Support for Military Families
NCA is dedicated to helping Children’s Advocacy Centers (CACs) work with the military to better support children in military families.
There are about 1.5 million military-connected children in the U.S. These families live all over—some near military bases and others far away. When child abuse happens in a military family, Department of Defense (DoD) programs often play an important and required role.
Military families may need special support, and it’s important for CACs and DoD programs to work together to meet those needs.
NCA has established seven memoranda of understanding (MOUs) with Military Criminal Investigative Organizations (MCIOs) and DoD Family Advocacy Programs (FAPs) to support CAC-military partnerships nationwide, including:
NCA-Military Criminal Investigative Organizations
- U.S. Army Criminal Investigative Division (CID) – for Army
- Naval Criminal Investigative Services (NCIS) – for Navy and Marine Corps
- Department of the Air Force, Air Force Office of Special Investigations (AFOSI) – For Air Force and Space Force
NCA-Family Advocacy Programs
- U.S. Army Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff, G9 – for Army
- Headquarters Marine Corps, Manpower and Reserve Affairs, Marine and Family Programs Division – for Marine Corps
- Commander, Navy Installations Command – for Navy
- Department of the Air Force – for Air Force and Space Force
Currently, 86% of accredited CACs have signed onto participate in these military MOUs, showing their strong dedication to supporting military families.
Our CAC-military partnership experts
CACs now have access to a dedicated team at NCA—the Federal Partnership Team—providing specialized support and guidance on matters related to military-connected families.
Meet our Federal Partnerships Team
Heather Provencher, LCSW
Senior Manager for Federal Partnerships
Amber Garrison-Ahmed, LCSW
Coordinator for Federal Partnerships
Wendy Luikart
Program Associate for Federal Partnerships
How do CACs and the military work together?
Every Children’s Advocacy Center (CAC) has a role to play in ensuring that military families can access the services they need and deserve.
In Ready to Serve, a report published in November 2021, the National Children’s Alliance (NCA) analyzed data from the 2020 CAC Census to highlight how centers nationwide are building partnerships with military organizations. The report identifies areas of success and opportunities for growth, with the goal of ensuring that all children—regardless of military affiliation—receive trauma-informed, child-centered services through their local CAC.
The facts on CACs and the military
Nearly 1,000 Children’s Advocacy Centers (CACs) across the United States provide essential, multidisciplinary services to support child victims of abuse. Children from military families often face unique barriers to accessing these services.
Early successes in collaboration between CACs and military partners can serve as a model for improving service coordination and expanding access for military-connected families. A strategic framework is in place to ensure that every military family can benefit from the trauma-informed, child-centered care offered by CACs.
For further insight, refer to Status of CAC-Military Partnerships 2019, NCA’s report to Congress. This publication outlines the collective efforts of NCA, CACs, Congress, and the Department of Defense to address the needs of military families. It also highlights key pilot programs across the country and provides a comprehensive overview of CAC-military partnerships in all 50 states.
Our military partnership resources for CACs
Get Started
Check out our latest resource, Getting Started with Military Partnerships – A Guide for CACs, to learn how CACs can begin establishing the partnerships necessary for providing a coordinated civilian-military response for military families. By following the seven steps outlined in this guide, CACs will be well-positioned to ensure that military families in their community have access to the coordinated response they deserve.
Learn More
To gain a deeper understanding of the military programs involved in responding to child abuse, we encourage you to review our fact sheets covering the U.S. Air Force/Space Force, the Army, the Marine Corps, and the Navy.
Additional resources are available on NCA Engage, including the CAC-Military Partnership Webinar Series (login required for member trainings), the Toolkit for CAC Victim Advocates NCA Engage: Working With Military Families – A Toolkit For Victim Advocates
We also invite you to listen to the One in Ten podcast episode titled “Trauma and Resiliency in Military Families,” featuring Dr. Stephen Cozza, which offers valuable insights into the unique challenges and strengths of military families.
Where are CACs serving military families?
See Maps
With few exceptions, most military installations offering Family Advocacy Program (FAP) services are located within 50 miles of a CAC. To explore the geographic relationship between these installations and CACs, please access the interactive map linked below. This tool provides detailed information on the locations of military installations with FAP services and nearby CACs.
NCA remains committed to ensuring that every child in the United States has access to CAC services. As part of this mission, NCA produces annual maps that illustrate CAC locations and relevant coverage details. In 2021, NCA expanded this effort to include military installation coverage, with the goal of ensuring that all military-connected children can benefit from trauma-informed, child-focused services.
To view this data, click the link below to access our interactive national map via the eSpatial platform. The map displays CAC coverage of active-duty military installations across the U.S., categorized by their current level of partnership with local CACs.
Moving forward
Currently, CAC military partnerships range from robust, long-standing relationships to those that have no affiliation with their military neighbors. Over time, we expect these relationships to evolve and expand as the community of interest grows and becomes more aware of opportunities for partnership between CACs and the military. For CACs, military family program staff, and policymakers, you can help strengthen these critical partnerships by getting in touch with our federal partnership team now. Accredited members will also have access to funding to help promote and support military communities with a coordinated investigation and comprehensive response to child victims of abuse.
Future goals include highlighting model practices for collaboration and developing supporting training content for enhanced coordination of services between CACs and military installations.