"It is a community to be seen and to be heard." Military-connected children make up a community of friends, advocates, caregivers, and leaders, and today we sit down with Seylah Stephens to hear what that looks like in her own life. Her honest, encouraging words are a reminder that no one has to go it alone, and that being recognized as you are may be one of the greatest gifts there is. Seylah shares her story of finding her place, first within her family, and then alongside other young people who understood her experience, and how that sense of belonging became the foundation for her own leadership.

Seylah tells us: "I am currently studying clinical psychology at University of California, San Diego. In my free time, I really enjoy being out in nature and practicing self care! Connecting with others is a huge part of my life, and hanging with my loved ones such as my family and friends keeps me grounded and motivated."

Military Child Education Coalition Website

David Nguyễn, Mr. International Student Self-Efficacy of Leadership: A Within-Group Analysis. 2015.

Dugan, J. P., Garland, J. L., Jacoby, B., & Gasiorski, A. (2008). Understanding Commuter Student Self-Efficacy for Leadership: A Within-Group Analysis. NASPA Journal, 45(2), 282–310. https://doi.org/10.2202/1949-6605.1951

Oberle E. Social-emotional competence and early adolescents' peer acceptance in school: Examining the role of afternoon cortisol. PLoS One. 2018 Feb 20;13(2):e0192639. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0192639. PMID: 29462163; PMCID: PMC5819800.

Parkhill, C.L. Deans, L.A. Chapin. Pre-leadership processes in leadership training for adolescents. Children and Youth Services Review, Volume 88, 2018, Pages 375-379.

Shah EN, Szwedo DE and Allen JP (2024) Adolescent close friendships, self-perceived social acceptance, and peer-rated likeability as predictors of wellbeing in young adulthood. Front. Dev. Psychol. 2:1435727. doi: 10.3389/fdpys.2024.1435727

This episode is provided by generous funding from the USAA Foundation.

Mixed and mastered by Concentus, Media, Inc., Temple, Texas, USA.

• The Other Kind of Service - Caregiving Youth published 9.2.26

• Military Kids as Caregivers published 4.29.25

• S2S: Students Supporting Students published 5.25.25

Every child faces some level of stress, and for many, that includes Adverse Childhood Experiences, or ACEs, which can increase the risk of mental health struggles down the road. In this episode, we talk with Dr. Whitney Raglin Bignall, Associate Clinical Director at The Kids Mental Health Foundation, about how protective factors like strong relationships, a sense of belonging, and yes, JOY, can help buffer kids against that risk. We explore what protective factors actually are, how they work alongside joy to build real resilience, and simple ways caregivers, educators, and communities can strengthen them in a child's everyday life. It's a grounded, hopeful conversation about turning joy into more than just a nice moment, but a genuine source of protection for kids facing hard things.

Dr. Raglin Bignall is the Associate Clinical Director of The Kids Mental Health Foundation and the Director of Community Impact and Evaluation, where she utilizes her expertise in mental health disparities, cultural factors, and community partnerships to drive the foundation's mission to give expert-created resources to all U.S. communities so everyone can understand and promote children's mental health. Her vision is to build a world where mental health is a part of the upbringing of every single child. She enjoys having the opportunity to build relationships that break stigma and provide care that includes the whole child, family and community. She strives to become part of a family's village and network of care because she knows how essential and influential each member of that network can be.

https://www.kidsmentalhealthfoundation.org/

https://militarychild.org

https://www.cdc.gov/aces/about/index.html

Fredrickson BL. What Good Are Positive Emotions? Rev Gen Psychol. 1998 Sep;2(3):300-319. doi: 10.1037/1089-2680.2.3.300. PMID: 21850154; PMCID: PMC3156001.

Fredrickson, B. L. (2001). The role of positive emotions in positive psychology: The broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions. American Psychologist, 56(3), 218–226.

• The Power of Positive Childhood Experiences, published 7.30.2024
• Mental Health Care and Military Families, published 9.10.2024
• Mental Health Education in Schools, published 9.19.2023

Before school. After school. In the middle of the night when something goes wrong. Liz, Kasen, and Audrey have all learned to carry weight most of their peers never have to think about. They show up and care for a family member who needs them, again and again, in ways that rarely get noticed and even more rarely get thanked. They're not alone: an estimated 3.4-5.4 million youth provide essential caregiving in the U.S., and yet there's no national system in place at schools, hospitals, or doctor's offices to even recognize a child as a caregiver. In this episode, these three incredible young people open up about what that invisible work actually looks like day to day: the responsibility that arrives too early, the exhaustion that goes unspoken, and just how rare it was to feel truly understood — until they found other kids living the same reality. They talk about what changed when they found each other at MCEC, and what it means to finally feel seen and heard by people who simply get it. Julie Coffey, who helps lead the Caregiving Youth Student Leadership Program, joins the conversation to share how the program gives these young caregivers something they didn't know they were missing — a peer community built around the kind of service no one sees, but everyone needs.

Liz. Kasen. Audrey.

Julie Coffey: our beloved Student Well-Being Manager at MCEC. Julie manages the Caregiving Youth Student Leadership Program, as well as many of our other student initiatives, like Student-2-Student (s2s) and the Frances Hesselbein Leadership Program. As a former educator, counselor, and a military-connected Caregiving Youth herself, Julie dedicates herself to helping military-connected students recognize their place of belonging in this world.

https://militarychild.org

Information about the Caregiving Youth Student Leadership Program:

https://militarychild.org/programs-and-initiatives/caregiving-youth-student-leadership-program/

Citations:

Armstrong-Carter E, Siskowski C, Cornish NR, Olson E. Adolescents' caregiving for family: Associations with mental health and academic performance. J Res Adolesc. 2025 Sep;35(3):e70045. doi: 10.1111/jora.70045. PMID: 40586181; PMCID: PMC12221208.

Miller KEM, Hart JL, Useche Rosania M, Coe NB. Youth Caregivers of Adults in the United States: Prevalence and the Association Between Caregiving and Education. Demography. 2024 Jun 1;61(3):829-847. doi: 10.1215/00703370-11383976. PMID: 38785364; PMCID: PMC11539003.

Mixed and mastered by Concentus Media, Inc., Temple, Texas, USA.

This episode is made possible by generous funding from the USAA Foundation.

Related MCEC Podcast Episodes:

• Military Kids as Caregivers published 4.29.25
• S2S: Students Supporting Students published 5.25.25
• S2S: Helping Students Succeed published 8.20.24