The American Academy

PRESS CONTACT:
Kelley Ellert
Dittoe PR (for The American Academy)
317-202-2280 x 20
kelley@dittoepr.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The American Academy is approved by GenNET program as an official online course and program provider for the state of Michigan

SALT LAKE CITY — May 11, 2010 – The American Academy, a leading online high school and education services provider, today announces its approval as a provider to the Genesee Network for Educational Telecommunications(GenNET). In conjunction with GenNET, The American Academy offers Michigan school districts a full-time, online learning program that provides at-risk and dropout students with an opportunity to earn their diploma online.

School districts that partner with The American Academy participate in the GenNET program to access the statewide seat-time waiver and provide their students with an innovative program for dropout recovery and prevention.

"The American Academy is thrilled to receive this important designation for our Dropout Recovery program," said TAA Chief Academic Officer, Rebekah Richards. "We look forward to partnering with school districts throughout the state of Michigan to help students that have dropped out of school to get back on track for graduation."

The Dropout Recovery Program offered by The American Academy is a turnkey, proven, online solution that includes student recruitment, individualized curriculum and instruction, student laptops, local case management, and mentoring. There is no financial risk to the school district, and no up-front cost, so the program can be launched with zero budget impact. The program is accredited by the Northwest Association of Accredited Schools.

"For some students –especially at-risk students– a traditional classroom education simply does not address their needs as learners," said Rick Reo, principal of Michigan’s Bloomingdale High School. "The American Academy's Dropout Recovery program is a way to provide these students with a flexible learning alternative that meets them where they are and gives them the support they need to succeed."

For more information, visit www.NoDropouts.com.

The American Academy is an online high school and education services provider with students in 43 states and 8 countries. The school has earned full regional accreditation from the Northwest Association of Accredited Schools, and offers more than 200 online courses, all supported by state-licensed teachers. The American Academy offers an innovative technology, curriculum and services platform that allows brick and mortar schools to rapidly deploy online learning solutions for dropout and credit recovery. For more information, visit www.NoDropouts.com. For media inquiries, contact Kelley Ellert of Dittoe Public Relations at (317) 202-2280 XT.20 or kelley@dittoepr.com.

SALT LAKE CITY - March 4, 2010 – The American Academy, a leading online high school and educational services provider, has been designated an approved Online Program Provider by the Washington Digital Learning Department. This important designation demonstrates that the Dropout Recovery program offered by TAA satisfies Washington state requirements per SSB 5410 and WAC 392-502, and allows school districts partnering with TAA to receive state funding for participating students.

The approved providers list and a link to a full program description are available on the OSPI web site at: www.digitallearning.k12.wa.us/approval/providers/

"The American Academy is pleased to receive this important designation for our Dropout Recovery program," stated TAA Chief Academic Officer, Rebekah Richards. "We look forward to partnering with school districts throughout the state of Washington to bring dropped out students back to school and back on track for graduation."

The innovative Dropout Recovery Program offered by The American Academy is a turnkey, proven online solution that includes student recruitment, curriculum and instruction, student laptops, local case management, and student mentoring. There is no risk to the school district, and the program can be launched with no budget impact. The program is accredited by the Northwest Association of Accredited Schools and all 200+ courses in the program are taught by Washington-licensed teachers.

The program is already successfully recovering dropouts in Washington. Deborah O’Brien, Principal of Ritzville High School said, "As a small school district with limited resources, we are thrilled that the TAA program is successfully serving students we could not reach with our traditional programs."

Recently joining The American Academy to partner with school districts throughout the state is Roger Nakamura, Learning Solutions Specialist. A native Washingtonian, Roger has worked with school districts across the state for many years to help them utilize technology to increase effectiveness and student achievement. "We are thrilled to have Roger join our team. His deep understanding of the needs and concerns of school districts in Washington will help expand our reach and ultimately make a difference for more students in the state," stated Ms. Richards.

The American Academy is an online high school and educational services provider with students in 43 states and 8 countries. The school has earned full regional accreditation from the Northwest Association of Accredited Schools, and offers more than 200 online courses, all supported by Washington state-licensed teachers. The American Academy offers an innovative technology, curriculum and services platform that allows brick and mortar schools to rapidly deploy online learning solutions for dropout and credit recovery. For more information, visit www.NoDropouts.com.

For Immediate Release

SALT LAKE CITY — December 15, 2009 – The American Academy, a leading online high school and educational services provider, today announced it has raised $5.9 Million in a Series B financing led by Austin Ventures, one of the nation’s leading venture and growth capital firms, with participation from existing investor vSpring Capital. This investment will enable The American Academy to further expand its position as a leader in the rapidly growing online education market.

The American Academy (TAA) is an accredited online high school offering more than 230 courses supported by state-licensed teachers. Students of any age can attend The American Academy and earn credits or a full high school diploma. Using its innovative School As a Service™ technology, curriculum and school management platform, the company has recently expanded its offering to assist brick and mortar schools in launching their own online learning programs. The company currently educates students in 43 states and 8 foreign countries.

"We are pleased to announce this investment led by Austin Ventures," said Gregg Rosann, President and CTO of The American Academy. "This funding will allow us to expand our products and services in the coming months, offering school districts of all sizes affordable, practical online learning solutions. Our nation's schools are faced with a number of serious challenges, including the need to provide viable alternatives to this country's more than 5 million high school-age dropouts. Online learning is ideally suited to solve these problems by providing flexible options for kids."

"We are confident in the vision and relevance of The American Academy, as well as the team's commitment to their mission. We believe The American Academy is offering innovative solutions to issues that affect every community in this country," said Mike Dodd, Venture Partner at Austin Ventures and American Academy board member. "TAA's strong growth is evidence that the market is ready to accept online learning as a solution to one of the country's greatest educational challenges."

For Immediate Release

SALT LAKE CITY - February 3, 2009 - High schools that want to offer their students online courses with minimal resource requirements or cost to their schools are choosing The American Academy's School as a Service™ (SaaS) program. This innovative program gives high schools an easy, affordable way to offer students the flexibility and individualized learning experience of online courses to recover dropouts, help students get caught up, give them a way to get ahead, or simply offer a wider range of electives. Rosehill Christian School and Park City High School, like many schools across the nation, are using online courses to provide flexible options for their students.

"We are using The American Academy's SaaS model for students who need more flexible learning options," said Hilary Hays, Park City High School principal. "Trying to meet the scheduling needs of every student was a logistical nightmare. My teachers are excited about School as a Service because it allows us to meet the individual education needs of these students while increasing transparency and accountability for students. In addition, The American Academy manages the operations and technology of the online program, making it a seamless process for all of us."

"We are pleased to offer The American Academy's online courses as an alternative to our students who need added flexibility due to scheduling conflicts as it would be cost prohibitive to offer all our courses at all times. Our students enjoy The American Academy's wide variety of elective courses to augment the courses we already have," said Associate Principal Sheryl Jaksha of the Rosehill Christian School in Texas.

In a matter of days, schools can expand their curriculum with over 200 courses and licensed teachers, with no additional burden on the school's IT staff and no upfront cost – schools only pay for what they use. The American Academy has developed automated enrollment, registration, and reporting tools to make administration and student access easy. Student accountability and progress transparency comes from automated parental and teacher alerts for learning milestones.

"We are excited about the feedback we received from schools in response to this program," The American Academy’s Chief Executive Officer Bill Davison said. "Schools value the integrated systems and operational expertise we can bring to them based on experiences running our own online school; this shows in the exceptional level of quality and value that the program brings to the school, especially in this time of tightened budgets."

The American Academy's Principal, Rebekah Richards adds, "We are proud to make available for other schools our highly qualified teachers and the rich learning environment we have built. Our systems create a flexible and positive learning environment that students can access from any location with Internet access within or outside the school anytime day or night."

For Immediate Release

SALT LAKE CITY – November 19, 2008 - The American Academy's Senior Vice President and School Principal, Rebekah Richards, recently addressed attendees of the Virtual School Symposium (VSS) of the North American Council for Online Learning (NACOL). Richards led a pre-conference workshop and a series of breakout sessions focusing on the unique needs and opportunities of online education. The sessions ranged from "What Online Teachers Need to Know and Do" to "Experiments in Open Source Content."

Online education at the K-12 level is growing at a significant pace. According to bestselling author Clayton M. Christensen in Disrupting Class, a book on disruptive innovation in learning, by 2019 about 50 percent of all high school courses will be delivered online.

"It was a privilege to address and discuss these opportunities and challenges with practitioners, policy makers, and educational leaders at VSS," said Richards.  "I've attended the Virtual School Symposium for several years; this year there was a marked transition from visions of the future to addressing operational challenges in delivery of online learning solutions today. The dialog was very substantive: there is a clear need for public, private and charter schools to offer not only complete online learning options but also hybrid solutions that schools can use in and out of class."

VSS highlights the most recent work in K-12 online education across the nation. It is the only national conference focused on online learning and virtual schooling for K-12. More than 1,100 educators and policy-makers attended the symposium.

As part of America's Promise Alliance, The American Academy will become one among an intricate network of more than 200 businesses, nonprofits and education organizations, elected officials, faith groups and foundations helping to support the needs of at-risk youth across the country.

For a complete list of Richards' breakout sessions or to view the presentations, visit the VSS 2008 Overlay. Richards will be presenting "What Online Teachers Need to Know and Do" again to the International Society for Technology in Education as a part of the organization's webinar series on December 8.

For Immediate Release

Contact Information:
Alex Koritz
Sprout Marketing for The American Academy
801-641-3808
alex@sproutmarketing.com

The American Academy Joins America's Promise Alliance to Educate Struggling Youth

Online High School Will Help Advance Alliance Goals of Improving Education

SALT LAKE CITY – August 12, 2008 - The American Academy today announced that they are joining America's Promise Alliance in order to combat the nation’s high school dropout crisis. The online high school’s dynamic approach to education will aid the Alliance in achieving its mission—ensuring that children receive the fundamental resources they need to lead successful lives.

Headed by Alma J. Powell and Marguerite Kondracke, America's Promise Alliance is the nation's largest partnership alliance committed to advancing education and life skills for the nation’s youth. The Alliance issued a report last April that revealed only half of all students served by the main school systems in the nation's 50 largest cities graduate from high school. To combat this, the alliance kicked off a series of groundbreaking, high-level Dropout Prevention summits to be held nationwide over the next two years.

"America's Promise Alliance is thrilled to welcome the American Academy to our partner network," said Marguerite Kondracke, president and CEO, America’s Promise Alliance. "Through their online approach they are helping more young people have access to the academic resources they need to succeed. This innovative approach and the outstanding work of the more than 200 organizations and individuals that make up our Alliance will ensure that we will make a difference in the lives of this nation's most disadvantaged young people and help them graduate high school ready for college, work and life."

"The America’s Promise Alliance is an exceptional organization and we applaud their efforts in bringing this national crisis to light," said Rebekah Richards, senior vice president of academic affairs and principal of The American Academy. "Every 26 seconds, a student drops out of school. We are increasing graduation rates through our innovative approach to education, providing those who have been underserved with an education that prepares them for college or a career."

As part of America's Promise Alliance, The American Academy will become one among an intricate network of more than 200 businesses, nonprofits and education organizations, elected officials, faith groups and foundations helping to support the needs of at-risk youth across the country.

The online high school offers 233 courses that students can take anywhere, according to their own schedule. Additionally, school districts nationwide can incorporate online learning into their programs through the use of The American Academy's School-as-a-Service™. Schools and their students can enjoy the flexibility of online learning at a fraction of the cost of developing their own online program.

For more information about America's Promise Alliance visit www.americaspromise.org.

For Immediate Release

Contact Information:
Alex Koritz
Sprout Marketing for The American Academy
801-641-3808
alex@sproutmarketing.com

The American Academy Announces High School Diploma Program for Adults

SALT LAKE CITY – August 12, 2008 - The American Academy today announced a new online education program designed for adult students. The online high school offers courses through their School-as-a-Service™ online school platform.

The new courses offer examples that are relevant - the economy, gas prices, mortgages, insurance, politics and more - all written in a tone that respects adults' experiences. In addition, all of TAA's adult course instructors have experience in adult education, allowing them to better instruct and identify with adults.

"Traditional online high school courses were designed with high school-age students in mind; the content reflected that audience in both tone and context," said Rebekah Richards, senior vice president of academic affairs and principal of The American Academy. "Adult students bring a wealth of experience to the classroom. With our new program, adults can return to school knowing that they will be treated like adults. They'll have the opportunity to learn skills that are relevant to their lives while finishing their high school diploma with other students their age."

The American Academy is accredited by the Northwest Association of Accredited Schools and serves students throughout the U.S. and in several countries. Every student has access to licensed instructors and to tutoring available on-demand, 24/7.

Enrollment is now open at The American Academy, and classes begin every Monday. For more information, please visit http://www.TheAmericanAcademy.com.

About The American Academy
The American Academy is an accredited online high school built on a system that has served more than 80,000 students since 1994. Its School-as-a-Service™ platform serves students worldwide who want to supplement their high school program or earn their high school diploma. The American Academy offers a flexible educational experience along with a high quality, engaging curriculum that aligns with state standards. Through its relationships with long-standing education institutions, The American Academy provides leading-edge resources and access to licensed, experienced instructors. For more information, please visit http://www.TheAmericanAcademy.com.

For Immediate Release

Contact Information:
Alex Koritz
Sprout Marketing for The American Academy
801-641-3808
alex@sproutmarketing.com

For Immediate Release

Contact Information:
Alex Koritz
Sprout Marketing for The American Academy
801-641-3808
alex@sproutmarketing.com

The American Academy Helps Navajo Nation Preserve Language, History

SALT LAKE CITY – June 3, 2008 - Navajo students can now learn their tribe's customs and language while becoming eligible for scholarships, thanks to two Navajo courses now being offered by leading online high school The American Academy.

The American Academy offers courses in Navajo Government and Navajo Language. Both courses are intended to enrich the cultural knowledge of students within and outside of the Navajo Nation. The Navajo Government course covers the evolution of Navajo government from its beginnings to the present time. In the Navajo Language course students learn to speak, write, and read numerals, anatomy, conversational phrases and other common terms.

"It's very important to the Navajo people to pass their traditions and language down from generation to generation," said Rebekah Richards, senior vice president of academic affairs and principal of The American Academy. "Teachers who are qualified to educate students about Diné culture are rare, particularly outside the reservation. We help members of the Navajo Nation preserve their cultural heritage by offering these online courses -- students anywhere in the country can access the courses and master the content with the help of a Navajo teacher."

High school credit for both courses is required to be eligible for the Chief Manuelito Scholarship, a four-year, $7000 per year scholarship awarded annually by the Navajo Nation to high-achieving Navajo students entering their first year of college. Several American Academy students are currently eligible for the award; recipients of the scholarship will be announced in July. Previously students outside traditional Navajo regions had little or no access to cultural courses from accredited institutions, but having the courses available online expands the potential scholarship applicant pool significantly.

"We sought availability of online Navajo courses because many schools that serve Navajo children do not offer such courses at the high school," said Rose Graham, director of the Navajo Nation Office of Scholarship and Financial Assistance. "Also, there are Navajo families in just about every state of the union where Navajo Language and History are definitely not taught in schools."

The American Academy is accredited by the Northwest Association of Accredited Schools, which means that credits earned at The American Academy will transfer to public and accredited private high schools across the country. The American Academy serves students throughout the U.S. and in several countries. Every student has access to licensed instructors and to tutoring available on-demand, 24/7.

Enrollment is now open at The American Academy, and 233 different classes begin every Monday. For more information, please visit http://www.TheAmericanAcademy.com.

About The American Academy
The American Academy is an accredited online high school built on a system that has served more than 80,000 students since 1994. It serves students worldwide who want to supplement their high school program or earn their high school diploma. The American Academy offers a flexible educational experience along with a high quality, engaging curriculum that aligns with state standards. Through its relationships with long-standing education institutions, including the Utah State Board of Education, The American Academy provides leading-edge resources and access to licensed, experienced instructors. For more information, please visit http://www.TheAmericanAcademy.com.