PA Cyber to Celebrate National School Choice Week
January 17, 2023
Families want to preserve school choice so that others may benefit.
MIDLAND – PA Cyber is participating in the world’s largest celebration of opportunity in education: National School Choice Week. Every January, National School Choice Week not only raises awareness but highlights the benefits of having K-12 education options available for families to choose from. National School Choice Week is January 22–28.
“At PA Cyber, we focus on giving students and families the opportunity to find the best way to learn,” said Brian Hayden, PA Cyber’s Chief Executive Officer. “For tens of thousands of kids across Pennsylvania, cyber schools have proven to be the best path to their success.”
Consider a military family’s perspective. Eighth grader Ginny Henry transferred from a brick-and-mortar school to PA Cyber in 2021. At first, her family made the switch due to COVID, but her mother Shannon Henry said the platform “gave Ginny the opportunity to do her very best work. The lack of distractions, bullies, and general stress has enabled her to thrive.” With Ginny’s father belonging to the US Army Reserve, he can be called away from home for extended periods of time. As a PA Cyber student, Ginny can travel with her parents and continue learning while on base.
“[School] choice has allowed my daughter many unique, personalized experiences that she wouldn’t have had otherwise,” said Henry. “Military life is challenging for many reasons. The freedom to make decisions for our children’s benefit is essential and is a right that should not be denied.” Read more about the Henry family.
Learning online with PA Cyber since 2015 has enabled the Costanzo family to thrive. Rhiannon and Paden are honors students, and Rhiannon is on track to graduate one year early. Their eldest sister, Morgana, graduated from PA Cyber in 2020 and is now a junior at Penn State Scranton. Morgana said, “Being able to learn at my own pace actually allowed me to accelerate more than I would’ve in a brick-and-mortar school.”
Mother Sarah Constanzo said her children found a supportive learning environment at PA Cyber that helped each one overcome hurdles and gain confidence. “PA Cyber helped shape our children into cultured, self-motivated, worldly people who are now better prepared for college and adulthood,” she said.
“I think the next generation of parents are willing to embrace new ways of learning,” said Costanzo. “It’s an exciting time for education and school choice. Our biggest regret as parents is not coming to PA Cyber sooner.” Learn more about the Costanzo family.
After 22 years of refining online education and with a legacy of 20,000 graduates, PA Cyber has demonstrated that cyber school is a long-term answer for many students. “We are proud of the ways in which we teach, mentor, and prepare our students for limitless opportunities,” said Hayden. “All of us at PA Cyber remain committed to ensuring that we work every day to meet the needs of the students who enroll here.”
Media Contact
Jennie Harris / jennie.harris@pacyber.org
About PA Cyber
Serving students in kindergarten through 12th grade, the Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School (PA Cyber) is one of the largest, most experienced, and most successful online public schools in the nation. PA Cyber's online learning environments, personalized instruction methods, and choices of curricula connect Pennsylvania students and their families with state-certified and highly qualified teachers and rich academic content that is aligned with state standards. Founded in 2000, PA Cyber is headquartered in Midland (Beaver County) and maintains a network of support offices throughout the state. As a public school, PA Cyber is open for enrollment by any school-age child residing in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and does not charge tuition to students or families.