19 Incredible Educators, Schools, and Districts That Inspired Us in 2019

At Edmentum, we have the opportunity to work with incredible educators, schools, and districts all across the U.S. who are doing great things for students and their communities every day. We share these stories on our website as success stories, on our blog and social media pages, and even internally with different teams across the organization. While we’re already looking ahead at another decade (it’s really nearly 2020 already?!), we wanted to take a moment to step back and reflect on the stories that inspired us over the past year.

Without further ado, let’s take a look at 19 of our incredible partners who are changing the game in the fast-paced world of education when it comes to credit recovery and intervention; practice and state test preparation; flexible, expanded course options to support student achievement; and educators who went above and beyond.

Intervention and Credit Recovery

1. Intervention to Power Student Growth: Cook County Schools in Georgia

Cook County Schools has seen tremendous growth using Exact Path to craft an intervention program that works for its students. The district was even honored by the state of Georgia with a SSTAGE Star Award for its superior intervention program! Now, the district is thinking beyond intervention and using Exact Path districtwide to individualize learning for all students. Check out the full success story here.

2. Closing the Achievement Gap: Highland Elementary School in Columbus City School District of Columbus, Ohio

When the odds are stacked against you after years of school underachievement, how do you change the narrative and show that students are capable of success? Highland Elementary School has done just that by using Exact Path to create powerful remediation and acceleration opportunities for its students. Learn more in this blog post.

3. Supporting a Mobile Student Population: Tennessee Department of Children’s Services in Nashville, Tennessee

The Tennessee Department of Children’s Services oversees a number of schools across the state and supports a highly transient, diverse student population, ranging across all age groups, grade levels, and educational backgrounds. The agency has implemented Exact Path, Study Island, and Courseware to rise to the challenge of meeting the needs of all these different students and measure the success of each student by individual needs. Read the full success story here.

4. 100% Student Growth: Chilton County Schools, Alabama

Chilton County Schools (CCS) was looking for an online learning partner who could help the district address multiple initiatives from grades K–12: foundational literacy skills, targeted intervention, individualized learning, credit recovery, unit recovery, online courses, and ACT® test preparation. After one year of partnering with Edmentum, schools in the district have already begun to see outstanding results, with one school even achieving 100-percent student growth! Learn more by watching the video below and reading the full success story.

5. Decreasing the Dropout Rate Through Personalized Credit Recovery: Medomak Valley High School in Waldoboro, Maine

Supporting students through graduation and decreasing the dropout rate has always been a focus at Medomak Valley High School. However, the school has really seen success by offering virtual credit recovery and accelerated elective options side by side in its Student Achievement Center. Since its implementation, during the 2017–18 year, including summer school, students at Medomak Valley High School earned more than 181 credits toward graduation, including more than 100 full-year courses completed through EdOptions Academy and Courseware. Learn more here.

6. Graduation Rates Continuing to Soar: Michigan City High School in Michigan City, Indiana

Though Michigan City High School already had an established credit recovery program, the school was looking to boost its graduation rate of 78.9 percent (in 2013). By implementing more enrichment opportunities through Courseware and Study Island—along with placing focus on blended learning options, increasing student ownership of progress, and a team of educators dedicated to success—the school has been able to raise its graduation rate to over 90 percent (as of 2017)! See how the school did it here.

Practice and State Test Preparation

7. Double-Digit Gains in State Science Testing: Okaloosa County School District in Okaloosa, Florida

Okaloosa County School District has used Study Island to achieve incredible student growth on Florida’s Statewide Science Assessment. Due to the district’s hard work, it saw double-digit gains in student scores last year! Read more about this amazing success story here.

8. Engage, Educate, and Empower: Mt. Vernon Community School Corporation in Fortville, Indiana

Fortville Elementary School addressed its students’ learning gaps using a powerful combination of Edmentum’s Study Island and Exact Path, coupled with our NWEA™ MAP© Growth™ assessment integration, to drive its students’ success. The school has seen fantastic student growth and even improved its Indiana Department of Education ranking by an entire letter grade! See how the school implements Edmentum our programs at the kindergarten through 5th grade level in this blog post, and check out the full success story here.

9. Improving Student Outcomes Through Individualized Learning: Onalaska Independent School District in Onalaska, Texas

Onalaska Independent School District has used a full suite of Edmentum programs (Study Island, Exact Path, Courseware, Reading Eggs, and EdOptions Academy) to support credit recovery and provide additional course options. Since the start of the district’s Edmentum implementation, Onalaska students have seen significant growth on the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) end-of-course assessments. Read the full success story and this blog post to learn more.

10. RTI Success and Beyond: Navasota Independent School District in Navasota, Texas

Navasota Independent School District needed a way to effectively identify students for response to intervention (RTI) in grades 3–8. The district implemented the NWEA™ MAP© Growth™ assessment, which integrates with both Exact Path and Study Island. After more than a year of leveraging that integration and utilizing Study Island and Exact Path for practice and targeted learning, the district has a successful RTI program and has already begun to see growth on STAAR state assessment results. Read the full success story here.

Flexible, Expanded Course Options for Student Achievement

11. Expanding Course Offerings in a Rural District: Telstar Regional Middle/High School in Bethel, Maine

Through Edmentum’s EdOptions Academy, Telstar Regional Middle/High School in rural Maine provides students with diverse elective options, including foreign languages, career and technical education, and advanced courses that the school does not have the resources to offer in person. These expanded options help students better prepare for college or careers and promote engagement by reflecting student interests. Read the full success story here.

12. Giving Students a Second Chance: Alaska Military Youth Academy in Anchorage, Alaska

Alaska Military Youth Academy runs a unique, military-style, 22-week program for at-risk Alaskan youth, and it utilizes the Edmentum programs Courseware and Assessments for coursework, credit recovery, and GED preparation. Since the academy began using Edmentum programs, it has been able to increase the number of students earning GED credentials! Learn more about this program in the full success story.

13. Creating a Rigorous Online Program for Transient Military Students: Onslow County School District in Jacksonville, North Carolina

Onslow County School District serves a highly transient population of students, many of whom are part of military families. Up to 48 percent of its students transfer either within or out of the district each school year, and the district needed a solution to make these students’ academic experiences more seamless. Partnering with EdOptions Academy to create a fully virtual and flexible online program for its students, the district has been able to increase its four- and five-year graduation rates and even outpace student achievement statewide! Learn more about how the district did it in this blog post.

14. Designing Alternative Education as a Stairway Rather Than a Stepping Stone: West Burlington Independent School District in West Burlington, Iowa

West Burlington’s Success Center credit recovery program was on the decline. The district needed to provide a more flexible, individualized online experience for students who have scheduling conflicts, who have nontraditional learning preferences, or students who simply want the opportunity to take specialized courses. After implementing Courseware and EdOptions Academy, as of fall 2018, more than 30 percent of students were enrolled in at least one online course, and students taking college credits through the program achieved a 100-percent pass rate! Read the full success story here.

15. Integrating Flexible Technology into a “One-Room Schoolhouse”: Selinsgrove Area High School in Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania

Selinsgrove Area High School created a “one-room schoolhouse” for students looking for flexible, online course options to individualize learning and provide high-quality, differentiated education. Since implementing of Courseware, 20 students have graduated from the school thanks to its expanded course offerings. Learn more in the full success story.

16. Leveraging Courseware to Support Digital Instruction and Personal Connections: Little Falls High School in Little Falls, Minnesota

The Little Falls Excel Program was born out of the need for more resources for “under-supported” students—learners who did not meet criteria for special education programming but struggled with some basic academic and social and emotional skills and needed extra resources. By implementing Courseware for flexible, personalized online learning opportunities, along with the support of dedicated staff, Little Falls High School has been able to support the specific needs of students and increase achievement. Read more in this blog post.

Educators Going Above and Beyond

17. Meet Edmentum’s 2019 Educator of the Year: Steve Clark, Resource Specialist Teacher at Ortega High School in Lake Elsinore, California

As a resource specialist program teacher, Mr. Clark works with students who are severely credit deficient, specifically supporting a caseload of special education students. He took a student-first approach to completely revamp his school’s credit recovery program, leading to a spike in its graduation rate. Mr. Clark’s full profile can be found here.

18. Study Island + Ice Cream = Student Success: Inspiring Educator Allen Ashley from Lake Panasoffkee Elementary School in Lake Panasoffkee, Florida

Mr. Ashley, who teaches 4th and 5th grade math and science at Lake Panasoffkee Elementary School in Lake Panasoffkee, Florida, has created an innovative Study Island Blue Ribbon Challenge that engages his students and prepares them for state testing. He also sets Blue Ribbon goals, and if students can achieve them by the end of the school year, they earn a spot at his exclusive ice cream social! Learn more about Mr. Ashley here.

19. Coffeeshops, Conversations, and Student Ownership: Inspiring Educator Debra Weiler from New Palestine Intermediate School in New Palestine, Indiana

Mrs. Weiler, who teaches 6th grade at New Palestine Intermediate School in New Palestine, Indiana, was recognized for her creative use of Edmentum notebooks in the classroom to help students take ownership of their learning. She also hosts a unique “coffeshop” in her classroom each week, where students come together to discuss what is working for them and what isn’t. Read more about Mrs. Weiler in this blog post.

These are just a few of the hundreds of stories we hear from educators across the country each year. There are endless implementations of our programs, and we cannot wait to see what stories we’ll hear in 2020. To see even more success stories like the ones above, check out our full success story archive!