WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues recently sent a letter to Acting Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness Ashish Vazirani to encourage collaboration between the Department of Defense and the Departments of Education and Labor to better recognize military service and enlistment as rewarding and successful career options.
“We write today to encourage the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) to commit to working with state education and data officials to develop a secure, effective protocol for sharing military service data with states. We urge DoD to respond promptly to state education officials’ requests to access this data and the complete information and perspective they need to maximize students' prospects for career success – including through military service,” the senators wrote.
“State education officials have emphasized that they are hamstrung in their ability to support graduates without access to data on career outcomes for those serving in the military. The absence of military service data leaves state data systems incomplete and schools blind to whether or not they are successfully preparing students to decide to serve. It’s clear that improved data-sharing will benefit schools, high school graduates, and the military by ensuring that enlistment is more clearly recognized as a viable and rewarding career option. Students must hear this not only from military recruiters but also from their educators,” the senators continued.
“To that end, we request an update on the status of DoD’s response to this letter. Specifically, we request a written update on establishing a cross-agency working group to create a standard, secure process for states to access military enlistment data and any other data that the working group deems appropriate by April 5, 2024. We appreciate your attention to this issue and await your prompt reply. We look forward to working with you as DoD develops a path forward for better sharing of military service information between the federal government and states,” the senators concluded.
Full text of the letter can be found HERE.
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