DPRR Senior Leader EXSUM - SEPTEMBER 2023

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SEPTEMBER EXSUM

News Highlights

• US Military Dependents in Italy Can Work Remotely for US Employers Spouses and dependents of U.S. service members no longer have to choose between continuing their career or giving up their rights and protections under the NATO Status of Forces Agreements to telework for American employers. Read more about this change here.
• Defense Department Adjusts Child Care Fees, Expands Flex Spending to Increase Military Access to Quality Child Care The Defense Department is adjusting how much service members pay in child care fees for the 2023–24 school year to reduce the burden on lower-income Families and to comply with Executive Order 14095. Read more about the expanding coverage here.
• Destigmatizing Mental Health Support for Individuals With a Security Clearance Teane Smith, senior security specialist, Personnel Security Branch, expresses the importance of Soldiers’ mental health and reinforces that seeking professional care for mental health concerns will not jeopardize security clearances. Read the full article here.
• Continuous Vetting Means Staying On Top of Finances Financial readiness becomes a top priority for Soldiers and their security clearances as continual vetting of the Trust Workforce 2.0 replaces 5- and 10-year traditional reinvestigations. Read about how financial issues can now raise concerns here.
• A Split Second of Hope Leslie Weirich shares the story of how she lost her son to suicide during his junior year of college and explains how personal relationships can profoundly affect suicide prevention. Read her personal story here.

Talking Points

Domestic Violence Awareness Month Domestic Violence Awareness Month (DVAM) is recognized each year in October and is an opportunity to call attention to domestic violence and advocate to end it. This year, the Army’s DVAM theme is “United Against Domestic Abuse.” According to the U.S. Government Accountability Office, during FY 2015–2019, there were 40,000 incidents of domestic abuse involving military service members, spouses and intimate partners. Seventy four percent of those cases involved physical abuse. Leaders should emphasize that domestic abuse is incompatible with military values, reduces military readiness and has personal consequences and societal costs. Leaders can emphasize the DVAM 2023 message and unite against domestic abuse by:

• Encouraging calling the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, texting “START” to 88788 or chatting online with a qualified responder.
• Encouraging calling the DOD Safe Helpline at 877-995-5247, chatting online or reporting retaliation to a qualified responder.
• Encouraging those who may have experienced domestic violence to seek legal counsel through the Special Victims’ Counsel or the Office of the Special Trial Counsel.

Spotlight 

New DOD Actions to Prevent Suicide in the Military The DOD has devised and adopted five key lines of effort based on recommendations from the Suicide Prevention and Response Independent Review Committee. For more information, see the full memorandum.

National Discussion on Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment at America’s Colleges, Universities and Military Service Academies The National Discussion on Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment at America’s Colleges is scheduled for October 24. The theme is “Empowering Student Communities to Cultivate Healthy Climates.”

MILPER Message Number 23-411, ‘Guidance for Conducting Ask Care Escort Suicide Intervention Training (ACE-SI)’ MILPER 23-411 was published on October 2. More information is available by visiting https://www.hrc.army.mil/Milper/23-411.

Financial Planning Month October is Financial Planning Month; the purpose is to encourage Soldiers and their Families to make a financial plan.

Reminders

Workplace and Gender Relations Commander’s Toolkit and Survey The congressionally
mandated Workplace and Gender Relations Survey of active-duty members is open until October 20. Commanders can download a toolkit for promoting the survey from the Products on Demand site.

DODEA Pacific DODEA offers conditional enrollment for children of active-duty Soldiers in grades 9 through12 who are moving due to a PCS. To start the conditional enrollment process, visit https://dodeasis.myfollett.com/aspen/logon.do.

Exceptional Family Member Program Training Sessions EFMP hosts events to empower parents to learn about their children’s education. The upcoming training session is on Individualized Education Plans (IEP) on October 17. Sign up today as seats are limited.

FY24, Qtr. 1 DPRR Communications Playbook The Communications Playbook keeps public affairs officers and other stakeholders apprised of the messages and themes that the directorate will promote quarterly. To download a copy of this resource, click here.

Reinforce

AR 600-92 The Army kicked off Suicide Prevention Month in September by unveiling several important new resources to bolster Army Suicide Prevention Program implementation across the force, including Army Regulation 600-92.

Lethal Means Safety Toolkit The Lethal Means Safety Toolkit is now available. This toolkit serves to educate Army personnel about lethal means safety (LMS) and provides guidance and resources on how to integrate LMS into their daily lives and roles.

HQDA EXORD 358-23 This EXORD, Implementation of FY23 Independent Review Commission Hiring Actions to Counter Sexual Assault in the Military, was released August 29 and added to regulatory guidance to advance phase 2 SHARP hiring actions.

Army Family Advocacy Program FAP helps Soldiers and Families recognize and meet the unique challenges of military lifestyles. Services include seminars, workshops, counseling and intervention to help strengthen Army Families, enhance resiliency and relationship skills, and improve quality of life.

Follow Along With DPRR Through Social Media Platforms To keep up with the latest news,
programs and capabilities from DPRR, connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and
LinkedIn.

Upcoming Events

Oct. 22-25: The Hotline and National Conference on Domestic Violence

Oct. 24: National Discussion on Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment at America's Colleges, Universities and Service Academies

Nov. 12-15: American Public Health Association Conference 

Dec. 6-7: Army Profession Forum

Resources

DPRR Website For the latest news about and resources from I-PAG, SHARP, suicide prevention and other programs, visit the DPRR website https://www.armyresilience.army.mil.

Financial Readiness Program Soldiers and military spouses can find service providers, programs and resources for securing their financial future across every milestone in their military career. For information, visit https://www.financialfrontline.org/.

Quality of Life Resources are available for the Army’s six quality-of-life priorities: housing, health care, child care, spouse employment, permanent change-of-station moves and support and resilience. For more information, visit https://www.army.mil/qualityoflife/.

Exceptional Family Member Program This mandatory enrollment program assists active-duty Soldiers who have a Family member who has been identified as having special medical and/or educational needs. For more information, visit https://efmp.army.mil/EnterpriseEfmp/.

Survivor Outreach Services Family members of fallen Soldiers have access to long-term support, including SOS coordinators and financial counselors. For more information, visit https://dcsg9.army.mil/safr/sos/sos.html.

Resilience in Focus Energy management is our ability to increase or decrease the amount of energy that we have before or after a performance. There are three strategies that can help us better manage our energy: identifying how much is needed, adjusting energy levels and using deliberate breathing. To learn more about these strategies and energy management, click here. For additional tools and techniques for building resilience strategies, visit the RIF site.

Build Unit and Individual Resilience DPRR R2 Performance Centers offer resilience courses, including the Master Resilience Trainer Course and the Executive Resilience and Performance Course. Courses (including those for Family members) can be conducted virtually or in person. To find classes, view the R2 course catalog here.

988 Mental Health Crisis Number As of last July, service members and military veterans who are experiencing a mental health crisis, including thoughts of suicide, can dial 988 and press 1 to speak with a mental health professional. This change linked the Veterans Crisis Line to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. The 988 number did not replace OCONUS numbers. For more information and the OCONUS numbers, click here.

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