Decatur Virtual Academy Provides Another Way to Learn
DEF is in the business of helping every student learn and thrive. As many studies have shown, not every student learns best in a traditional classroom, which is why in recent years the City Schools of Decatur (CSD) established the Decatur Virtual Academy. The Decatur Virtual Academy (DVA) is the primary academic delivery model for CSD’s Alternative Programs. Currently the DVA serves 34 students (one elementary student, five middle school students, and 28 high school students).
DEF awarded a teacher grant to the DVA in October to enable the Director of Alternative Programs Heidi Whatley and members of her team to attend the Digital Learning Annual Conference in February to learn best practices and future innovations in online and blended learning. They will then return to the district and educate the middle school and high school teachers who regularly use those resources.
DVA’s Resources Are Available to Teachers Districtwide
Digital content is available to all middle and high school teachers through a partnership with Georgia Virtual School. To this point, DVA has not provided guidance or professional learning on how best to use this powerful and comprehensive resource. Once the DVA team has attended the conference, they will be experts in the digital resources and will be able to guide their colleagues through virtual and in-person trainings.
Alternative/non-traditional education programs are an option for students who may experience difficulty in the traditional setting, or for students that for a variety of reasons learn best in a non-traditional setting. In addition to the coursework, DVA staff provides crew meetings, daily check-ins, advisement, executive functioning support, academic intervention, and social skills intervention. They work closely with the students, families and supporting professionals to address the needs of individual students.
“I believe it is important for public schools to educate all of our students. I enjoy problem-solving with families and students to figure out how their students can be successful,” Ms. Whatley said. “Given the wide variety of challenges our students face, this involves building trust and being tenacious and creative. I believe in meeting students wherever they are: sometimes this means literally going to a student’s home or their job. I am so proud when our students who were school-phobic, suffered a trauma or loss, or who were previously unengaged in school to experience success in DVA. I like seeing students who were once expelled for discipline issues develop career and life goals.”
DVA Ensure Equity to Our Students
There are a variety of reasons – physical, behavioral, and practical – why some students choose DVA. There are DVA students who are both graduating early and those who are fifth-year seniors who are finishing up. We have students who have jobs (actors/models/food service) who need the flexibility to do school around their work schedules. In addition, we have a number of students with health conditions that prevent them from attending a brick-and-mortar school. The goal is to provide high-level education to everyone, regardless of their circumstances. That’s equity. And that’s a standard to which DEF is striving.
If you think the DVA might be a good fit for your student, you can access the DVA Handbook at www.csdecatur.net for more information.
