Commonwealth Charter Academy Charter School

CCA has provided a wonderful experience for my 6th grader, who will be entering his third year with the school. We both have enjoyed the opportunities CCA has given us to work together. My son loves that he can focus on his work, without distractions as well he loves all the field trips!!! When I asked him what he likes about CCA he said: "It's just a great school" As a parent, I like the flexibility and that his teachers are so available to us. The teachers we have met have been wonderful. Communication between student, home and school is very good!!

Both my 7th grade son and 5th grade daughter were bored in brick and mortar school. As a parent, I was tired of constantly fighting for what they needed, dealing with superintendent and school board directors, bullying, school buses, uniforms, and other parents/children that I really didn't want my children around.
Placement testing showed that my children were 2 years ahead in math and gifted and talented in all other areas. What an eye opener for me!!!
The first week to 2 weeks, we changed our routine until we found one that suited our family. After the initial 2 weeks, it was smooth sailing with children who now applied themselves and were super eager to learn again. No more arguing to do school work. Teachers are fantastic and anticipate the needs of my children. What a relief for me!
My son is very active in Boy Scouts and completing school early gave him the opportunity to work on many Merit Badges and his Eagle Scout Project.
My daughter prefers to sleep later in the morning and work on lessons later in the day.
CCA enhanced my children's relationship because they now help one another instead of fighting! It has provided us more family time, an adjustable schedule, more involvement from dad who works 2 jobs and would miss quite a bit when they were at brick and mortar, a much bigger participant in their education without the stress of arguing or fighting for what they need, and socialization through clubs and field trips.
My only regret-I didn't make the change years earlier!

Because my son didn't feel safe at his old school after being bullied, we began researching schools. I was always drawn back to Commonwealth Connections Academy (CCA). The lesson schedule CCA offers is very flexible. Because the teachers are easily accessible, we can easily discuss any problem areas, get clarifications on lessons, and ask questions. CCA utilizes both textbooks as well as online programs and tools that engage children and make learning fun. CCA offers a wide variety of electives, clubs, and field trips to all students. When I expressed concerns pertaining to my child's progress, CCA immediately started the evaluation process for various learning disabilities. The school then assigned a Special Education Teacher, drafted an IEP and added the appropriate services. This is the type of personal care and sincere interest I have come to expect from CCA. Everyone I have ever dealt with at CCA has been professional, courteous, caring, and knowledgeable. Not once have I regretted my decision to enroll my son in Commonwealth Connections Academy. He has come out of his shell and found a place where he feels comfortable being his unique self. To me, the healing he has experienced is priceless!

Connections Academy offers public online education & guidance from state certified, fabulous teachers. This schooling allows my children to learn at their own pace and to enjoy hands on learning with more time for experiments and educational trips. There are so many opportunities to meet other students/friends through Live Lessons, Educational Field Trips, Social Field Trips, and Elective Classes (such as Chess Club, Robotics Club, Julliard Music Classes, Language Class, etc.). It is important to me that I know what is being taught to my children. My children are nationally ranked speed skaters and this school schedule allows them to participate in practices and speed skating meets all over the country. It also allows them to volunteer and participate in community service projects. They are getting a full education while having the opportunity to learn other life lessons at the same time. My children have been enrolled in public, private and now online schools. Connections Academy is by far their favorite...and mine too!!

I chose Connections Academy because my son was in fourth grade in a bricks and mortar school. He had a bad seizure disorder since he was about 3 years old. The school one day let him go to the restroom and did not follow up on him even though he was missing for about 20 minutes. So of course you can figure out that he had a bad seizure while in the restroom. He finally came to enough and tried to crawl and get help. Before he got to the nurses station he had another seizure in the hall. By the time a student saw him and got the nurse his eyes was rolled back and was shaking all over. Instead of calling 911 they left him lay in the nurses station until they got a hold of me at work which was about 2 hours. Because I worked in a nursing home and when you was in a room with the door closed I could not hear the page. Finally my head boss came up into the room I was in and told me that I needed to go now that my son was at the school in a bad seizure. By the time I got to the school he was so bad that I had to call 911.Once he arrived at the hospital they had to put him into a comma to get him out of the seizure. So after that he went back to school about a week later. Then the school treated him like a infant. He was not allowed to go to the bathroom except in the nurses office and could not lock the door. They would not let him play on any outdoor play equipment. So I had them go with me to a doctors appointment and talk with the doctor. They told the school that he could be treated like a normal kid except to watch him and not let him go missing for over 5 minutes. The doctor also told them that he could not remember well and to check his backpack for his work. So my son came home crying every day for a week and told me that he lost snack and playtime. So I spoke with the teacher and she told me that he was not turning in his work. So I pulled the doctors paper out and reminded her that she needed to check. Her words to me was I don't have time to treat him any different than the other students. So as you can see that's why I went with Connections Academy for his education as well as his well being. My son will be graduating this coming school year because Connections Academy made it possible for him to learn at his own pace. Connections Academy is a great school and can bend to any child whether the child is slow, right own pace or advanced. I can't say enough about Connections Academy they are Awesome...

CCA is a wonderful school! My son has been afforded the opportunity to work at his own pace and avoid slipping through the cracks. He is able to live up to his full potential! He is now 8 and entering the 5th grade, with 6th grade math. I am a PA certified teacher and know that he would never have been able to progress to this extent in a typical public school! We love that it's free, of course, but also that it give us so much flexibilty! The teachers are great and are always willing to help. I cannot imagine putting my children in any other school!

I researched MANY cyber charter schools when deciding on this type of non-traditional school. CCA is set apart from the other cyber charters by their teacher involvement and fabulous community field trips. My son has dyslexia and was struggling. His self esteem was slowly diminishing each year he continued thru the brick and mortar school and in 6th grade we decided we needed to change something. Now that he is able to work at his own pace that stress is gone and he has regained his positive and amazing outlook on life. He completes a regular course load of work some of which is harder than what he was doing at his other school. I work full time so he is responsible for getting a lot of his work completed during the day so there still is stress but in a different and more controlled form. I see a good difference in him. He's confident but yet knows he is not perfect, because this school work is not easier. This school is definitely worth looking into if you are interested in cyber charter schooling for your child.

I have used CA for my DD (now 7), since K. We are now half way through 2nd grade, and I am very satisfied with it. I chose CA due to my ex wanting DD to go to a public school and me wanting to home school. CA is the perfect mix of the two, and I will highly recommend it for any parent who is bound by court orders and bull-headed exes.

The curriculum is a little easy so I supplement with other activities. But DD at the age of 6 was playing chess and learning Spanish, this year we are learning French and music. The school sends us all the books and equipment needed, and our teacher is wonderful. We are in contact almost every day either by email or call.

We are required by state to have 5 hours of 'educational instruction' and the school is very flexible with what this includes. We have counted roller-skating, farmer's market trips, grocery shopping, cooking, and many other things as school.

I will say that we do not have as much freedom as traditional homeschooling. I can't switch programs if I don't like it, we can't jump ahead to what she already knows and go from there. However, I also have the freedom that comes with not going to a bricks & mortar school. We can breeze through ten lessons in an hour if she understands it already, no sitting through the whole class.

The teachers are very good at finding something that does not click with us. We didn't like their typing program, so we asked for a substitute. We got one and this one clicked! The teachers are good at letting us know what is needed for finishing out the year. They are also good at accommodating different religions and beliefs, as the lessons are taught by the parents or learning coach.

CA also offers many opportunities for field trips and clubs for the students. Socialization is not a problem.

All in all, I'm glad I found CA and will recommend it to anyone!

It is one of the best schools out public and virtual schools!!!