The New Jersey School Boards Association, along with the other major education groups in the state, is encouraging schools to hold a “Military Opportunities Day” in schools to educate students and families about the opportunities that the United States military provides for post-secondary education and career training.
“The U.S. military offers so many benefits to students,” said Dr. Lawrence S. Feinsod, executive director of the NJSBA. “Students can take advantage of scholarships and of more than 200 training opportunities that result in certifications and microcredentials in growing fields, including STEAM – or science, technology, engineering, art and math.”
The NJSBA teamed up with the New Jersey Association of School Administrators, the New Jersey Education Association, the New Jersey Principals and Supervisors Association, the New Jersey Association of School Business Officials, and the New Jersey PTA in sending a letter to all board members, superintendents and school business administrators with suggested Military Opportunities Day activities, including presentations on the different service branches, career exploration workshops, information on the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery Test, and sessions geared for parents on education and career opportunities available to their children in the military.
The letter includes a list of military recruiting agencies that can help schools develop a Military Opportunities Day. The list can be found here.
In recent years, the NJSBA has had a partnership with the U.S. Army that has resulted in having a STEAM education specialist embedded at the Association, at no cost to NJSBA. The Association believes it is the only state school boards association in the country to have such a STEAM consultant to work with local school districts.
One of the programs that was developed with the assistance of the specialist is the popular STEAM Tank competition, held at the annual Workshop conference.