“The onboarding process provided by Frontier Charter Academy (FCA) has helped me better understand the learning center, Canvas, as a whole. It was a very detailed and precise process including instructional videos, step by step instructions, and articles that can even be referenced through the school year.

I have been enrolled in other online schools; none of them taught me how to use Canvas or operate their computer school system as thoroughly as FCA. It was a time consuming process, a few days out of the first week, but necessary to utilize the tools to be successful in class.”              – Sebastian

"The onboarding course that FCA provided makes learning painless. I have been to other online schools and have had to figure out how the program works while trying to figure out my courses. FCA breaks that into two steps. First, all FCA students work through an onboarding course that teaches them about Canvas, Google, and Zoom. After students finish onboarding they have the understanding they need to be able to worry about their courses. I thought the process was easy and helped make beginning a new school less stressful." – Noah

Molalla High School (MHS) 12th grade student, Jessica, has a meeting in the ASPIRE office weekly with her mentor, Linda. Jessica described their time as focusing on completion of FAFSA, college applications, SAT prep, and grade checks. Jessica said her mentor "helps her because she encourages me to do better, and I know that I can." Jessica's only regret is that she didn't start utilizing the resources 

provided by the ASPIRE office earlier in her high school career. Next year, Jessica would like to attend either Oregon State or Portland State to study as a nurse or dental hygienist.

MHS also has a strong partnership with Clackamas Community College (CCC) in a number of areas. A focus on articulated credits has long been a priority for MHS. They currently offer a total of 38 college courses for articulated credit (26 of which are articulated with CCC). Last year, MHS had 144 students earn college credit through CCC with a total of 1,583 college credits earned. 

Although not an immersion program, Sheridan Japanese School (SJS) is a unique charter school serving 88 students grades 4-12 where everyone studies Japanese. They are a high rigor, college prep school-of-choice, but they realized they had some significant disconnect between basic skills they expected their students to know and what students actually learned.

SJS staff set out to create a list of skills students need to be successful here at SJS and really, in any life path they choose. We brainstormed, listed, discussed, revised, and then used some of the High School Success funds to task three staff members with creating content for this skill building course. In the summer of 2019, Sheridan Japanese School Foundational Academic Skill Training (SJS FAST) was born.

This course, primarily done in Google Classroom, covers keyboarding, sending professional emails, presentation skills, using a planner, note-taking, and so much more.

When kids don’t know how to use a planner or teachers are expecting them to know how to take notes and study from them, but they don’t, there is a chasm that has to be bridged. Giving everyone the basic set of skills allows teachers to have a consistent expectation and a student to have a solid launching pad. It allows a common language and common expectations. 

We anticipate and hope for improvements and changes, additions and subtractions. This course can change as our students’, schools’, and worlds’ needs change.