Military families
At Linder, we honor the strength and resilience of military families. We’re proud to be a school that welcomes military families and truly understands them. We are committed to providing the support, stability, and community you deserve.
Whether you’re here on temporary orders or a longer-term stay, Linder can support your child’s learning needs and your family’s transition with care and confidence. We offer flexible enrollment options, quick records transfers, and placement support for students with IEPs, 504s, or other learning needs.
Military Family Liaison
Vanessa Aird-Gee
📧 vanessaairdgee@thelinderacademy.com
📞 (703) 496-7891
Dr. Vanessa Aird-Gee is Linder’s dedicated guide and advocate for military families. From enrollment and records to personalized academic placement and support, Vanessa works alongside your family to ensure your transition is as smooth as possible.
Why Linder is a perfect fit for
K-12 military families
We understand how hard transitions can be—and we recognize that when students land in a place where people really understand how they learn and embrace their differences as gifts, they feel safer and more confident right away.
Small class sizes, personalized attention, and flexible structure make it easy for military students at Linder to feel seen and supported, especially during periods of change. We offer
skill-based cohorts that allow students to be challenged at the right level, regardless of grade
warm, adaptable teachers who understand how to quickly assess where a new student is and help with placement
built-in executive functioning and emotional support woven into daily learning
strong peer connections, even for students who arrive mid-year
A home for students with unique gifts and learning differences
Military children with unique learning needs often struggle to find the right academic fit in a new city. At Linder, we don’t expect kids to fit the system. Instead, we build a system around each child.
Students we serve:
gifted students seeking challenge and creativity, especially those looking for support in social-emotional and executive functioning learning
twice-exceptional (2e) learners who excel in specific areas and need support in others
students with learning differences such as ADHD, dyslexia, dysgraphia, processing or visual-spatial challenges, autism, anxiety, or other learning differences who thrive with personalized instruction and structured support
students who simply benefit from small class sizes and personalized, whole-child education
“We’ve moved with the military many times, but Linder has been something special.
The teachers quickly understood our daughter’s needs. More importantly, they cared deeply.
The Student Ambassador program helped her feel like she belonged right away, and the community here rallied around us during deployment. It reminds us so much of the support we’re used to in military life—only this time, it came from a school.”
Student Ambassador Program
No one wants to feel like the “new kid.” That’s why every new military-connected student is paired with a Student Ambassador—a friend (also from a military family) who offers support during the first weeks of school.
Whether it’s finding classrooms, making friends at lunch, or just having someone to talk to, ambassadors make sure no one feels lost in the crowd. Many of these pairings grow into meaningful friendships that last for years to come!
Parent Community & Support
Our military families are an integral part of the Linder community. From day one, you’ll be welcomed into our vibrant Parent Association, with opportunities to connect, volunteer, and build lifelong friendships.
We understand the demands military families face, and we do everything we can to create a strong network of support around you.
Celebrating & Supporting our Heroes
We recognize the sacrifices military families make, and we take time to honor them throughout the year with
Veterans Day tributes and student-led reflections
Month of the Military Child celebrations, including Purple Up! spirit events
Family Appreciation Week recognizing the strength of our service families
classroom activities and community gratitude projects
These moments remind our students—and yours—that their stories matter.
Flexible Onboarding
As a small school focused on personalized learning, we offer as much onboarding as your child needs, with personalized intros to our programs, staff, other military families, and the rest of the Linder community. Our goal is to make each family’s move feel like a fresh start—not another disruption.
Open Enrollment
We know military life doesn’t always follow the traditional school calendar—and neither do we. Linder Academy offers rolling admissions year-round, so your child can start when you need them to.
Whether you're arriving mid-semester, during summer break, or right before a deployment, we’ll work with you to assess your child’s academic level and learning style, place them in the right skill-based cohort, and personalize their transition so they feel confident from day one.