Every April, as the days grow longer and sunnier, the campus buzzes with the excitement of wrapping up the spring semester, preparations for commencement, and connections with friends new and old. The past few years, April has also been a time to celebrate and recognize a unique identity of military-connected students.
Inspired by the Department of Defense (DoD) Month of the Military Child, celebrated since 1986, UW-Madison formally started celebrating the Month of the Military Kid in 2022. Military kids, or children of veterans and service members, are a large part of the military-connected population at UW-Madison. University Veteran Services, which seeks to support the Wisconsin Experience of military-connected students by fostering personal transitions and pursuit of academic success, supports nearly 2,000 military-connected students on campus. Beginning this academic year, nearly half of all undergraduate military-connected students are military kids, a growth that mirrors a national trend.
Mike Panaro, education benefits specialist at University Veteran Services and the parent of a current UW-Madison student, noted the uniqueness and impact that recognizing military kids can have.
“It’s important that we celebrate this particular population and what they bring to campus. Military kids form a large portion of our military-connected student population here at UW-Madison, and they bring a number of unique experiences and perspectives to our campus.”
A number of military kids have lived in multiple places, which they may or may not claim as home. Panaro said, “they have had the opportunity to live in cultures different than their own, and they’ve made friends from across the globe. Bringing those experiences here to UW-Madison enriches our campus and our community.”
Whether or not students bring local, national, and/or global lived experiences with them, military-connected students at UW-Madison often come to campus seeking to contribute to a community. University Veteran Services has made intentional efforts to include military kids in this population.
Director of University Veteran Services, Joe Rasmussen, says, “I’m proud that Amanda Venske has pushed to ensure that University Veteran Services recognizes and celebrates Month of the Military Kid. As the daughter of a service member, Amanda has shared with me the unique experiences that left our military kids feeling like they are unable to fully connect to their peers. And while we have always supported military kids through the GI Bill, Amanda is the true driver of our intentional military kid supports, including Month of the Military Kid. Our Month of the Military Kid programming recognizes the strengths of the community. Amanda has become a leader in recognizing military kids, and her work has encouraged other campuses to honor their military kids.”
This month’s events kicked off last week with an art-making event at Wheelhouse Studios at the Wisconsin Union and continues this week with a tour of the Wisconsin Veterans Museum. Next week includes an event in partnership with the Madison chapter of Team RWB and the Madison William S. Middleton Memorial Veterans Hospital, as well as a closing, celebratory ice cream social. Individuals interested in learning more about how they can get involved can check out University Veteran Service’s webpage on military kids, and most events are exclusive to military-connected students at UW-Madison. University Veteran Services is still accepting donations for Monday’s Community Walk event.
Have other ideas about how you’d like to support University Veteran Services? Contact us!
Wondering how we’ve celebrated Month of the Military Kid in previous years? View our student spotlights and stories from 2022 and 2023 here:
Division of Student Affairs story:
Student spotlight of Lindsey Mathews with the Parent Family Program:
University Veteran Services Student Spotlights: