Plymouth Achievement Academy Principal Craig Hopple gave an update on the alternative school to members of the Community School Board last week.

Hopple showed the board a couple of photos of the kids who attend the academy and said, “They are the same type of students you see at PHS.  They are with us because they need something just a little bit different to achieve academically.”

The principal said the mission and vision of the achievement academy is to try and develop the whole student.  He said, “We try to give them the tools to be successful citizens of our community while also trying to help them achieve their educational and career goals.”

A couple of students and parents gave personal testimonies about their experiences at Plymouth Achievement Academy. 

Teacher Katie Duran told the school board that the academy offers core subjects but they also work with their students one-on-one, set weekly goals, and track their progress with a goal of having 20% progress weekly.

The results show that 80% of the students with positive outcomes. Graduation rates increased from 80% to 88% with a goal of attaining 90%.  For students to succeed since they are only in class for 3 hours a day, they need to attend school.  The attendance rate is at 80% and the board was reminded that many of the students haven’t attended school regularly for several years so 80% is a pretty good number. Duran said their students earned or recovered 418 credits.

Teacher Phylis Gault said the academy also offers a Career Exploration Program and community service to students. For the career side, the students express their interests, and the academy brings in guest speakers.  On the community service side, the academy has partnered with the Bread of Life Food Pantry and the students take field trips out to the pantry and help stock shelves.

Mr. Hopple said they celebrate success in the classrooms visually so everyone can see the success.  They also present certificates of completion and their happiest success stories are when students cross the stage during graduation with their cap and gown.