Testimonial

I'm currently a Junior at Forest Trail Academy. Let me just start off by saying Forest Trail Academy saved me!!! I attending going to a public school my freshman year and liked it. I then started pursuing golf and had to miss a lot of school because I travel all around to play in tournaments, etc. I then had to do something else because I couldn't keep missing school like I was when I knew there were online high schools out there. I then enrolled into BYU Independent Study. DO NOT GO THERE! There is no teacher help or communication. Because of this lack of communication, I am now a Junior instead being a Senior right now. With the BYU program, you have to pay to take your finals. If you fail the final, you can pay to take it again. If you fail it the second time, you fail the class, no matter what grade you have in that class. What a waste of money and time! I finally had enough of BYU Independent Study and found Forest Trail Academy!! The administration and teachers are WONDERFUL!!!! They will do anything to help you out in any way! The teachers respond within 24 hours of your question. Teachers will also schedule chat times each week so you can go in the chat room that the school provides, where you can ask questions and receive help! You are able to get classes done so much faster than if you were attending a public school! It is possible to finish a subject that takes a whole school year in a public school and get it done in a few weeks. You don't have kids interrupting you and teachers stopping and starting throughout the class. You don't have to deal with a lot of "wasted time". You will definitely get classes done so much faster if you put your mind to it at this school! You also have a way to communicate with other students that go to Forest Trail Academy. It is somewhat like a "Facebook/Myspace" but much safer because there are no outside people plus the school can monitor what goes on. Over all if I had a chance to start my whole school career again, I would have started at this school MUCH MUCH sooner than I did. You won't be making a bad choice by enrolling in Forest Trail Academy!!!

- Kelli M.

Forest Trail Academy is an awesome school. The faculty and staff have an exceptional attitude towards facilitating the success of their students' academic goals. Forest Trail Academy is a great asset in preparing my child for college.

- Titia C.

Great school, great price. I wasn't living in the U.S. when I enrolled in Forest Trail Academy. In my country, the education is sometimes depressing. I was hoping to receive a flexible schedule and success for my highschool year. Thanks to FTA, they come true today. The curriculum in Forest Trail Academy is self-paced, so you can study anytime you want. I graduated pretty early because I studied really hard. The courses were challenging and educational. The flexible schedule gave me plenty of time when it comes to college application, and I'm off to a top engineering university this year. In addition, the reasonable price means a great deal to people who can't afford expensive private high school. I went to an expensive school before FTA, and I can say that FTA is better. If you are willing to take responsibility for yourself, there is plenty of knowledge waiting to be discovered in and out of the classroom.

- Lady M.

Forest Trail Academy provides a fantastic educational environment which goes above and beyond meeting the needs of children. Their flexibility,openness and willingness to partner with parents and children in promoting a learning community affords everyone the opportunity to help children learn and grown in the best possible way. As a parent with a special needs child, I have tried various educational opportunities for my teenager which have ranged from full inclusion to special day class and home schooling. When my son was no longer able to participate in school in any setting including homeschooling, the staff at Forest Trail Academy worked with me in creating a curriculum that would allow for my son to continue to learn, grow and develop in the areas that were of interest to him. This unconditional support allowed all of us to focus on learning and work at the speed that my child needed. We had given up on graduation from a traditional school and hoped for a high school degree or GED.

Once my son's health improved we approached our local high school with the transcripts and information from Forrest Trail Academy, they were so impressed with the work that my son had completed and the support of an accredited program that they have accepted all his credits from Forrest Trail and are working on helping him finish his work to graduate with his peers on time. The director of special education stated that she "was inspired by the work and support of Forrest Trail Academy."

I cannot express the joy and appreciation that my family has for the staff at Forrest Trail. You have made my son's dream of walking the stage as a "normal kid" come true. No child should be deprived of this experience! They are truly committed to the success of every child, I only wish that other academic institutions demonstrated this ethic and commitment to their students.

- Rachel C.

Forest Trail Academy was recommended to me by my cousin who has 3 children have already been attending for a few years.
I have a son who is 14 with Asperger's/learning disability/learns differently. I always knew he was very smart but you would never know it by his public school grades, he had an IEP that afforded him the help of special ed helpers but to no avail. His grades were very low, always a struggle from K-6. This was very depressing for him, causing him to feel like a failure in school, that he really was not smart, etc. To go along with this he had a very hard time socially and that did not help his self esteem. My biggest worry (along with some of his very kind teachers) was Junior High, all the worst fears, bullying, to many different classes with no extra help as he has had in elementary, to many classes that he would get lost, wouldn't be able to keep up at all....

We tried public school J.H. for 3 days...it was a disaster. Self esteem was so low, so much anxiety from the crowds and yes, bullying the first day, getting lost, work made no sense.... Everything was so distracting he would never have been able to learn, even if he managed to "pass" because of his disability he would never have "learned" or enjoyed one bit of it.

So...Forest Trails Academy was our lifeline, I sing their praises to everyone that will listen. My child who was basically failing to thrive in public school, tells me excitedly daily "I LOVE TO LEARN" and "THANK YOU SO MUCH" this makes me tear up. He thanks me daily for letting him do online school, daily that he loves to learn...and he is getting 80-100% on ALL his courses and he is at the highest level he can go with all his classes, completely done for the year with 2 classes. He was 4 years behind in Math and now worked his way right up to his grade level and this online way of learning makes sense to him, it's amazing!
He is HAPPY, feeling SMART, SECURE, ACOMPLISHED, HARD WORKING...did I say SMART ;)
His teacher has been amazing, always quick to answer any question, giving great learning tips and caring conversation. I feel like the teacher he has this year at Forest Trail Academy knows my son better and our situation then the public school staff he had for years, don't get me wrong he had fabulous people teaching him over the years, it just wasn't the right way/environment for him to learn.
The staff has been amazingly helpful to me, answering every single question I had and I have many more than the average since my son has Asperger's and different needs than some.
With this way of learning my son is at, and above his grade level with a very high average and enjoying school everyday instead of begging me to let him stay home. His Psychologist has noted the difference and sees tremendous improvement in his anxiety/depression so much that we don't really need to go. I would recommend this school to kids with disabilities, the peace of learning with no stress is working miracles in my son's life. I could go on and on and on.
The price of this school is very affordable. Since I don't have to buy all the extras that public school throws at you it is basically cancels out the extra cost.
Again I love this school.. AAA+++++

-Jill h.

I attended my local public school for my freshman and sophomore year. I really, really disliked public school, so I asked my parents if I could transfer to a online school program. I started searching on the web and found Forest Trail Academy. It's great! It allowed me to finish my junior year in three months while all my public school friends weren't even done with their first semester. The classes are great and the teachers are always willing to help you with anything. Now, I am half way finished with my senior year, and my public school friends are just now done with their junior semester. I'm 16 and sending out applications to colleges. There's no way that I could have been doing that without the help of FTA. I recommend that every parent send their child here! *** Future students: You will LOVE it!

Brittany W.

To Whom It May Concern, I had searched and searched for an online school that was reasonable, and I came across Forest Trail and I am pleased to report they are superb. They are willing to work with you and help your child succeed. I give them A++++ For their accomplishments. sincerely, Heidi Willey-Hersey.

-Heidi W.

Forest Trail Academy is a Godsend! My daughter was signed as a Dancer with a Ballet Company at the age of 17. She still needed to complete her senior year of High School. She also has a documented learning disability, which made our home schooling selection even more of a challenge.
I am so gratefule to have found Forest Trail Academy. Her advisor was wonderful and very helpful in making sure my child received her credits for past course work. Dr. Chung help find courses that would challenge my daughter and fulfill her requirements without overwhelming her. My daughter has a very hectic and unusual schedule, but Forest Trail worked perfectly with her needs and lifestyle. The teachers are supportive and very fast at grading the work or answering questions. She loved Ms. Martin especially.
We just got the notice that my daughter has meet all of her graduation requirements and completed all of her courses. We are now awaiting her diploma from Forest Trail Academy with excitment!
I would recommend Forest Trail Academy to anyone needing a quality distance learning experience with a supportive and nurturing staff. Special thank yous go to Dr. Chung and Ms. Martin, you were wonderful and we appreciate all you have done!

- Kathleen P.

I enrolled my daughter into the Forest Trail program this school year, and I have been very pleased. I would highly recommend this site to anyone who is looking for an education for his or her child outside the conventional classroom setting. I have never called or e-mailed them about anything, that I did not receive a prompt reply. Everyone is thoughtful and helpful!

- Shunda C.

I enrolled my son last year and we are very pleased with the outcome. I would recommend this school to anyone looking for an alternative to public school. This takes all the peer pressure existing in public school away and gives your child the tools and chance to excel. The counselor called my house to check in and see if there were any issues they could assist with. The only time I heard from anyone from public school was when there was an issue or my child was sick. It was very affordable and once my son got used to it he loved it. He loved it so much and he asked to do another year with Forest Trail Academy. This also gets the child used to not having a teacher there pushing them along which is some of the issues teenagers going off to college find overwhelming their first year. The teachers worked with him anytime he had issues and gave feedback on his assignments. They encouraged him when he didn't do his best, explained what he done wrong and how he could improve his grade.

- Notoril M.

Forest Trail Academy was a fantastic choice in schooling. Besides being affordable, the student-teacher communication is fantastic for an online school. That's priceless and the key selling point. Teachers tend to reply within 24 hours and have you constantly aware of their schedules, including the ~8 or so times a month they have conferences with students (specific dates and times can even be requested). Many of the teachers even accept telephone calls for important questions. The teachers here really do care, more than at any public school I've been at. That's probably due to the small student to teacher ratio. The content is great, since most of the classes tend to incorporate key aspects into the lessons, including visual aids, audio for vocabulary, pictures and movies. Everything is explained step-by-step. Everything's easy to understand and if the student struggles with anything specific, they can just talk to the teacher to get things worked out. The office staff are exceptional too and do their best to help you progress. The technical aspect of the school is always being improved and worked on. The only thing I would warn people to watch out for though is if you're considering possibly transferring back to a public school, make sure it's possible due to credits. Florida requires less credits to graduate than some areas do (such as here), so ask a guidance counselor if they can squeeze a few extra electives into your schedule while you're in Forest Trail Academy. This year was fantastic and just what was needed - I hope you have as wonderful experience as we did!

- David Y.

I only have good things to say about VHSE. I was having trouble around my 10th grade year and very close to just dropping out. I felt like I needed to just get away from everything going on at school and some of the people there. I hated it and begged to stay home everyday. We checked into homeschooling with the state, but my parents both worked and it would have been really hard with the programs we could find in this area. We started looking online for options when we found VHSE. When my mom called, the counselor was so nice and easy to talk to. My parents talked and talked about it. It cost about the same as our local private schools would have been. So we did it. It was hard at first trying to do things online without a teacher in front of you to ask questions. But I quickly found out how easy it was to talk to my teachers online or sometimes even on the phone. I completed all of my classes with VHSE since my 10th grade year and have just completed my last course to graduate!! Every teacher I had was great and so easy to talk to. The classes are great as you can easily go back on things you didn't understand and spend whatever time you need to get it. And I know my mom loved the office staff. Anytime she didn't understand how something worked, she would call and they would always figure it out. Everything said about VHSE when we enrolled was true. Dr. Chung even called my mom one day when I thought I was finished to make sure I got my last two credits that I was missing for the college prep diploma instead of the basic one. I LOVED MY TIME WITH VHSE AND WOULD RECOMMEND IT TO ANYONE THAT IS JUST MISERABLE IN THE LOCAL SCHOOL SYSTEM. Everyone at the school is great and they really seem to care about the students and what's best for them.

- Lana H.

VHSE has been a tremendous help. I've been battling social, academic, emotional, and physical issues for the past.. goodness, I don't even know. All of my life, I guess. VHSE has given me the freedom I need and given me an education at a pace that I can handle. I'm very happy with it.

- Veronica H.

Well... I honestly love VHSE... They helped me when no one else would... read/comment my blog if anyone cares to know.
http://community.foresttrailacademy.com/blogs/entry/My-Letter-to-VHSE

- Hanna K.

When my husband and I began looking for online private schools for our two children, we did our research first. As members of the FPEA (Florida Parent Educators Association)we looked into and interviewed several online schools, both public and private, at their annual conference. We kept coming back to Forest Trail Academy as our number one choice. Not only was the price just right, they also offered a great payment plan and multi-child discount. More importantly, they offered all the necessary courses as well as some electives that my children were really excited about, such as Television Production for the future "director and producer" in our family. They tailored the classes to fit their specific needs and the counselor spent a lot of quality time with both myself and my children over the phone ensuring that everyone's needs were clearly met. Throughout the year, the counselor would check in by phone and go over the progress that had been made thus far. Questions about assignments or technical issues were only an email away and were handled in a very timely manner. The courses are challenging and informative and require effort from the students to complete. However, it allows the student the freedom to take as much time as needed to learn and/or research and really take in the knowledge, unlike so many public schools out there. The school even has a virtual student lounge, virtual clubs, student chats and teacher classroom chats...all the things that allow the children to really connect with their school and the other students, even from their own home if they choose to. This has been a wonderful first year for us at Forest Trail Academy. We recommend this school to everyone we know. We are just finishing up our first year and have already set our second year in motion for both children. The children plan on graduating high school with Forest Trail Academy. We highly recommend this as a first choice alternative to public schools!

- Kris. G.

We write to acknowledge your partnership proposal with Network For Reforms (NFR), an education, research, advocacy, environment, sanitation and Health based non governmental organization in Accra, Ghana, West Africa.

We are proud to partner with you in giving our spirited and gifted youths, men and women, an opportunity to received quality education, both at home and abroad, for tomorrow's challenge. This will in no doubt, strengthen the bilateral relationship already existing between United States of America and Republic of Ghana. Your course applications are quite interesting and your tuition fees are most competitive.

- William Dzikunu, President

We are Americans living in the Dominican Republic, Cabarete a north coast town for kite surfers, surfers etc. We moved here so that our children could enjoy the beach life and learn the language of their mother (spanish). Once here we fell in love with the area and the sports available. Our youngest daughter has become a professional kiter and dreams of traveling on the KPRA world tour. For her to do this she must train every windy day. Both of our children have attended the local Intl school and had a great 5 year run, all good. We decided late last year that we would research Modern Education and found that there were numerous schools and options. We settled in on several and in the end decided to go with Forest trail Academy. This decision was made for several reasons. One the staff always responded timely and professionally. The other reasons were the broad quantity of classes available. Our children have been enrolled for sometime now and really like the freedom this type of education allows. They are both spending more time on the things that they enjoy but, also getting a quality education. No more school bus, lunch lines, gossip, etc, etc. We have more contact with our children's education than ever before. I see when they turn in their asignments and when they are graded too. So far so good ! Thanks to the entire staff at FTA. keep up the good work. We feel that this was a great decision for us and our children. I would give them 5 stars but, always want everyone involved in our childrens education to strive for more and better ! Four stars for both of our children for taking on this challenge and succeeding ! Steven & Orchid Bowcutt Cabarete, Dominican Republic

- Steven B.

Local high schools are quickly becoming babysitting services and less educational. With the raising issues of lockdowns because of weapons across the nation, we were becoming more concerned with the quality of education and Courtney's safety. When I started looking into an alternative to the brick and mortar, the one thing I learned quickly was that I didn't want to do home schooling. With home schooling I had to create a program and have it approved by the state and then I would have to spend many hours personally teaching Courtney. With an Online Private school, I could continue to help Courtney as a parent and she would get a valuable education and can go on to college without any issue.

I have spent a lot of time working with her on her school work and answering questions, and so what has impressed me most is the ease of finding the information that she needs to complete an assignment. The classes are well organized and any time I have had a question the administration office is just a phone call away

- Brad L.

My son started his Sophomore year with Forest Trail last year. We found the teachers and staff to be GREAT. The curriculum is challenging and on par or BETTER than some traditional high schools. We look forward to him completing all his high school requirements with Forest Trail. We are confident that he will be more than prepared for college and beyond.

- Kathleen H.

Kudos to Forest Trail
I live in the British Virgin Islands where special education is limited. As I did not think my son, who was a high functioning child on the spectrum was being given the opportunity to learn the way and the things I realised he could be taught. After much prayer, I got up and surfed the web for an online high school. I found Forest Trail and I called them up. I enrolled my son for the 6th Grade and the work came under the normal program. After realising that it would not work, Forest Trail introduced me to Prescriptive Learning and we switched to that. This worked beautifully and Josh completed the 6th Grade. He is now in the 7th Grade, and although it has its challenges, he is getting through. The support team at Forest Trail is remarkable. The message system with the teachers is beyond anything I could have dreamt. They call every now and again to see how the child is doing. I recently approached them about some modifications that may be needed for the 8th Grade when the time comes, and they are already working to sort it out. The High School in the BVI is a few steps away from me, but I know that the level of education that my son gets at FTA,cannot be compared with what would have been afforded to him locally. I highly recommend this school to any parent who is seeking an excellent education for their child. However, as a parent homeschooling, you must be committed to dedicating your personal time to ensure your child is personally supervised by you or seek the help of someone qualified to sit and work with your child. He/she should not be left on their own to teach themselves. Also ensure that your child's social needs are met by enrolling him/her in extra curricular activities. My son has sailing lessons, kung fu and music (violin, guitar and piano) and he is active in the youth group of our church.

- Einstein S.

Forest Trail Academy is the BEST school ever, the staff is amazing!!
I recently graduated from Forest Trail Academy after going there for 2 years. I went to public school until I was a junior in highschool but I couldn't continue public school because I was always really sick and I missed so much school I couldn't catch up. I decided to try online school and after searching through different schools, I chose FTA. That was the best decision I ever made. They have lived up to everything their website says. A reason I chose FTA is their support. There is so much help from the teachers and if you have a problem you can just call their office and they will get back to you the same day. The teachers are always available by email, phone, or the chatroom if you have questions about assignments. I got more help from the teachers and staff than I ever did in 10 years of public school. It is a self-paced program so it was good for me because if I was sick for a few days, I knew I didn't need to do schoolwork and I wasn't stressed about getting it done afterwards. For anybody interested in trying online school, Forest Trail is the perfect place. I never thought I would say I love school, but I found myself saying that more and more often once I started at Forest Trail!

- Demi A.

Great school
Forest Trail Academy was there for us when we made the decision to start homeschooling our high school student. After searching many alternatives, I settled on FTA because their curriculum was almost identical to what our child was taking class-wise at that time. The office staff was very helpful and friendly. The teachers were easily accessible via email, and they did a good job at keeping our child informed about assignments. I personally felt the student had no chance to fail, as some assignments are allowed to be redone, in order to keep their grades and confidence up. The teachers saw our child's full potential. I think FTA is a great school and I was so thankful they were part of my daughter's education.

- Sheila W.