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Fort McCoy commander urges district to expand supports for military-connected students
Summary
Colonel Shayla Baez, Fort McCoy garrison commander, thanked the board for welcoming military families, said about 20% of Sparta students are military-connected and offered volunteers and programs for April's Month of the Military Child.
Colonel Shayla Baez, garrison commander at Fort McCoy, told the Sparta Area School District board that she wants to strengthen partnerships with local schools to support military-connected students who move frequently.
"I consider that we are part of this community as much that you guys are," Baez said, noting her daughter attends a district school. She described the stresses military families face when they relocate every two or three years and praised Sparta for welcoming military students.
Baez said she had reached out to Fort McCoy parents to encourage completion of impact questionnaires tied to federal funding, noting that those responses generate funding that benefits military-connected students. "When we look at any student that is military connected, there is funding associated with that," she said, and she urged families to complete applications so the district can receive related benefits.
She also offered Fort McCoy volunteers for school activities during April, which the military marks as Month of the Military Child. Baez said Tomah and Sparta would jointly host a Month of the Military Child luncheon at the Sparta American Legion at the end of April, and Fort McCoy could provide speakers and volunteers for reading or other school events.
Board members thanked Baez for the relationship and noted plans to sustain the partnership. The district did not take formal action; the remarks were received as information and an offer of support.
