2010 Annual Report - West Virginia Army National Guard - U.S. Army

West Virginia National Guard Annual Report 2010The West Virginia STARBASE Academyis a Department of Defense funded academicoutreach program for fifth-grade students inKanawha and Berkeley counties. Througha highly interactive five-day curriculum,STARBASE seeks to steer students towardcareers in science, technology, engineering, andmathematics related fields.STARBASE offers a minimum of 1,200hours of classroom contact and conducts morethan 50 academies each year.This year, more than 1,200 fifth-gradestudents attended STARBASE. Since theprogram began in 2001, more than 11,000students have participated. Including outreachprograms, W.Va. STARBASE reached more than2,000 West Virginia youth in 2010.The West Virginia National Guard FamilyPrograms office continued to see tremendousgrowth and development during 2010. The officeis now supported by more than 30 professionals.The Family Program Office supports allbranches of service, providing a multitude ofprograms. Branch partnerships allow this officeto collaborate and coordinate vital resourcesduring a high operational tempo deploymentschedule. We are proud to feature highlightsfrom several programs, as follows:STARBASEFamily Programs40 41STARBASE started several new initiativesin 2010 that were designed to strengthen andmodernize the core curriculum, to increaseparental involvement, and to reach morestudents through innovative outreach programs.The program adopted and implemented a newcurriculum that places greater emphasis onSTEM-related concepts.To increase parental involvement,STARBASE staff developed four “Hands-On Homework” kits that afford children theopportunity to engage parents in the learningprocess. STARBASE also began offeringa series of events called “STEM nights”through which STARBASE alumni and theirparents were able to return to STARBASE andparticipate in hands-on activities.• Family Assistance Centershave a primary mission to provideinformation, referrals and supportto military service members andfamilies. This year, the FACsreported more than 100,713 cases.Top issues included financial,communication, counselor support,community outreach and resources,property and household issues, andTricare.• The Child and Youth Programserves children ages 3 to 18,creating a community supportnetwork for military youth whileproviding safe, healthy, educationaland recreational activities. During2010, CYP provided Living in the NewNormal, a two-day training led by a team fromMilitary Child Educational Coalition hosting 42counselors, social workers, military personnel,and staff members focused on the experienceof military children during deployment. TheProgram also hosted the first Youth Symposiumwhere 17 Military Teens participated in SparksTraining in collaboration with the West VirginiaAdolescent Health Initiative Program.