Parents of Naval Station Rota school children were given the opportunity to listen to and ask questions to the person who is overall in charge of the education their children receive while in Rota.

Tom Brady, the director of the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA), stopped by the David Glasgow Farragut (DGF) library March 24 to discuss areas of focus for DoDEA and to address any questions or concerns the parents had.

"We have a great opportunity here today to meet and hear from the director of DoDEA, Mr. Tom Brady," said Capt. Greg Pekari, commander, U.S. Naval Activities Spain. "He has a wealth of knowledge and experience in the education field that he brings with him."

Brady's extensive experience as an educational leader includes a former superintendent of Providence, Rhode Island public schools, chief executive officer for the school district of Philadelphia and chief operating officer for the District of Columbia public schools and Fairfax County, Virginia, public schools. He also served in the U.S. Army as a commissioned officer for 25 years.

"I'm delighted to be here," said Brady. "I've been in this job for two years now and I pinch myself everyday because it's the best job I've ever had in my life."

Before the question and answer portion of the discussion, Brady discussed five reasons why the military education system has the potential to be the best in the entire United States.

"Number one is that the kids' parents are part of an organization that requires them to be the standard and if they no longer meet the standard, they're no longer a part of the organization," said Brady. "Number two is that they have access to wonderful healthcare, number three is they have a roof over their head, number four is they can eat three meals a day and number five is that they have parents who absolutely care."

He believes that the values of the military and the opportunities afforded to them can directly correlate to having the best educational system possible because we already have great administrators and teachers.

He then addressed questions from the parents and some faculty that covered topics such as school policies, schedules, registration and sports programs. Two areas of concern that were expressed were special educational programs including a gifted and talented program, as well as a special needs program.

"We are currently restructuring for student achievement," said Brady. "Like all organizations, we're restructuring and taking support positions and repurposing them to supporting schools. We're centralizing support services and putting instructional assistance and support closer to the schools. I talk to students, parents, the installation commands and the faculty and staff. From meeting with them, I get the opportunity to hear issues from a local level and what DoDEA can do to influence that."

The bottom line, Brady said, was when a Soldier, Sailor, Airman or Marine walk through school doors with their children, DoDEA's mission is to provide them with the best education possible.

"My children have been going to DGF since kindergarten and it has been absolutely wonderful," said Jamie Matteson, parent and DGF High School Biology teacher. "We are very fortunate for everything DoDEA provides for us as well as the Rota community."

DoDEA operates 172 schools in 14 districts located in 11 foreign countries, seven states, Guam, and Puerto Rico. All schools within DoDEA are fully accredited by U.S. accreditation agencies. Approximately 8,700 educators serve more than 78,000 DoDEA students.

For more news from Naval Station Rota, Spain, visit www.navy.mil/.