various ways in addition to Starbase that Goodfellow, Ms. Goodwin, and SAISD work together to welcome and support military-connected students in the district, from emphasizing resiliency to providing customizable options for career pathways to celebration of Month of the Military Child to proudly employing military spouses and veterans within the district to hosting an area Academy Night with Congressman Pfluger. 

Dr. Dethloff and Ms. Goodwin were joined by four other speakers for the panel including Paulette Fryar (Armed Forces Insurance Military Spouse of the Year), Ms. LaurieAnn Goodier (School Liaison Program Manager, 49th Wing, Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico) Colonel Ryan Keeney (Wing Commander, 49th Wing, Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico) and Colonel Eugene Moore (Commander, 17th Mission Support Group). The panel was facilitated by Dr. Jerrod Wheeler (Superintendent, Knob noster Public Schools in New Mexico). 

Ms. Goodwin has served as the school liaison officer at Goodfellow since 2016, and works closely with SAISD leaders and schools for real-time solutions for military-connected students as they face global educational challenges and to assist military families in transition with support and resources. Four SAISD campuses, Belaire Elementary, Glenmore Elementary, Glenn Middle School and Central High School, also have on-campus military liaisons serving as a further point of contact between military-connected families and the campus, with more SAISD campuses slated to have counselors receiving further training this semester to provide support. Last August, four SAISD campuses received the distinction of being named a Texas Education Agency (TEA) Purple Star Designation campus, an award in recognition of schools that excel in meeting the needs of military-connected students and their families. 

San Angelo ISD is proud to support our military-connected families and welcome those new to Goodfellow Air Force Base to our West Texas community. We are committed to engaging all students in a relevant and inspiring education that produces future-ready graduates in partnership with Goodfellow and other supporters of public education. To stay up-to-date on San Angelo ISD, please visit the SAISD website at www.saisd.org and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.