HUSD to launch "Freedom Academy of Imperial Valley"

New school will provide Home School and Online High School Options

In a continuing effort to meet the varied needs of the students of Imperial County, the Holtville Unified School District will open a new school this August.

The school, named The Freedom Academy of Imperial Valley will provide students in all grades, K-12 with several pathways to meet their educational needs.

The district has been working on the school for the past two years and the HUSD Board of Trustees approved the formal creation of the new school at their December 2011 meeting. “It’s very important that we provide numerous options for students to be successful,” stated Jon LeDoux, Superintendent. 

The school, which has the official designation as an “Alternative School of Choice” will provide students the following options:

Grades K-12: HOME SCHOOL

This option will provide students and parents the tools they need to successfully complete their school work at home under the direction of the students’ parents.  The Freedom Academy of Imperial Valley will provide all the textbooks, instructional materials and training for parents to be successful. In addition, the school will provide workshops in the areas of math, language arts, foreign languages, fine arts, and other subjects of interest. Field trips, sports days and other activities will also be planned. 

Students who enroll in the Freedom Academy Home School at the elementary or middle school level will also be able to participate in on-campus electives, sports and other activities at either Finley or Holtville Middle Schools.   The school will also provide Academy-based tutoring for those students who need one-on-one or small group help, and will also maintain “drop-off, drop-in” hours where students can come in for enrichment activities or have a quiet place to do their school work while their parents run errands or attend to other activities.

Parents and students will choose which workshops and activities their children will be involved in. Besides the mandatory school work, every activity will be optional. The Academy will support our parents who choose to home school in every way possible; actively listening and addressing the unique needs home school students might have.

Grades 9-12: Online Center-based Schooling

This option will provide Imperial County with its first online/on-campus “hybrid high school”. Students will attend class at the Freedom Academy’s center, where they will have their own designated study area, complete with the technology needed to complete their coursework online. Highly qualified teachers will provide the basis of instruction through outstanding courses delivered through state of the art technology. Every student will have an individualized course of study to ensure they stay on course to graduate.

All students who complete their work through the Academy will meet the University of California’s “A-G” requirements for freshman college admission. This will be accomplished through taking some courses on the Holtville High School campus.  Courses such as “wet-lab” science, visual and performing arts and physical education cannot be completed online to meet A-G requirements so students who need these courses will be allowed to take them on the adjacent high school campus.  Students who choose this option will complete approximately 85% of their coursework online.

Students who attend the Academy under this option will be assigned a highly qualified classroom teacher to support them in their online studies. The student to HUSD teacher ratio will be the same as the other schools in the District, ensuring that each student is provided as much support as necessary to be successful.  Field trips, workshops and student support will be provided to those students who wish to participate.  Additionally, students may take electives at Holtville High School as their schedules allow. These courses will include music, fine arts, business technology, foreign language, agriculture and other classes. Students will also have access to HHS clubs and committees if they choose to participate.

In addition to the online courses at the school, the most unique characteristic is that students will be able to work at their own pace, taking courses in the order that interests them. For example, while a student may take seven courses a semester, he/she may choose to work on each course daily, or, he/she may choose to complete each specific course for the semester before moving on to the next subject.  This allows students to have great flexibility in how they work through their schedule.

“The quality of the programs that we will be offering will be very high,” stated LeDoux. “The courses are rigorous, challenging, and ensure those students who complete the program will feel quite a sense of accomplishment. The program is not for those who believe this is an easier way to get through high school. It is simply a different way, providing an option for those who believe it will work better for their learning style.”

The Holtville Unified School District has a proud tradition of leading with quality programs. This is evidenced by the many choices already available to students, such as our very popular and successful Dual-Immersion program, now in its fourth year at Finley Elementary School.  In addition, HUSD provides two outstanding school options for our junior high aged students; a traditional 6-8^th grade middle school (Holtville Middle School), and a Kindergarten through 8^th grade country school (Pine School).  We are also home to one of the most outstanding Agriculture programs in the state of California at Holtville High School, a California Distinguished School.  The creation of the Freedom Academy of Imperial Valley is simply an extension of our commitment to meeting the many needs of our diverse students.

Parent/student informational meetings will be held in February and March. Students from throughout Imperial County are welcome to attend to see if either one of these programs would work for them.