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<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0><script type="text/javascript" src="http://hb.lycos.com/hb.js"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://ratings.lycos.com/ratings/lycosRating.js.php"></script> <script type="text/javascript"><![CDATA[//><!]]></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://scripts.lycos.com/catman/init.js"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://members.tripod.com/adm/ad/code-start.js"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://members.tripod.com/adm/ad/code-middle.js"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://members.tripod.com/adm/ad/code-end.js"></script> <noscript> <img src="http://members.tripod.com/adm/img/common/ot_noscript.gif?rand=571709" alt="" width="1" height="1" />  <iframe frameborder="0" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no" width="728" height="90" src="http://ad.yieldmanager.com/st?ad_type=iframe&ad_size=728x90&section=209094"></iframe>  </noscript> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0 height="100%"><tr> <td valign="top" width=120 BGCOLOR="#000099" TEXT="#F7F7FF"> <div> <A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Citizens for Cyber Charter Choice"><U><B>Home</b></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="charter_school_law.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="PA Charter School Law"><U><B>Charter School Law</b></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="issues.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Issues"><U><B>Issues</b></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="contacting_your_legislators.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Contacting your Legislators"><U><B>Contact your</b></U></A><B> </b><A HREF="contacting_your_legislators.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Contacting your Legislators"><U><B>Legislators</b></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="sample_letters.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Sample Correspondence"><U><B>Sample Letters</b></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="links.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Links"><U><B>Links</b></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="about_us.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="About Us"><U><B>About Us</b></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="contact_us.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Contact Us"><U><B>Contact Us</b></U></A></div> <bR> </td> <td valign="top" BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <IMG SRC="052c8860.jpg" border=0 width="200" height="134" ALIGN="RIGHT" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Citizens for Cyber Charter Choice <FONT SIZE="1" COLOR="#333399" FACE="Arial" >  </FONT></div> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> "Striving to preserve and ensure cyber charter schools as an educational choice for parents desiring more control and freedom in the design and delivery of their children's education<FONT SIZE="1" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" >.</FONT>"</div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <div> Read more testimonies</div> <div> <IMG SRC="053ef0c0.gif" border=0 width="495" height="12" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="1" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="408" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 208 WIDTH="398"><div>  We have always home schooled, and cherish that choice.  The </div> <div>  flexibility of individual instruction is the highest quality available.  Our oldest son is very skilled in computer use, his probable career path.  He also wanted to do "something different" for his last two years of high school.</div> <div>  </div> <div> When we heard of the possibility of a cyber charter school, he was </div> <div> excited.  As we researched it, the other children wanted to try </div> <div> this "different" choice.  For our family, this is a real adjustment </div> <div> far more structured than the past.  I am curious to see how it goes.  </div> <div> We are committed for the entire year, and will evaluate this choice then.</div> </tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 1717 WIDTH="398"><div> Hello. My name is Lori Zimmerman, and I'm writing to</div> <div> tell you why my husband, John, and I have chosen a public cyber charter school to educate our children. They are enrolled in The Einstein Academy.</div> <bR> <div> Three of our children are school-aged and have been in</div> <div> home-based education for the past 3 years. Our 12-year old daughter, Amanda, was previously enrolled in a private school, but due to a combination of health issues and emotional stress, we chose to bring her home for her education. You see, Amanda is a very bright, independent learner who likes to work ahead in her school work. But, her school teacher wouldn't have any of that! She was reprimanded for working ahead of the other students and was forced to slow her pace to stay back with the others, despite her obvious excitement for knowledge.</div> <bR> <div> That same year (3rd grade), Amanda began to have</div> <div> problems with bladder spasms (for which she was treated at both</div> <div> Hershey Medical Center and Children's Hospital of Philadelphia).You can only imagine how difficult this type of condition could be for a little girl -- fearing when the next mad rush to the restroom may be necessary, or when an accident might happen. Her teacher was unsupportive -- he felt it was distracting for Amanda to be making the necessary frequent trips to the restroom while the rest of the students were expected to wait until after class, and that she should wear "protection", aka, a diaper-type panty that she could just wet!  Although her condition was never revealed to her classmates and friends, this was incredibly stressful for her.</div> <bR> <div> So, we brought her home. What a difference it made!</div> <div> Amanda was once again happy and confident. She no longer had the</div> <div> stress of worrying whether she would make it to the restroom in time (or if she'd even be permitted to go). Plus, now she could work at her</div> <div> own pace. She flourished! </div> <bR> <div> Since we were already teaching Amanda at home, we</div> <div> taught her younger brothers too. Our youngest son, Ryan, was also diagnosed with the same bladder condition (it is a congenital condition involving the sphincter muscle in the bladder). Ryan has always been educated at home and has never been subjected to the stresses related to his medical condition his sister faced at school. He is a friendly, confident boy who loves his studies. He is an excellent student with endless curiosity!</div> <bR> <div> Our oldest son, who is very bright and always working</div> <div> with his hands, was a late reader. Within our home-schooling program,under the direction of our evaluator, we were able to pull</div> <div> together curriculum for Ray that challenged him, yet didn't overwhelm him.Had he been in traditional school, he would have been separated from his classmates and been put in a resource room (and thus labeled by his peers). Because we were able to provide him with one-on-one teaching and the right program, he is now reading very well and avoided the stigma so often attached to those who learn differently.</div> <bR> <div> However, home-schooling children is a big task! I was</div> <div> responsible for pulling together curriculum, lesson research and</div> <div> planning, lots of paperwork, learning and doing the home-school law,</div> <div> assembling portfolios and attendance logs. It also cost us quite</div> <div> a bit of money. John and I estimate that last year alone, we spent at</div> <div> least $1,500 on each of our children for home-schooling (roughly$4,500 total). (I must also interject this note... we also paid school taxes in excess of $5,000 on our farm land). As you can see, that's quite a bit of money for a one-income family of 6 to put out. And, as the supervisor of our children's education's, I was continually under a lot of stress -- did I cover everything?, is this the right way to teach them this?, how can I get them to understand and retain what they're learning? Where can I get the supplies for this experiment? etc.</div> <bR> <div> Public cyber charter school is a perfect fit for us.</div> <div> My children are provided with detailed, structured learning modules</div> <div> that allow them the freedom to work at their own pace. For me, I now</div> <div> become a facilitator of their education -- lesson plans are</div> <div> already in place, along with supplemental bonuses such as internet links and CDs. A class teacher is available to us throughout the day to offer help and guidance. Curricula is current and topnotch (much</div> <div> better than we could afford ourselves) and can be matched to the</div> <div> learning style and grade level of the student. My children can now</div> <div> participate, without hassle, in public school extracurricular activities,</div> <div> such as sports, band, chorus, etc. And, the structure of the program</div> <div> helps us meet the accountability and performance standards of the state. </div> <bR> <div> As previous home-schoolers returning to the public</div> <div> school system via public cyber charter school, the impact on our local</div> <div> district's budget will be a positive one. Local districts</div> <div> currently receive no state money for home-schooled children. Now, according to the cyber charter law, since our children will be in the public school system,  their state money will be released to our local</div> <div> district. The district gets to keep approximately 20-25% of it</div> <div> before forwarding the remainder to the cyber charter school (in fact,</div> <div> the local district also gets to keep that much for any of its</div> <div> students who transfer to a cyber charter).</div> <bR> <div> Public cyber charter school is a wonderful opportunity for many </div> <div> children, like ours, who have special needs, or for families who </div> <div> desire alternatives to traditional schools. We appreciate the PA </div> <div> Dept. of Education and Governor Ridge for supporting</div> <div> this new form of education.</div> <bR> <div> Please support our freedom to choose cyber charter</div> <div> schooling for our </div> <div> children. We, and future generations will thank you.</div> <bR> <div> Sincerely,</div> <div> Mr. & Mrs. John W. Zimmerman and family</div> <bR> </tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 541 WIDTH="398"><div> My son has learning disabilities and is "gifted and talented" at the same time. The public school he used to attend was one of the best in the district, his teachers were knowledgeable and caring, and the Individualized </div> <div> Education Program they developed for him was very</div> <div> thorough... in regard to his learning disabilities ONLY. The dichotomy between my son's talents are extreme. He is 2 grade levels behind in reading and writing, and 4-7 grade </div> <div> levels higher in math, science, and social studies.I am not blaming the school, the teacher, or the kids. Kids, in a large group and left to themselves for long times, have a</div> <div> tendency to be vicious. The teachers are grossly overworked - how could they *possibly* give individual attention to 30 individuals? And the school itself has every reason to be proud that it is one of the best in the district. I am sure that the kids that can sit still, listen and work quietly will have their needs admirably met by the school and its teachers. My son, one of the small percentage of gifted and disabled kids, and a kid who needs to learn actively at his own speed, could not have his needs met by traditional teaching.This is where TEACH comes in, and steps into a gap that seems to be ever widening. We considered home schooling; but honestly, it seemed overwhelming and very likely not the best move for us. You see, I am learning disabled as well - which explains all of the colleges I 'failed out' of - and with TEACH, my son will be able to learn at his own pace, with extra help in the areas he needs help in, and being able to move ahead without waiting for others to catch up. He'll have a certified teacher available to him for his questions, structured and supervised social times organized through the TEACH parents, and his own family to encourage him. Attending TEACH, he will get all of his required subjects, and his PA diploma, so that he'll be able to attend the college of his choice and become the first ever pro-baseball chemist in history!</div> <bR> </tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>