University of Miami Global Academy
Website: http://globalacademy.miami.edu/
Articles:
Miami Edu article from the Sun SentinelUniversity of Miami Offers First Free Online Classes to High School Students to Prepare for the SAT
Contact:
Head of School: Dr. Craig Wilson
[email protected]
Administration Bios
Phone: (305) 284-2727
Location:
Coral Gables, Florida Does your staff work on site daily? How many people?
Program Philosophy:
The Premier Online School.
The UM Global Academy delivers a student-centered, uniquely designed educational experience. Our online learning environment encourages exceptional critical thinking skills, develops curious minds, fosters ambition and leadership potential, and builds character focused on service to community and others.
Awards:
Not specifically, but see below for accreditations--we were the first online school to get the FCIS accreditation.
Interview Conducted: 10-24-13
Questions
1. How is your school accredited?
SACS, NCAA -- We have gone through the rigorous approval process multiple times. In addition, we also received accreditation from the Florida Council of Independent Schools. In fact, we were the first online school to receive this accreditation. We got the green light this year after a rigorous 2-year review process that involved interviewing parents, teachers, staff, and a self-study.
2. Where does funding for your school come from?
Tuition
3. What is the tuition for your school?
Middle School:
1 Semester Course $795.00
2 Semesters Course $1590.00
Full Year (6 full year courses) $9540.00
Plus applicable technology fees ($30 per one semester course)
High School:
1/2 Credit Course $995.00
Full Credit Course $1990.00
1/2 Credit AP Course $1095.00
Full Credit AP Course $2190.00
Full Year (6 full year courses) $11,940.00
Plus applicable technology fees ($30 per one semester course)
4. Is there an application fee? What is the application process?
$90
We require a transcript, letters of recommendation, and in some cases a portfolio of previous work.
5. Do you offer financial aid?
Yes, in the form of scholarships or a discount off the tuition price. We also offer a payment plan and a link to a lending organization--Your Tuition Solution--for private K-12 education loans.
6. What grade levels do you offer?
Middle (6–8) and high school (9–12)
7. Are there age restrictions?
As a college preparatory, degree-granting institution for middle and high school, we serve students between the ages of 11 and 20.
8. What is the current enrollment of the school? How many are seniors?
300; ?
9. Are courses organized in classes with fixed start/stop dates or are they independently paced?
We have full-year courses that students can start anytime and summer classes that students can start anytime between May and August.
10. What requirements do you have for teachers? State certification for high school? Virtual Teacher certification?
All of our teachers are state certified and they all have graduate degrees. Those teaching AP classes have AP certification. When we began, there was no formal virtual teacher certification available, but we have our own program that consists of an in-depth training series teachers must complete before they can begin teaching our courses. The program provides technical information about our systems, but more importantly focuses on the pedagogical shift needed for moving from the brick-and-mortar environment to the online environment.
11. How are teachers paid? Are they paid only when students complete a course? Does that impact the rigor of the course or the strictness of grading?
Our teachers are full-time employees who are not compensated only when students create a course. I have my own sensibilities about schools that follow that plan, but will refrain from sharing them here!
12. What are your short-term goals for the school?
Our short-term goal is to continue to build upon work we've been doing this far. One of the things that sets us apart is that we require all of our students to participate in a service learning project. These projects are not just community-based projects, but they are integrally tied to the curriculum. Our aim is to authentically help students become better global citizens.
13. What is your long-term vision for the school?
We plan to continue to work with partner schools and affiliates to help them move more into the blended learning environment. We've had a lot of success so far since we began about 4 years ago, and we want to build on those successes. We have had students admitted into Harvard, Emory, and other terrific schools. We want to see more of our students enter top-tier universities. We consistently work with students and parents to get feedback about how we can improve. Our focus is not on technology; it is on teaching and learning.
14. Where does your curriculum come from? (Who builds it?)
We design a large part of our curriculum with in-house staff. If there is something we don't have, we will look at other vendors. Curriculum is important, but having quality teachers who know how to work with that content to meet the individual needs of our students is even more important.
15. How would you describe the philosophy behind your content development?
It is definitely student-centered. We use a constructivist approach. All of our students come with different backgrounds and interests. We ensure that they are getting the best education they can get. We are a very "high touch" institution--hands on.
16. Who maintains your curriculum? How involved are your teachers in the course curriculum?
We have an in-house team of curriculum people who develop and maintain our courses. Teachers have enough going on! We have a system that teachers can use to notify our staff about content concerns and updates, but we want to ensure that are teachers are focused on the students, not content development.
17. What LMS do you use?
We have used several systems, depending on the situation. The university is Blackboard based, so that is our primary system. However, we do sometimes use open-sources resources like Moodle and Canvas to address specific needs.
18. How involved are your teachers in student interaction? How do they communicate with students (email, chat, phone, face-to-face) and how often?
All of the above--our teachers are very hands on. Students coming from other online or brick-and-mortar schools have told us that they have never felt more connected to their teachers. It's a high priority.
19. How much professional development do your teachers receive?
Tons; we are committed to helping our teachers grow for their sake and for our students' sake.
20. What is the application process for students like?
Typically, the student submits letters of recommendation with their application. Sometimes we also require a portfolio assessment to get a sense of their work to date. We are very selective.
21. What are the most common challenges your students face?
Like all online learners, our students struggle with time management. Do do well in our school, they must be able to manage their time effectively. Teachers do a lot of work on the front end to make sure that students understand what is expected. They don't tell them they can submit all their work at the end of the course, because students procrastinate. Instead, we have regular, pre-set deadlines. It's a rigorous, college-prep program. It's not a one-size-fits-all program. Our students are high achieving and they want to be there. We've found that our ability to provide the hands-on attention is essential. Students find it extremely helpful to have a teacher checking in and paying attention to what they are doing.
22. What are the biggest challenges your school faces?
Online learning in general is gaining in acceptance, but it is still more widely accepted at the university level rather than for high school. Many parents are still very skittish about the idea. Trusting your child to the online experience is not easy, and it requires a learning curve. We have come up with ways to give parents 1–1 contact with our faculty and staff so that they can have more faith in the process. We have parent/teacher committees, for example, and we strive to give parents a sense of community just as we strive to do so for our students and teachers. Community is essential. We have an honor society, junior honor society, math club, science club, newspaper club, and more to keep students active and involved. We also want to see their parents active and involved.
23. How do your students compare to those in brick-and-mortar schools? (statistics on graduation rate, college acceptance, SAT/ACT/AP Scores, etc.)
Our students are doing quite well—we have a 100% graduation rate and a 100% college acceptance rate. Selectivity in admissions is helpful, but it's really up to the students to put forth the effort. When they do, they find this to be a nurturing environment.
24. How would you describe the students who attend your school? Honestly speaking, what would you s ay brings most of your students to your school? Is it their option of last resort?
Good question! We have a real mix-—some students are pursuing their passions (ballet, acting, music); some travel extensively throughout the world; some are student athletes; some are really high-achievers and moving through at a prescribed pace is not helpful to them. We allow our students to move through the program according to their aptitudes and help them meet their goals. We have students from over 20 countries.
25. I see that your OHS students participate in a number of interactions and clubs. How do they do this? Do most live in the area and get together physically, are these virtual activities, or do they commute?
Many of our clubs are virtual. It's interesting to watch how students build relationships over the distance. Then they will come for a week and connect personally with people they've really come to know well virtually. We have activities for the students and the parents in a variety of settings--graduation, awards ceremonies, trips. We always broadcast these events live so that no one is left out.
26. How would you describe the teachers attracted to online teaching?
I would say that they tend to be really creative, entrepreneurial, and open-minded. Of course they have to be certified and highly credentialed. If they are not technically oriented, they are still considered if they have an open mind. I can't
teach you how to be an open-minded person who is creative in working with each individual student, but I can teach you how to move around in our systems. What we look for is a dedicated faculty member who wants to go the extra length--it's part of their DNA and could never be taught. We do not want teachers we have to check up on to ensure that they are checking on their students, monitoring student progress, or turning in the feedback. If a teacher requires that kind of attention, we're not interested in them for our program.
27. How would you say your teachers compare the online teaching experience to the F2F teaching experience?
Teachers say this is eye opening; revelatory; and really, really engaging. They enjoy really getting to know their students. In a brick-and-mortar school, a teacher typically has six periods and a planning period. If a student doesn't quite get a concept, he or she will typically stay after class, but then the bell rings and they have to move on. The teacher says, "Come back later," but they've lost that teachable moment. The beauty of online education is that we can maintain that moment.
28. Examples of universities that have accepted your students?
- Arizona State University
- Brenau University
- Delta State University
- Florida Gulf Coast University
- Florida State University
- Furman University
- Harvard University
- Indiana State University
- James Madison University
- Loyola University Maryland
- Loyola University New Orleans
- Michigan State University
- New York University
- Northeastern University
- Nova Southeastern University
- Penn State University
- Randolph Macon College
- Roanoke College
- Rollins College
- University of Akron
- University of Arizona
- University of California: Santa Barbara
- University of Miami
- University of Mississippi
- University of Tampa
- University of Wyoming
- Vancouver Film School
29. Could you recommend a couple of students I could interview about their experiences?
To be determined
30. What other online high schools would you consider the leading schools in American/world today?
It's really a small universe—the truest comparison is to find an online institution that is set up like your own. We are private, online, college prep, so Stanford Online and George Washington University online are the most like us.