Document text
- Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card - Place an Ad Archives Revels Classifieds Real Estate Menu Guide Wedding Weather Subscribe Contact Us August 17, 2005 School via Internet is increasing Connections Academy to visit Ashland this week By Jennifer Squires Ashland Daily Tidings As soon as Polly Farrimond heard about Oregon Connections Academy, she knew the fledgling online public school would be ideal for her 9-year-old daughter. Celine, who will be a fourth-grader this fall, had bounced through a series of public-, private- and home-school classes for four years. Her parents had a difficult time finding ways to challenge their daughter, who read at a fourth- to fifth-grade level as a kindergartner at Phoenix Elementary School. Knowing the online school Celine was enrolled in last year — the Clackamas Web Academy — would be curtailing its offerings in Southern Oregon beginning in September left the Farrimonds in search of a new way to educate their daughter. Midway through the school year, the Polly Farrimond found ORCA. The 658-student Scio School District authorized the new virtual public charter school to serve students throughout Oregon. More than 520 students, including at least four from the Ashland-Talent-Phoenix area, have already registered for ORCA. School representatives will be at the Ashland Library at 6:30 p.m. Thursday to introduce parents and students to the program, which is free because it is sanctioned by a public school district. Classes begin in September. “It’s way more dynamic than what we were doing,” Polly Farrimond said. “I don’t know that you can call this an online school because there are parts of it that are online but it’s not all online.” ORCA will be facilitated through Connections Academy, a Baltimore-based education firm that supports online schools similar to the Oregon program in nine other states. “There are a number of reasons why people would choose this school,” said Matt Wingard, a consultant working with ORCA. “A lot of it is the autonomy and the flexibility.” When the program was introduced in February, then-Scio Schools Superintendent Jim Thomas explained that it would be ideal for students in rural areas. However, the roster of students who had enrolled by Monday listed hundreds from more urban areas, including 44 from the Portland area and 47 from Salem. ORCA allows students and parents to create their own learning schedules, although the program is structured around a two-semester public school calendar. Families could treat Mondays as the weekend or take the curriculum with them on vacation, so long as there is an Internet connection nearby. The Farrimonds will use ORCA during their annual three-week trip to Disney World. A mother in Salem enrolled her son, a professional skateboarder, in the program because he misses a lot of class time from December to March because of his tour schedule. The program appeals to other families because of students with disabilities and those who would benefit from additional attention because they have special education needs or are advanced beyond their grade level. “It’s so dynamic,” Polly Farrimond said. “We did the online thing, and this is more. There’s a textbook, and the parent is involved.” In the past, educators have expressed concerns that students will not get the socialization present in a classroom through a virtual school. For the Farrimonds, the connections Celine makes with other children through dance class, church, piano lessons and ice skating will give her the chance to build relationships with other kids. “What we find is that a lot of people, especially home school-kids coming in, they already have a lot of organized activities,” Wingard said. Staff writer Jennifer Squires can be reached at 482-3456 x 3019 or [email protected]. DailyTidings.com Home Page Archives | Revels | Classifieds | Real Estate Guide | Weather | Subscribe | Contact Us Copyright 2005 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers All Rights Reserved Deep Muscle Stimulator Free Music Downloads Slippers Ceramic Piggy Banks Online Casinos FREE Entertainment Guide Women's & Men's Slippers Accelerate Weightloss Products best online casino teleconferencing High-End Gaming Computers Diamonds Vegas Travel Guide Search Engine Optimization Sportsbook Discounted Website Hostings Student Loans Hotel & Airline Reservations African Safari Myspace Layouts Helzberg Diamonds Online Casinos Community Student Loans Bonus Casino ink cartridges Mortgage Calculator Security Systems Mailing Lists Canadian Pharmacy Casino Gambling Sites Backpacks Click Here .:Advertisements:. Site Search: RESOURCES - Mail Tribune News - ODOT Road Cams