Scholarship recipient strives to improve the school transition experiences of adolescents living in Canadian military families Shannon Hill aspires to become the leading Canadian expert on the educational experiences of military-connected students. While completing her Bachelor of Education degree at Queen’s University, Shannon Hill, recipient of a Support Our Troops National Scholarship, found herself interested in what research was saying about how schools support students who are connected to military families. She was astonished to learn how little Canadian research had been conducted in the area. Shannon told us, “In that moment, I had an epiphany and thought, ‘wouldn’t it be great to combine my personal experience of growing up in a military family with my professional knowledge as an educator and pursue graduate studies in this area.’” Shannon went on to complete a Master of Education degree at Queen’s University, where her research focused on how Canadian secondary school educators perceive and support Canadian Armed Forces (CAF)-connected students. She is now completing her PhD at Queen’s University under the supervision of Dr. Heidi Cramm where her research aims to understand and support the school transition experiences of adolescents who are living in CAF families. Her study is the first study in Canada to look broadly on this topic. Shannon hopes that through her research, she can lay the groundwork for future Canadian research on the topic with the ultimate goal of improving the lives of Canadian military families. The Support Our Troops National Scholarship Program helps students from military families, like Shannon, pursue their post-secondary dreams, without the fear of the financial burden holding them back. “It’s truly an honour being supported by an organization like Support Our Troops,” Shannon says. “As a former military dependent, I feel strongly about giving back to a community that I was once a part of. I feel so fortunate that Support Our Troops recognized the importance of the work I am doing and the impact it will have within the military community.” To learn more about Shannon’s topic of research visit: Blog: The Educational Experiences of Military-Connected Students in the K-12 System: A Canadian Perspective (defenceresnet.org). Additionally, you can visit Shannon’s Twitter account at @Shannon_LD_Hill. The Support Our Troops National Scholarship Program is now open for applications and will close on July 21, 2022 at 5p.m. EST. To learn more about eligibility and to apply, visit: https://www.supportourtroops.ca/Get-Support/Education/Scholarships