More schools connecting with students through online classes

More schools 
connecting with 
students through 
online classes

 
Written by

Kathleen Lavey
klavey@lsj.com 


 
Jasmin Cox had just moved back from 
North Dakota, didn't have a high school 
diploma and was, in her words, "a little 
down about it."

So Cox, 19, who had attended Charlotte, 
Portland and Lakewood high schools, 
decided to get on the phone and find a 
way to graduate. Her calls eventually were 
directed to the Eaton Intermediate School 
District, which was about to test a charter 
school called Relevant Academy.

Students - mostly former dropouts - meet 
for an in-person Dale Carnegie training 
course, then do much of their work on 
laptops.

"I get my own space, my own time and my 
own privacy to do my own homework and 
to get it done fast," Cox said.

She was one of 18 students at a Relevant 
 
Academy test session last semester. This 
fall, it will serve up to 120, including Cox.

It's part of an exploding trend of online  
education for high school students.

Lansing and Waverly offer online options for 
kids who have dropped out or gotten 
behind. Holt will start an online learning 
program this fall. Eaton Rapids is making 
an effort to target home-schoolers with a 
laptop-based high school curriculum.

Feedback from the pilot session indicates 
Relevant Academy's Dale Carnegie 
component helped students build 
relationships and confidence, said Angie 
Zeller, associate superintendent for the 
Eaton Intermediate School District.

"Now, we start seeing more academic 
progress as a result of that," Zeller said.

Tweaks to improve the academy 
experience include more structure and 
tighter connections between th

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