SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — Dozens of schools in the State of California have a Purple Star Designation, meaning they have extra resources on campus to help out military families.
Corky McMillin Elementary School in Chula Vista is the newest school in San Diego County tagged with that designation.
Corky McMillin celebrated its work to make life a little easier for military families during a Monday morning ceremony attended by Naval Base San Diego sailors.
Military children make up 17% of Corky McMillan's student body.
The school has resources on campus, like an advisor who helps students navigate the challenges of being part of a military family, such as transitioning into a new city and school and coping with deployments.
"We've been at McMillan since 2015. My husband served in the military. We moved here from Japan," said teacher Sandy Pembleton.
Pembleton said her family has utilized the additional resources that Corky McMillin offers, and they say it helped her students succeed with support groups.
Now that her dad is retired, fourth grader Emma Pembleton is helping her classmates cope with the challenges of military service, such as deployments.
"Look to the bright side of things because things might seem really hard at times. If you look for the bright side, it just gets better," she said.
More than a dozen other schools in San Diego County also have the Purple Star designation.
