News & Events

Guiding Students through Military Deployment
Seton Hall > News & Events 

Monday, March 9, 2009
by: Omayra Arocho

TSgt. Francisco J. Vega and his son, Antonio

It is becoming increasingly common for individuals to say they have a friend, family member or loved one deployed overseas. This experience deeply affects all parties involved in various levels, particularly children and teenagers. Many go through what we now know to be called “The Stages of Military Deployment” and as educators, counselors and professionals in fields of service it is necessary for us to become educated on how to best support these students during this difficult part of their lives. 
 
As a result of this need, Kappa Delta Pi International Honor Society in Education at Seton Hall University held the Serving Young Heroes: Guiding Children & Youth through Military Deployment workshop on February 18, 2009 in honor of Public Service Month. This month-long series of programs is an annual celebration of Seton Hall's servant leadership mission and commitment to giving back to the community through volunteerism. 
 
The program was well received with 64 students and alumni in attendance in addition to 8 faculty members and 4 administrators. Among the participants were teacher candidates and candidates for School Counseling certification from The College of Education and Human Services. 
 

Speakers for the program included:

• William M. Sardone, Rachel Lyons, and Curtis Myers

  Rachel Lyons - an Assistant Professor at Rutgers University in the departmentof 4-H Youth Development at the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences. Her focus areas include outreach to military families, teen leadership and service learning.
   
• Curtis Myers - Founder and President of Aspire Youth Development, Inc. which provides personal development programs & services for high school students to equip them with the skills necessary to maximize their abilities.
   
• William M. Sardone - a retired AT&T executive with over 30 years of global sales experience, who is currently supporting Operation Military Kids. Bill also served in the Army Reserve for 35 years with multiple deployments, the last of which was Desert Storm.
  
  

The audience watched an 18 minute video depicting the lives of various teens and their experiences in a military household. Packets of information, a list of children's books and educational CDs were provided to workshop participants. Most importantly, those who attended had an opportunity to share what they obtained from the workshop and brainstorm ideas of how we as a community can currently support military children/families. 

For more information please contact:
Omayra Arocho
(973) 761-9661
arochoom@shu.edu