Virtual School Holds Meet and Greet to Kick Off New Year

South Carolina Connections Academy, a virtual public charter school serving students in kindergarten through 12th grade, kicked off the new school year with a meet and greet for students and their families.

Hundreds of students and their family members from accross the state attended the event held at on Monday.

To celebrate the start of the school year, which begins Wednesday, the school offered students a chance to meet their teachers in person, talk with counselors and purchase school apparel.

South Carolina Connections Academy is a free virtual public charter school, which partners with the South Carolina Public Charter School District.

Allison Reavers, the academy's executive director, said they're expecting about 3,200 students will be enrolled at the acdemy for the 2012-2013 school year. 

This is the fifth year the academy has been open. At the end of its first year, about 900 students were enrolled in the program. 

The academy serves students from all 46 counties in South Carolina. 

At the academy, sudents are offered individualized learning plans, a rigorous curriculum, and are able to participate in clubs and activities.

The academy also has a gifted and talented program and is piloting a Ninth Grade Aacademy on the high school level, Reaves said. 

Students are taught by highly qualified and certified South Carolina teachers, she said.

“One of the things that is a misconception is that we’re not a real school," Reaves said. "So, the first thing we like to do is ease everybody’s fears. We are a real school. We’re a public school. We belong to the South Carolina Public Charter School District."

"When they enroll with us, they’re going to get not only a quality education at the state level but we partner with Connections Education, which is a world-renowned cuuriclum provider."

The academy is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Council on Acreditation and School Improvement. The school also partners with Pearson, an education services company, for its print and digital materials. 

The school is the only virtual school in the state that is accredited through AvancedED, Reaves said. 

While an online school might not be the right fit for some, there are several reasons students enrolled are attending the virtual school. 

Reaves said a lot of families come from homeschooling. Students also attend the school because they may have had problems with bullying, are athletes that travel a lot or have a chronic illness. 

As the curriculum becomes more difficult, some parents may not feel comfortable administering the material. So, they turn to the virtual school because their child is still able to attend school from home and they no longer have to design the curriculum themselves. 

The bottom line, Reaves said, is that people come to the school "because they want to be more involved in their child’s education."

For more information, visit the South Carolina Connections Academy website.