Finding Their Place: How ORCA’s Online Model Benefits Different Types of Students

Enrolling in an online school can be an adjustment for students used to attending traditional in-person classes. After all, the touchpoints of a typical school day look and feel different when they’re centered at home instead of a brick-and-mortar classroom.

Students thrive at Oregon Charter Academy (ORCA) when they are willing to engage with the curriculum and the support of their teachers. Here are five groups of students that may benefit most from learning at ORCA. 

Five Groups of Students Who Thrive at ORCA

Students have unique needs, like requiring more flexibility, increased personal security, and greater control over their education. Oregon Charter Academy is equipped to provide support to these students so they can find their path to success.

1. Students Searching for a Safe Schooling Environment

Kids in Oregon and across the country are facing a mental health crisis. One recent survey of Oregon students found that "70% of 11th graders reported feeling nervous, anxious, or on edge several days in a 30-day period." Those negative feelings often make attending traditional schools very challenging. ORCA offers these students the flexibility to learn in a safe and supportive environment while providing tools to help students cope with their feelings so they can prioritize their mental health. 

Bullying and student misbehavior are also on the rise in traditional schools, causing frequent disruptions to student learning. When students can attend classes from the safety and comfort of their homes, free from the distractions of bullies, bad behavior, and safety threats, their performance and mental health naturally improve.

2. Students Who Excel Academically and Want Advanced Programs

Not every student can access honors or advanced placement programs in their local schools. Budget cuts have forced some districts to eliminate honors courses altogether. Others, particularly in rural areas, don't have the resources to offer them at all. In those instances, high-performing students who want to excel academically and earn free college credits will often enroll at ORCA.

Our slate of honors and advanced placement (AP) classes, created in partnership with local community colleges, help students gain admission into more competitive schools and get a lot of their college work done for free. Additionally, our career and technical education program, called ASCEND, offers several pathways to help students pursue specific career interests while earning professional certifications and college credits. 

3. Students Who Need Flexibility to Pursue Other Endeavors

A group of ORCA students pursue non-school activities at a very high level, which necessitates a more flexible school schedule. These are athletes, actors, entrepreneurs, and others who spend much of their day practicing, rehearsing, or working. ORCA gives them the freedom to learn at their own pace without sacrificing a top-tier curriculum or lessening support from highly qualified teachers.

4. Students Who Want More Control Over Their Learning

Because ORCA’s unique curriculum gives teachers the ability to meet students where they’re at and offer college and career specific classes, students can pursue their interests and receive individualized attention from teachers. Students at ORCA feel empowered when they have more control over their education and thrive within ORCA's asynchronous education model. 

5. Students Who Have Special Education Needs

ORCA has a robust special education program that honors students' individualized education plans (IEPs) or 504 plans, adapting them, as needed, to the virtual learning environment. This commitment to personalized support has earned ORCA recognition as an Exceptional Charter School in Special Education — the highest award a charter school can receive from the National Association of Special Education Teachers. 

Student Engagement is Critical

While these five groups of students all have unique goals, needs, and abilities, they share one quality: the willingness to engage in their education. Students who do their work, take the initiative to ask their teachers for help, and pursue other available opportunities, like extracurricular clubs, will thrive at ORCA.

Join Us for a Virtual Information Session

If you'd like to learn whether ORCA's approach to virtual learning is right for your student, join one of our virtual information sessions to connect with ORCA staff and preview our learning platform. We hope to see you there!