(openPR) - MTS Minnesota Connections Academy, ConnectionsAcademy.com, a free virtual school for K-12 students, has planned five field trips during the month of March to encourage students and staff to come together to learn and socialize.

The students, who attend public school online through MTS Minnesota Connections Academy use the field trips to come together, support the principles and theories taught in the students’ lessons, and interact with other MTS Minnesota Connections Academy students and families.

In addition to visiting Pump It Up, America’s largest and most experienced chain of inflatable play centers, which occurred on March 4, 2009, students and faculty from the Minnesota cyber school will also have the opportunity to take part in the following field trips:

• International Wolf Center in Ely, Minnesota on March 6, 2009
Participants will have the opportunity to listen to a presentation about wolves, watch a video about wolves, participate in the wolves and humans activity, and explore the center and watch the wolves.

• MTSMCA College Fair in Minneapolis, Minnesota on March 25, 2009
Open to students in grades 8-12, this field trip encourages students to begin thinking about and making post-secondary education and career plans. Held at MTS Minnesota Connections Academy’s office in Minneapolis, students and their Learning Coaches will have the opportunity to meet with college recruiters, learn about financial aid, internships, PSEO, and much more. A virtual college fair hosted by CollegeWeekLive will allow participants to visit virtual college booths, chat with current college students and watch live video presentations.

• Soudan Underground Mine Tour in Soudan, Minnesota on March 27, 2009
This field trip is all about discovery. Students will hike a ½ mile down into the earth, just like the miners did in the earlier days. Once underground, field trip participants will take a ¾ mile train ride to the last and deepest area mined. Following the mine tour, students will go on a High Energy Physics Tour, taking them ½ mile underground to a lab where physicists and engineers from around the world are trying to answer questions about how the universe works.

• College Campus Tours in Mankato and St. Peter, Minnesota on March 31, 2009
Students and their families will have the opportunity to visit and compare MSU, Mankato, the third largest state-school in Minnesota and Gustavus Adolphus College, a private liberal arts college. The field trip is designed to help students and their families think about college preparation and post-secondary options.

Minnesota Connections Academy, www.ConnectionsAcademy.com, with its headquarters in Minneapolis, Minn., combines the expertise of state-certified teachers, high quality curriculum, unique technology tools, and a vast assortment of electives, clubs and community experiences to create an individualized alternative to the brick-and-mortar classroom. Students enrolled in Connections Academy participate in state standardized testing, and the curriculum is aligned to meet or exceed Minnesota academic standards.

Connections Academy www.ConnectionsAcademy.com is designed to meet the needs of students and their families who are looking for a unique public school option—those who need a flexible schedule, learn at a different pace from their peers, need more individualized attention or live in isolated rural settings. Homebound and previously home-schooled students can also thrive in the program. Connections Academy operates its full-time Internet school program in Minnesota through a partnership with Minnesota Transitions Charter School.

Families interested in free online school, with some similarities to home schooling, but with the support of state-certified teachers and the accountability of public education are encouraged to learn more by calling 800-382-6010, or visiting www.ConnectionsAcademy.com.

Connections Academy is a leading national provider of high-quality, highly accountable virtual public schools in fourteen states operated in partnership with charter schools, school districts and state departments of education. 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 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 2008-2009 Connections Academy will serve students in Arizona, California (Southern and Central), Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Minnesota, Missouri (through the Missouri Virtual Instruction Program), Nevada, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas and Wisconsin. Connections Academy offers grades K through 12, though some schools do not offer all grades. For more information, call 800-382-6010 or visit www.ConnectionsAcademy.com.

Wowza
2601 2nd Avenue South
Studio One
Minneapolis, MN 55408
Melissa Hillmyer
melissa@wowza.biz
612-435-7100