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(Des Moines, IA) -- Legislation awaiting Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds' signature would require the Iowa Department of Education to start a Purple Star Initiative. That's a national program designed to support students in military families, but it can look different from state to state. State Rep. Ryan Weldon (R-Ankeny) managed the bill on its way through the Iowa House.
"To me, it's pretty obvious that when we're looking at the needs of different students, that military families have some very unique needs," Weldon says. "We have, potentially, children moving every two to three years. When you do the math, that could mean six to nine school changes during their education K-12."
That can make students feel isolated and like they don't belong in any given school. This initiative aims to recognize districts that go above and beyond to aid in that sense of belonging.
"A student has to feel like they can connect with at least two adults within the school environment to really feel a sense of belonging," Weldon says. "I think that's really important. It's really hard for these students and families to connect when they're thinking, 'this is going to be a short term thing for me.'"
State Rep. Elinor Levin (D-Iowa City), who is a military spouse, has seen it firsthand.
"In my time living on military bases, active-duty bases, and also living in military communities, what I saw is that kids who are children of military service members... they have parents who are gone for long periods of time," Levin says. "They have parents who have jobs that can be really scary. They can be impacted by the news in different ways than their peers."
It's something that military families across the country have been advocating for. That's why the state DOE came to the legislature to ask for the mandate, which passed the Iowa House last week. Levin says legislators maintained conversations with the DOE throughout the process about what has worked elsewhere that could translate well to Iowa.
"When a student begins experiencing lower grades or having attendance issues or exhibiting negative behaviors in class," Levin says. "Maybe having a process in place where if there's a military connection for that child someone steps in and asks if there's something going on that's related to that part of their life."
Even that process can look different school by school based on the student's needs and the teacher who takes it up. But, the point is having that process there in the first place and that's where certification comes in. Levin says it's also important to have a re-certification process.
"If there's a staff member who's really gung-ho and bought in and gets this amazing program started up but then they, say, move to another school or retire and the program kind of lapses at that school, that school doesn't just continue to have that certification," Levin says.
Although this may soon become an official initiative, that doesn't mean schools aren't already doing this kind of thing.
"I definitely think there are school districts that are doing things right now that could just qualify as a Purple Star School just because they're already doing these kinds of things," Weldon says.
Senate File 275 has passed both chambers of the legislature and is "enrolled," meaning it's ready to be sent to Governor Kim Reynolds' desk.