wandering stars

The utterly counterintuitive NAEP statistics for military schools are especially remarkable when the full array of information about the state of life for military children becomes available – particularly when viewed alongside data about physical conditions at base schools. In a 2011 study, the Pentagon acknowledged that almost 40% of its physical facilities were failing, forcing students to attend classes in decrepit facilities. The same holds true for many base schools run by regional school districts. Catie Hunter, attending a base school at Fort Sill managed by the Lawton Public School District, describes navigating hallways filled with trashcans to collect water leaking from the ceiling of her school.