Saturday, October 23, 2004
County officials look to expand an e-school program to local schools.
NEWTON FALLS -- The screen on Ashley Nahm's computer reads "The Future of Education" as she types in her log-in name and password.
With a click of the mouse, she brings up the list of classes she's taking: integrated science, Greek civilization, literature of the world, and introduction to the Internet.
Nahm, 18, and fellow student Jessica Huber, 17, both of Newton Falls, said each class is made up of lessons that include readings followed by questions that must be answered by the pupil.
All of the reading and work are done on the computer.
Huber and Nahm are among 22 pupils taking part in the Newton Falls School District's first "Falls Learning Academy."
The program is designed to educate pupils who have difficulty with a traditional education. The district has pupils like those whom they lost in the past to other districts through open enrollment and to charter, Internet and community schools.
When those pupils left, they took state funding with them. The state reduces funding to districts for each pupil lost to an alternative school or to other districts through open enrollment.
Newton Falls is expected to receive $3,900 in state funding for each academy pupil from Newton Falls. Superintendent Dave Wilson said the program costs the district $1,500 per pupil.
The district receives $5,350 for pupils who come to the academy from other districts through open enrollment. Wilson said about five of the pupils in the academy program are from outside Newton Falls.
The Falls Learning Academy program calls for pupils to spend three hours each day in a classroom working on their classes on the computer. A teacher is in the classroom to answer questions.
Pupils also can log into their classes over the Internet. The classes were created by the educational software firm Aurora Educational Technologies for the Trumbull Career and Technical Center.
Wilson said the program reflects a change in how people are viewing education.
"Schools are no longer a temple," he said. "Now you're in a market era. You'd better have a product and produce a product that people want to be a part of."
Wilson added that he doesn't believe in complaining about how his district has been affected by open enrollment and alternative schools. Last year, Newton Falls lost 11 pupils through open enrollment and 21 pupils to community schools.
Instead, Wilson said he tries to find ways to improve the education offered in his district so he can attract more pupils.
"What does it take? The guts to stand out there and give it a shot," he said.
Other Mahoning Valley school officials also are trying to make changes in response to the loss of state money because of open enrollment and alternative schools.
Another plan
Over the next year, Phil Butto III of the Mahoning County Educational Service Center said he will be working to expand the center's "Unlimited Classroom" program to local districts.
The Unlimited Classroom program, like the Falls Learning Academy, calls for pupils to take classes on computers and over the Internet.
The educational service center began offering the program last year to pupils at Lincoln Place, a halfway house for juveniles in Youngstown, said Butto, program director.
This year Butto will be talking to school administrators in the county about offering the program to their pupils. He echoed Wilson's comments comparing modern schools to businesses.
"We're trying to serve our customers, that's what parents are asking for," he said.
Butto said the center will receive state funding for pupils in the program in the same manner that districts receive state funding for open-enrollment pupils. He plans to talk to school officials about sharing some of that state funding with a pupil's home school district.
This year, Niles, Liberty, Howland and LaBrae school districts also are each allowing open enrollment for the first time.
Wilson said before the learning academy program was created, Newton Falls also was losing pupils because of open enrollment and alternative schools. He said school officials tried to find out why pupils were leaving and what could be done to bring them back.
What they learned
They found that some pupils weren't comfortable in lecture-style classes, while others had fallen behind in school and felt they couldn't catch up, Wilson said. The learning academy program was designed with those pupils in mind, he said.
He said Newton Falls officials wanted to require pupils to come to school to take part in their program because "we wanted a certain amount of accountability. We wanted them to feel like they were a part of the school."
Nahm, who attended the career and technical center last year, said she enjoyed the program because it allowed her to work at her own pace. Huber noted that the program allows pupils to catch up quickly if they are behind.
Tara Eastman, 15, of Leavittsburg, added that the program provided her with a better learning and social environment than her previous school.
"I had a lot of problems at LaBrae, fighting, getting picked on," Eastman said. In the program, "all the kids are nice. We all get along. We don't fight or argue."
hill@vindy.com