Military-Connected Youth include any children with an immediate family member currently serving in the Armed Forces. There are approximately 30,000 to 34,000 Military Connected Youth in the State of Ohio and chances are they are in all of the school districts in the state. The schools within the East Central Ohio ESC service area have a combined enrollment of approximately 450 Military-Connected Youth.

The greatest challenge in serving the needs of Military-Connected Youth is identifying them. They often do not identify themselves as part of a military family. The ESSA military student identifier only designates active families. In Ohio, the National Guard and the Reserves greatly outnumber the active component of the military. Students may be identified by a checkbox on enrollment forms (electronic or paper), Emergency Medical Cards or surveys; identification during Veterans Day and other patriotic activities, class meetings, clubs or conferences; as well as through newsletters, bulletin boards, websites, and announcements.

This is a unique group of students with a unique set of challenges and needs such as dealing with the deployment of a family member or missing major family events like high school graduation. If they are part of an active-duty family, they will attend an average of six to nine different schools during their K12 experience. There are resources available for Military-Connected Youth to support their academic, social/emotional, physical well-being and help them connect with others with similar experiences.