Department of Defense Education Activity explained

Department of Defense Education Activity
Formed:1992
Preceding1:Department of Defense Dependents Schools
Preceding2:Domestic Dependents Elementary and Secondary Schools
Headquarters:Alexandria, Virginia
Employees:15,000
Budget:$3.07B USD (2021)
Chief1 Name:Thomas M. Brady
Chief1 Position:Director
Chief2 Name:Beth Schiavino-Narvaez
Chief2 Position:Chief Academic Officer
Chief3 Name:Robert M. Brady
Chief3 Position:Chief Operating Officer
Chief4 Name:Jay Burcham
Chief4 Position:Chief of Staff
Parent Department:Department of Defense

The Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) is a federal school system headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia,[1] responsible for planning, directing, coordinating, and managing prekindergarten through 12th grade educational programs on behalf of the United States Department of Defense (DoD). DoDEA is globally positioned, operating 163 accredited schools in 8 districts located in 11 foreign countries, 7 states, Guam, and Puerto Rico.[2]

DoDEA employs 15,000 employees who serve 71,000 children of active duty military and DoD civilian families.[2]

DoDEA operates as a field activity of the Office of the Secretary of Defense (Personnel and Readiness). It is headed by a director who oversees all agency functions from DoDEA headquarters in Alexandria. DoDEA's schools are divided into 3 geographic areas: Europe, the Pacific, and the Americas.[2]

It is one of two U.S. federal government school systems, along with the Bureau of Indian Education (BIE).[3]

History

Shortly after the end of World War II, the United States military established schools for the children of its servicemembers stationed in Europe and the Pacific. Schools for children of military members stationed at various bases in the United States were already well-established. First administered by the military branches they served, the growing number of schools was soon transferred to civilian managers, then organized into two separate but parallel systems: the Department of Defense Dependents Schools (Pacific and Europe) overseas, and the Department of Defense Domestic Dependent Elementary and Secondary Schools (Americas) in the United States. In 1994 the two systems were brought together under an umbrella agency, the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA).[2] Shortly thereafter, the official DoDEA logo was created by DoDEA Art Director, Calvin Bohner, in 1998.

Activities

The DoDEA instructional program provides a prekindergarten through 12th grade curriculum. Currently 100% of DoDEA schools are accredited and in good standing with their regional accrediting agency. Students consistently achieve high scores in the National Assessment of Educational Progress and above the national average on standardized assessments. Minority students have been especially successful, scoring at or near the highest in the United States in mathematics.[2]

DoDEA measures student progress with multiple performance-based assessments. The TerraNova standardized test provides DoDEA with results that it can compare to a nationwide sample. DoDEA students also take the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), which provides comparisons of student achievement in reading, writing, math, and science. All DoDEA schools are accredited by the North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement (NCA CASI) or the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Council on Accreditation and School Improvement (SACS CASI), which provide each school with an independent evaluation.[2]

Schools submit annual reports of data, and every five years they host an on-site validation visit led by education experts from the United States. Following the on-site visits, the experts send a report that includes recommendations for improvements to each of the schools visited. DoDEA conducts internal monitoring of educational programs to ensure high-quality implementation of new programs and overall effectiveness of existing programs. Monitoring activities may include, but are not limited to the following activities: surveys, interviews, focus groups, classroom observations and the analysis of achievement and training data. Currently 100% of DoDEA schools are accredited and in good standing.[2]

Operations

In 2008 the U.S. Congress published a study stating that decreased military budgets resulted in 70% of the DoDEA schools having campuses in less than ideal physical condition, with their conditions specifically noted as either "poor" or "failing".[4]

A 2015 editorial of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune noted that schools in the DoDEA, were well funded, partly due to post-September 11 attacks security concerns and partly because of the size of the DOD itself, as well as the leadership of Robert Gates, who served as the Secretary of Defense. The Star-Tribune contrasted this with the lesser-funded Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) network, also federal and serving Native American students.[5]

Sarah Mervosh of The New York Times, citing National Assessment of Educational Progress scores and performance levels of racial minorities, wrote in 2023 that DoDEA campuses "quietly achieve results most educators can only dream of."[6] The nature of military employment means that students have parents with jobs and support structures, and according to Mervosh, the DoDEA campuses are "well-funded, socioeconomically and racially integrated, and have a centralized structure that is not subject to the whims of school boards or mayors."[6] That year, David Leonhardt, also of The New York Times, wrote that the DoDEA "has been performing well for years and continued to do so during" the COVID-19 pandemic.[7]

Academic achievement

In 2001 the Government Accountability Office (GAO) wrote "The academic achievement of DOD students, as measured by their performance on standardized tests and their plans for enrolling in college, generally exceeds that of elementary and secondary students nationwide. On college admission tests, DOD students score at or near national averages."[8]

DoDEA Americas Region

Headquartered in Peachtree City, Georgia, in the Atlanta metropolitan area, DoDEA Americas is divided into 2 school districts (Americas Mid-Atlantic and Americas Southeast) and operates 51 schools at 16 military communities on the U.S. mainland, Puerto Rico, and Cuba. As of May 2019, it educates approximately 22,000 students of U.S. military and eligible DoD civilian personnel families.[9]

DoDEA Americas' Mid-Atlantic District

Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, NC

(note DeLalio ES is at MCAS New River)

Fort Liberty, NC

High school students attend local public schools based on what county they reside in:[13] Cumberland County Schools for Cumberland County residents,[14] and Hoke County Schools for Hoke County residents.[15] The Cumberland County parts are assigned to EE Smith High School.[16]

The Linden Oaks area is in Harnett County Schools, and is assigned to Overhills High School.[16]

Marine Corps Air Station New River, NC

Brewster Middle School and Lejeune High School in Camp Lejeune serve the community for secondary school.[17]

Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division, VA

King George County Public Schools operates non-DoDEA public schools in King George County. Most off-post persons associated with NSF Dahlgren send their children to King George County schools.[19] King George High School is the local county high school.

Marine Corps Base Quantico, VA

USMA West Point, NY

The academy is physically in the Highland Falls Central School District.[20] The military installation sends students to James I. O'Neill High School of Highland Falls for high School, under contract. Pre-school through 8th grade attend school on the military academy grounds. The elementary school and the middle school are part of the DoDEA system, not in the Highland Falls School District. In 2021, 190 high school children living on post attended James I O'Neill High School. In 2021 the agency at West Point announced that the bid to educate West Point High School students would be competitive.[21] In March 2022 the O'Neill contract was renewed.[22]

Guantanamo Bay Naval Station, Cuba

Coast Guard Air Station Borinquen, PR

Fort Buchanan, PR

DoDEA Americas' Southeast District

Fort Moore, GA

High school students attend local public high schools operated by county governments.[23] The portion in Muscogee County is zoned to high schools of Muscogee County Schools.[24] The portion in Chattahoochie County is zoned to Chattahoochee County Schools.[25] Off-base families attend county school systems, with residents of Georgia attending those systems, and Alabama residents being in Lee County Schools and Russell County Schools.[23]

Fort Campbell, KY

The high school first opened in 1962.[26] The current high school building was dedicated in 2018.[27] Of the students, the percentage who attend for all four years total at FCHS is 10.[26]

There were plans for a new middle school, but in 2019 the funds were instead designated for a wall along the Mexico-United States border.[28]

Fort Jackson, SC

The DoDEA schools on-post for Fort Jackson are Pierce Terrace Elementary School (Pre-Kindergarten through Grade 1) and C.C. Pinckney Elementary School (grades 2–6).[29] Students are zoned to non-DoDEA schools for secondary school: Dent Middle School and Richland Northeast High School, which are operated by Richland County School District Two.[30]

Fort Knox, KY

Fort Rucker, AL

Students beyond the elementary level may attend non-DoDEA schools for secondary levels, with an on-post family choosing one of the following three options: Daleville City School System, Enterprise City School System, or Ozark City Schools.[31] Enterprise operates Enterprise High School and Ozark operates Carroll High School.

Fort Stewart, GA

Students at the secondary level on Fort Stewart attend public schools operated by county school districts. Liberty County School District operates the public schools in Liberty County.[32]

Maxwell Air Force Base, AL

For high school residents are zoned to Montgomery Public Schools facilities: residents of the main base are zoned to George Washington Carver High School, while residents of the Gunner Annex are zoned to Dr. Percy L. Julian High School. Residents may attend magnet schools.[33]

Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort, SC

Beaufort County School District operates public high schools serving MCAS Beaufort,[34] and in sum has the highest number of students, of any school system, affiliated with MCAS Beaufort.[35]

DoDEA Europe Region

Headquartered in Kapaun AS, Kaiserslautern, Germany, DoDEA Europe is organized into 3 districts (EU East, EU South, and EU West) and operates 65 schools within 27 U.S. military communities across Europe. As of May 2019, the DoDEA European region educates approximately 27,000 children of U.S. military and eligible DoD civilian personnel families.[36]

DoDEA Europe East District

See also: Bavaria District (DoDDS-Europe).

USAG Ansbach, Germany

Baumholder Military Community, Germany (USAG Rheinland-Pfalz)

Garmisch Military Community, Germany USAG Bavaria

Grafenwohr/Vilseck Military Community, USAG Bavaria, Germany

Hohenfels Military Community, Germany USAG Bavaria, Germany

Kaiserslautern Military Community (KMC), Germany

Ramstein AB, Germany (Part of KMC)

USAG Stuttgart, Germany

USAG Wiesbaden, Germany

DoDEA Europe South District

Ankara American Community, Turkey

Aviano AB, Italy

Naval Support Activity Bahrain

Camp Darby Military Community, USAG Italy

Naval Support Activity Naples, Italy

Naval Air Station Rota, Spain

Moron AB, Seville, Spain

Sigonella Air Station, Sicily (IT)

Vicenza Military Community, USAG Italy

DoDEA Europe West District

Schinnen Military Community, USAG Benelux, Brunssum, The Netherlands

RAF Alconbury, United Kingdom

Brussels Military Community, USAG Benelux, Belgium

RAF Croughton, United Kingdom

Kleine Brogel Air Base, USAG Benelux Belgium

RAF Lakenheath, United Kingdom

SHAPE Military Community, US Army Garrison Benelux, Mons, Belgium

Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany

DoDEA Pacific Region

Headquartered in Yokota AB, Japan, the DoDEA Pacific region is organized into 3 districts (Pacific East, Pacific South, and Pacific West) and operates 47 schools on 21 U.S. military installations in Guam, Japan, Okinawa and South Korea. As of May 2019, the DoDEA Pacific Region educates over 22,000 children of U.S. military and eligible DoD civilian personnel families.[37]

Pacific East District

Camp Zama, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan

Commander Fleet Activities Sasebo

Commander Fleet Activities Yokosuka

Marine Corp Air Station Iwakuni

Misawa Air Base

NAF Atsugi

Yokota Air Base

Pacific South District

Andersen AFB (Guam)

Camp Foster, Okinawa

Camp Kinser, Okinawa

Camp Lester, Okinawa

Camp McTureous, Okinawa

Kadena Airforce Base, Okinawa

Naval Base Guam

U.S. Naval Hospital (Guam)

Pacific West District

Osan Air Base

Osan American Middle High School formed in 2017 with the consolidation of the middle and high schools. In September 2017 it had 320 students.[38]

US Army Garrison Daegu – Camp George

US Army Garrison Daegu – Camp Walker

Daegu Middle High School formed in 2017 with the consolidation of the middle and high schools. In September 2017 it had 299 students.[38]

US Army Garrison Humphreys

Former schools

Iceland[39]
Panama[40]
Philippines
South Korea[42]
United Kingdom[39]

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Contact Us. Department of Defense Education Activity. 2022-07-05. DoDEA Headquarters Department of Defense Education Activity 4800 Mark Center Drive Alexandria, VA 22350-1400.
  2. Web site: About DoDEA . Department of Defense Education Activity . 15 June 2019.
  3. Web site: Education, Public Safety, And Restoration Of The Environment. Bureau of Indian Affairs. 2021-07-29.
  4. Web site: Hester. Wesley P.. Military schools 'make do' . Richmond Times-Dispatch. 2011-10-02. 2021-08-13.
  5. Web site: While tribal schools suffer, military schools prosper. Minneapolis Star-Tribune. 2015-04-02. 2021-08-13.
  6. Web site: Mervosh. Sarah. Who Runs the Best U.S. Schools? It May Be the Defense Department.. The New York Times. 2023-10-10. 2023-10-25.
  7. Web site: Leonhardt. David. David Leonhardt. The Nation's Top-Performing Public School System . The New York Times. 2023-10-10. 2023-10-25.
  8. Web site: BIA and DOD Schools: Student Achievement and Other Characteristics Often Differ from Public Schools'. Government Accountability Office. 2001-09-28. 2021-08-03.
  9. "DoDEA Americas Region Web Pages.
  10. Web site: Gordon ES: About Our School. Department of Defense Education Activity. 2022-07-05.
  11. Web site: Shughart ES: About Our School. Department of Defense Education Activity. 2022-07-05.
  12. Web site: Albritton MS: About Our School. Department of Defense Education Activity. 2022-07-05. With the addition of Shughart Middle School in the Linden Oaks community,[...].
  13. Web site: Fort Bragg/Cuba Community. Department of Defense Education Activity. 2022-07-05.
  14. Web site: 2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Cumberland County, NC. U.S. Census Bureau. 2022-07-04. - Text list
  15. Web site: 2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Hoke County, NC. U.S. Census Bureau. 2022-07-05. - Text list - "Fort Bragg Schools" refers to the DoDEA schools.
  16. Web site: Finding A School Local School Districts. U.S. Department of Defense. 2022-07-04.
  17. Web site: Camp Lejeune Community Schools Attendance Areas. Department of Defense Education Activity. 2022-07-05.
  18. Web site: Dahlgren Community. Department of Defense Education Activity. 2022-07-05.
  19. Web site: Naval Support Activity South Potomac (NSF Dahlgren) Education. Military One Source. 2022-07-05. - This is from a .mil site.
  20. Web site: 2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Orange County, NY. U.S. Census Bureau. 2022-07-04.
  21. Web site: Wang. Helu. Could Highland Falls lose its West Point students?. Times Herald-Record. 2021-09-27. 2022-07-05.
  22. Web site: Randall. Mike. Highland Falls' contract to educate West Point high school students is renewed. Times Herald-Record. 2022-03-21. 2022-07-05.
  23. Web site: Fort Benning Schools. Department of Defense Education Activity. 2022-07-04. - The document states that the county schools have high school zoning.
  24. Web site: 2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Muscogee County, GA. U.S. Census Bureau. 2022-07-04. - Text list - "Fort Benning Schools" refers to the DoDEA schools on Fort Benning. The document states that the county schools have high school zoning.
  25. Web site: 2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Chattahoochee County, GA. U.S. Census Bureau. 2022-07-04. - Text list - "Fort Benning Schools" refers to the DoDEA schools on Fort Benning. The document states that the county schools have high school zoning.
  26. Web site: Ft. Campbell HS: About Our School . Department of Defense Education Activity. 2022-07-09.
  27. Web site: Jasper. Mari-Alice. DoDEA: Officials celebrate new Fort Campbell High School. Fort Campbell Courier. US Army Corps of Engineers. 2018-11-27. 2022-07-09.
  28. Web site: Kennedy. Mike. Funds for new school on army base diverted to border wall . American School and University. 2019-09-06. 2022-07-09.
  29. Web site: Fort Jackson Schools. U.S. Army. 2022-02-05.
  30. Web site: Fort Jackson Schools. Department of Defense Education Activity. 2022-02-05. 2022-02-06. https://web.archive.org/web/20220206053643/https://www.dodea.edu/americas/southeast/fortjackson/index.cfm. dead.
  31. Web site: Fort Rucker Education. Military One Source. 2022-07-05. - From a .mil site.
  32. Web site: Fort Stewart Education. Military One Source. 2022-07-05. - This is from a .mil website.
  33. Web site: Maxwell AFB Community. Department of Defense Education Activity. 2022-07-04. 2022-07-05. https://web.archive.org/web/20220705200702/https://www.dodea.edu/americas/southeast/maxwell/index.cfm. dead.
  34. Web site: 2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Beaufort County, SC. U.S. Census Bureau. 2022-07-05. - Text list - "Beaufort Marine Corps Air Station School District" refers to the DoDEA schools
  35. Web site: Base Schools. Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort. 2022-07-05.
  36. Web site: DoDEA Europe Homepage . US Department of Defense . 15 June 2019.
  37. "DoDEA Pacific Region Web Pages.
  38. Web site: Fichtl. Marcus. Middle, high schools merge at 2 US bases in South Korea. Stars and Stripes. 2017-09-01. 2022-07-09.
  39. Web site: Europe.html. https://web.archive.org/web/19990202115238/http://www.odedodea.edu/pa/europe.html . 1999-02-02 . Department of Defense Education Activity. 1990-02-02. 2022-07-11. - Iceland and UK school details
  40. Web site: Americas.html. https://web.archive.org/web/19981206092924/http://www.odedodea.edu/pa/americas.html . 1998-12-06 . Department of Defense Education Activity. 1998-12-06. 2022-07-11. - Detail of Panama schools
  41. Web site: Home . Curundu Elementary School . 1999-04-29 . 2022-07-11 . https://web.archive.org/web/19990429131250/http://curundu.odedodea.edu/ . 29 April 1999 . dead.
  42. Web site: http://www.odedodea.edu/pa/pacific.html. DoDEA Pacific Area Schools. Department of Defense Education Activity. 1999-02-03. 2024-02-16.