DANTES Information Bulletin (6) June 2021

DIB

JUN

DANTES INFORMATION BULLETIN

2021

Communicating with Social Media Tools In this issue: Communicating with Social Media Tools

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Fact Sheet

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Hot News: A Sailor Success Story

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Contact Information

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DANTES Information Bulletin

Using Social Media to Communicate and Build Program Awareness

By Erin Roberts, DANTES Public Affairs Specialist (VES)

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our DANTES Voluntary Education Enterprise Support (VES) Team is committed to supporting the Defense Department’s (DoD) VolEd community. We work with Service education professionals to build program awareness and help ensure that all of our nation’s actively-serving service members, including the Military Services, National Guard, Reserve Components and the U.S. Coast Guard, know about the education benefits available to them at no cost.

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We do this through several avenues of outreach, to include DANTES website management, our 24/7 customer inquiry response tool, the monthly DIB newsletter, monthly program webinars, Military One Source videos, and five social media platforms. In this article, we are going to focus on providing you with some valuable information on the use of our social media platforms to enhance internal and external communications and build program awareness throughout the VolEd community.

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Communicating with Social Media Tools Social Media Statistics

Did you know that seven-in-ten Americans use social media to communicate with each other, get their daily news, share life’s events and learn about people, places, and things that interest them? Here are some social media (SM) numbers from the Pew Institute, “a fact tank that informs the public about the issues, attitudes and trends shaping the world.”

Among U.S. adults who say they use social media; here’s how many of them use each platform daily…

All Adults

81% - YouTube 69% - Facebook 40% - Instagram 28% - LinkedIn 23% - Twitter Here are the ages of those who use these platforms the most…

Ages 18-29

YouTube: 95% of users Instagram: 71% of users

Ages 30-49

Facebook: 77% of users LinkedIn: 36% of users DANTES uses all of these social media platforms, and we encourage the DoD VolEd community of professionals to follow us, share, and use our messaging and graphics to help make your job easier. After all, our customer audience is your customer audience… we are all here to encourage and help our service members make, pursue and complete their education and career goals!

Social Media Platforms DANTES has been using Facebook for several years and you can follow us at https://www.facebook. com/DANTES.DoD According to the Pew Institute, “Facebook’s growth has leveled off over the last five years, but it remains one of the most widely used social media sites among adults in the United States.” Another interesting Facebook fact is that “70% of those ages 18 to 29 say they use the platform, and those numbers are relatively the same for ages 30 to 49 (77%) or ages 50 to 64 (73%).” DANTES statistics agree with this statement, as our numbers remain relatively steady. We would, however, like to see them grow and encourage you to follow and share our posts regularly.

Twitter: 42% of users

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Communicating with Social Media Tools

DANTES also has a Twitter account, https://twitter. com/DANTES_DOD, and LinkedIn account as well, https://www.linkedin.com/company/10843412.

These platforms have our smallest following, but still offer quality program information and education updates on a regular basis. According to the Pew Institute, Twitter has not shown much growth since 2019 and LinkedIn is associated with higher education levels, which may be the reason for a lower following, “Those with higher levels of education are again more likely than those with lower levels of educational attainment to report being LinkedIn users. Roughly half of adults who have a bachelor’s or advanced degree (51%) say they use LinkedIn, compared with smaller shares of those with some college experience (28%) and those with a high school diploma or less (10%).”

DANTES launched our Instagram page last year, https://www.instagram.com/dantes_dod/, with the goal of reaching the younger service member population. We are working to build our follower base every day. According to the Pew Institute, Instagram sees many users return daily, “73% of 18- to 29-year-old Instagram users say they visit the site every day, with roughly half (53%) reporting they do so several times per day.” We are hopeful that the daily usage will help to build our numbers DANTES Information Bulletin

and increase our following; because an increased following means increased shares and increased program awareness.

Lastly, the DANTES YouTube channel, https://www.youtube.com/channel/ UCAD8yGhGBeDAtIPMW7Eu-sA , has been around for a few years, but it was revamped since COVID-19 and the use of videos is becoming the preferred message format for many. We have been sharing our webinar recordings, Military One Source monthly video messages, Army Education Success Stories, and more on this channel. This platform appears to have the best growth, according to the Pew Institute, “YouTube is the most commonly used online platform asked about in this survey, and there’s evidence that its reach is growing. Fully 81% of Americans say they use the video-sharing site, up from 73% in 2019.” Again, DANTES can attest to this statement as we are seeing our viewers increase the most on this platform.

References for Pew Institute: https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/factsheet/social-media/ https://www.pewresearch.org/ internet/2021/04/07/social-media-use-in-2021/ http://www.dantes.doded.mil

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Army Education Success Stories

Student Success Stories You may have heard that testimonials can be a great way to share information about a product or service. Folks often trust the reviews and recommendations of others when it comes to investing time or money in a new service, purchase or program. As mentioned, when sharing about our YouTube channel, DANTES worked with the Army VolEd Community in over the past month to highlight education success stories from 16 Soldiers.

The Fort Rucker BSEP Education Team was also recognized for their delivery of outstanding service to Soldiers. You can view these videos on our YouTube channel. DANTES plans to continue this testimonial initiative, and we encourage education counselors to work with their VolEd leadership to share more stories in the coming months.

Click on the video below to see a great education success story!

These stories were shared on our social media platforms three times weekly throughout the month and shared on the Army’s social media platforms as well. We are still calculating the numbers, but we know that they reached thousands of viewers on Facebook. We also posted them to the DANTES YouTube channel in a playlist for others to watch and share.

Two videos had great success: SGT David Lira, California Army National Guard, received 211 views, and CPT Jeremiah Morris, Hawaii Army National Guard, had 187 views.

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Communicating with Social Media Tools YouTube: Military One Source Videos Partnerships are so important and beneficial when working to share information and increase program awareness. We value our relationships with the Services VolEd community. Last month, we capitalized on the working relationship with the Army and Army National Guard, but we’ve also seen the benefit of working with the team at Military One Source.

When COVID-19 hit and we had to adjust to working in a remote environment, DANTES was fortunate to collaborate with Military One Source and record 18 monthly video messages to stay in touch with our Service audience and continue

to share program updates. From April 2020 thru February 2021, DANTES reached 24,000+ viewers, with short videos highlighting our programs and updates. Through this partnership, we reached thousands of viewers and increased our program awareness. DANTES continues to record monthly messages, and we encourage education office personnel and service members to view and share these videos. Military One Source posts their video messages on their Facebook page, https://www. facebook.com/military.1source, Monday thru Friday, 12 Noon, Eastern Time. DANTES shares each video on our own Facebook page and we have created a playlist with all of the video messages on our You Tube channel as well.

Check out some of our videos that can help with military education!

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Communicating with Social Media Tools YouTube: DANTES Webinars With the changing work environment that COVID-19 brought for so many, another plus from the often-challenging environment was the need for DANTES to explore the use of different platforms and technology for communication with the Services and service members. DANTES quickly adapted from offering in-person training and outreach events to virtual events, which has allowed us an opportunity to better meet the needs of our customers, reduce travel costs for training, broadly connect with those in different time zones, and offer monthly webinars for customers to attend conveniently from their workstations, whether at home or in the office.

This allowed us to continue to provide program awareness and connect with the VolEd Community and service members, regardless of where everyone was working or serving worldwide.

From June 2020 to March 2021, DANTES hosted 13 DANTES program-related and five Servicesupported webinars, for a total of 18 webinars, reaching 1,100+ participants, using the soon-tobe discontinued Microsoft CVR Teams software.

During this period, DANTES also supported 5 Army NCOPD LIVE Facebook interviews reaching 16,100+ participants. Additionally, DANTES participated in the first-ever Coast Guard Service-supported Virtual Education Fair reaching nearly 500

DANTES Information Bulletin

participants. All of these events were highlighted on social media and the webinars have all been recorded and are available for viewing on our YouTube channel. These are all examples of valuable communication efforts forged with the Services during the past year’s COVID environment that we are particularly thankful for.

And just in case you were wondering, the DANTES webinars will continue, but we will be using the Zoom for Government platform starting in July 2021. Visit our webinar page to learn about all of our upcoming webinars, www.myvoled.com/ webinars and mark your calendars!

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Communicating with Social Media Tools

CONNECT with DANTES In closing, to make it easy to connect with us, DANTES has created one webpage for you to visit to find all of our access points for program information via our social media platforms. Visit www.myvoled.com/connect to connect with us. If you have questions or ideas, please email the Voluntary Education Enterprise Support (VES) Team at DANTES_outreach@navy.mil. We are here to help you increase Voluntary Education program awareness with the Services and service members, so members can ultimately complete their education goals, advance in their careers, and transition to civilian employment successfully.

DANTES Information Bulletin

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MilEd Benefits Fact Sheet

COLLEGE & CAREER PLANNING PROGRAM OVERVIEW:

SERVICE MEMBER BENEFITS:

The Department of Defense (DoD) Voluntary Education (VolEd) Program, through the Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Education Support (DANTES) provides customized college and career counseling services specifically designed for military students.

Free, self-paced, college and career counseling assistance

Kuder Journey is a comprehensive online resource that helps service members plan for the future. College and career planning requires learning about oneself first to ensure a member chooses the right career path for their future. Kuder Journey’s education and career counseling program is designed to help military students learn, access, and plan, based on personal interests, skills and work values.

Lifetime access to e-Portfolio, individual assessments and documents

Career and education pathways customized for individual users Career options aligned to educational requirements Helps build job search skills Design cover letters Build custom resumes

PROGRAM ELIGIBILITY: Kuder Journey is available to all actively serving members in all branches of service, including the National Guard, Reserve components and Coast Guard. Kuder Journey account activation during active duty service provides lifetime access to the program as a transitioning veteran.

COUNSELOR RESOURCES:

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Counseling@navy.mil clientengagement@kuder.com www.MyVolEd.com/Kuder

Kuder Journey AdministratorTraining & Tutorials: https://app.kuder.com/masterweb/Templates/DANTES/KUDERJ-T.htm Kuder Support Links: https://www.kuder.com/landing-page/holland-theory-overview-and-application-/ Getting Started Video: https://youtu.be/nuMkidDcNYk Kuder Journey Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oi7Ybozdj1k

Helping Service Members Achieve Their Education Goals

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Hot News - A Sailor Success Story I am counting on my degree to make me competitive.”

McCardle-Blunk completed his associate degree using TA, and because there are limits on TA usage, he plans on using a combination of TA and his GI Bill education benefits to finish his bachelor’s degree.

“With my Joint Services Transcript (JST) and my associate degree, I am only eight courses away from completing my bachelor’s in aeronautics,” said McCardle-Blunk. “After four classes and two terms, I’ve reached my TA cap and plan to use my GI Bill for the rest of the fiscal year which should more than suffice.”

McCardle-Blunk believes the process to apply and utilize TA has improved significantly over the years.

“The TA program has become so much easier to use than it used to be when I started in 2006,” said McCardle-Blunk. “Back then you needed to fill out a paper form and route it through your chain of command.”

Navy Senior Chief Shares Education Journey, Advises Sailors to Take Advantage of Education Opportunities

By Cheryl Dengler, Naval Education and Training Professional Development Center Public Affairs PENSACOLA, Fla.—A senior chief assigned to Pre-Commissioning Unit (PCU) John F. Kennedy CVN-79, is sharing his personal education journey with Sailors and giving advice from lessons learned along the way.

Senior Chief Air Traffic Controlman Alex McCardle-Blunk earned his associate degree in aeronautics from Embry Riddle Aeronautical University in December 2017, and is working on his next goal—a bachelor’s degree in aeronautics at the same university.

Inspired by self-improvement and motivated to advance to the next pay grade, McCardle-Blunk used tuition assistance (TA) to get to where he is today.

“My associate degree was driven by the Navy’s encouragement to go to school to get promoted,” said McCardle-Blunk. “Now, my goal is driven by the civilian job market. As I get closer to retirement DANTES Information Bulletin

Today, the entire TA application is completed online and is available to eligible active-duty Sailors and Reservists in an active-duty status.

“Now the TA website is very intuitive,” said McCardle-Blunk. It’s very easy to apply for TA and easy for me to walk my Sailors through it as well.”

As long as Sailors meet the eligibility requirements and are approved by their command, they have the opportunity to take up to 12 credit hours using TA or the Navy College Program for Afloat College Education (NCPACE) per year.

“Sailors must have a minimum of two years of military service before becoming eligible to use TA funding,” said Navy College Program Counselor Desmond Pierre-Louis. “After that, and with approval from their command, they can do their required online training and speak directly with a counselor to define their education goals.”

Once the training and counseling is complete, Sailors submit their TA/NCPACE application through the MyNavy Education website, where it must be command approved prior to funding being authorized. Applications can be submitted 120 days in advance and no later than 14 days prior to the start of the term.

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Hot News - A Sailor Success Story “Submitting applications early allows sufficient time to resolve any issues,” said Pierre-Louis. “That way, funding authorizations can happen in a timely manner.”

McCardle-Blunk often tells Sailors not only to get started in their education if it is right for them but to stick with it if they continue their education.

“Don’t do what I did and take 11 years being ‘wishy-washy’ with it,” said McCardle-Blunk. “Stick with it and set an end goal date.”

Doing his job in the Navy along with getting his education was tough for McCardle-Blunk, but the reward was worth the effort.

“Balancing work, family, school and recreation can be difficult, so don’t burn yourself out,” said McCardle-Blunk. “For motivation, it helped me to remember I was doing it for me and my family’s future and not just because someone told me I should.”

Though he knows continued education may not work for everyone, McCardle-Blunk always advises Sailors to take advantage of the opportunities as they become available.

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“Find what works best for you and your situation,” said McCardle-Blunk. “Take advantage of skill-building opportunities as they arise in your military career; they can make you more competitive in the Navy as well as later in the civilian job market.”

For more information on the Navy College Program, visit https://www.navycollege.navy.mil.

The NCVEC can be reached Monday – Friday, 7 a.m.

– 7 p.m. Eastern time, toll free at 1-877-838-1659.

For OCONUS Navy College Office information, visit https://www.navycollege.navy.mil/oconus-offices.htm.

As part of the MyNavy HR Force Development team, NETPDC provides products and services that enable and enhance education, training, career development and personnel advancement throughout the Navy. Primary elements of the command include the Voluntary Education Department, the Navy Advancement Center and the Resources Management Department.

Additional information about NETPDC can be found at https://www.netc.navy.mil/NETPDC.

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DANTES Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Education Support

DANTES_Outreach@navy.mil

DANTES OCONUS European Advisor (Contingency Operation Support)

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DANTES INFORMATION BULLETIN

Jeff Allen, Director Michelle Alexander, Editor DANTES Information Bulletin

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@DANTES-DoD DANTES Information Bulletin The DANTES Information Bulletin is published monthly to inform education personnel about DANTES programs and to help promote more efficient customer service to service members.

Email all inquiries to DANTES_Outreach@navy.mil.

Reproduction in whole or in part is permitted for any purpose of the United States Government, except that copyrighted materials cannot be reproduced without written permission from the copyright owner. The appearance of external hyperlinks does not constitute endorsement by DANTES of the linked websites, or the information, products, or services contained therein. http://www.dantes.doded.mil

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