Students, Parents from Virtual Public School Spend Day-Long Field Trip at Mayo Clinic

Fourteen students from MTS Minnesota Connections Academy recently participated in an exciting day-long field trip to the Mayo Clinic. The students, who made the trip with their parents, all have a general interest in health-care related fields, including laboratory science, surgery, pediatrics and nursing. The school was selected to participate in Mayo’s Career Awareness Program after completing an extensive application process.

Lance Haseltine, MD, MTS Minnesota Connections Academy biology teacher, and Laura Segala, MTS Minnesota Connections Academy School Guidance Counselor, led the trip. Departments and areas the attendees visited included pediatrics, cytogenetics, nursing and diagnostic radiology.

"It is important for us to offer unique learning experiences to our students,” said Laura Segala. “With so many of our students having an interest in health care, the experience gave the students — and their parents — a great opportunity to interact with health-care faculty and other students, while deepening their knowledge of the curriculum. Our students tend to be creative, independent and curious learners; this was a fantastic trip for them.”

In the MTS Minnesota Connections Academy program, parents attend all field trips along with their students. And because the field trips are optional for families, only those students and parents who are truly interested make the effort to attend.

For the 2006-2007 school year, all 9th and 10th graders are taking a biology course, taught by Dr. Haseltine, a former emergency department medical doctor. The field trip complemented the high-quality curriculum the students are learning in the class. Furthermore, most of the students are taking a health, fitness, and nutrition course, which is also relevant to the field trip.

In 2007-08, MTS Minnesota Connections Academy will serve students across the state in grades K-11. MTS Minnesota Connections Academy is designed to meet the needs of students and their families who are looking for an alternative to the traditional classroom — those who need a flexible schedule, learn at a different pace from their peers, are looking for a different learning environment, or need more individualized attention. The unique program combines the strong parental involvement of learning at home, the expertise and accountability of public education and the flexibility of online classes.

The virtual public school continues to be a great choice for parents who may be considering having their children learn at home but may not feel comfortable in the role of teacher. MTS Minnesota Connections Academy is unique in that its professional, certified teachers work together from a central office — under one roof – providing coordinated support and accountability that often cannot be achieved with teachers working on their own. Connections Academy operates its full-time virtual public school program in Minnesota through a partnership with the Minnesota Transitions School.

Connections Academy is a leading national provider of high quality, highly accountable virtual public schools operated in partnership with charter schools and school districts. Connections Academy schools deliver top-quality, personalized education for students that combines certified teachers, a proven curriculum, technology tools, and community experiences to create a supportive and successful environment for children who want an individualized approach to education. In Connections Academy’s unique Personalized Performance Learning® approach, students use daily lesson plans and curriculum materials provided by Connections Academy. Teachers develop a learning plan for each student, whose progress is tracked through a proprietary, web-based Learning Management System. In 2007-08 Connections Academy will serve students in grades K-11 in Arizona, California, Idaho, Minnesota, Ohio, Oregon, and Pennsylvania; grades 4-11 in Nevada; grades K-9 in Colorado; and grades K-8 in Florida and Wisconsin. For more information, call 800-382-6010 or visit www.connectionsacademy.com.
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Susan Scofield

This release was published on openPR.