ACADEMICs
customized academics
College-Prepatory Academics,
Built Around the Student
At Actias, we believe students learn best when they are known well, appropriately challenged, and given the time and support they need to truly master what they are learning.
Our academic program is intentionally flexible without sacrificing rigor. Rather than asking every student to move through the same material at the same pace, we build an academic pathway around each student’s strengths, needs, readiness, interests, and future goals.
Progress is based on mastery, not simply time spent in a classroom. A student who is ready to move more quickly can do so. A student who needs additional instruction, practice, or support has room for that too. Students work toward a college-preparatory high school education through a combination of direct instruction, small-group learning, individualized coursework, supported online learning and when appropriate, community college classes.
Actias teachers do more than deliver content. They serve as teachers, mentors, and guides—helping students understand what they are learning, organize their work, identify when they need support, and gradually become more confident and independent learners.
Every Actias student has an individualized Growth Plan that brings together academic goals with the skills that make learning and independence possible. Depending on the student, goals may include academic mastery, executive functioning, self-advocacy, regulation, self-care, relationship skills, or greater understanding of their own learning profile.
Students regularly reflect on their progress with the adults who know them well. Rather than separating “school” from therapeutic or personal growth, we help students understand how these parts of their lives connect.
We want students to leave Actias knowing who they are as learners, what they need to thrive, and how to communicate those needs with independence.
A Foundation Built Beyond the Classroom
Learning at Actias extends well beyond traditional academics.
Nature, movement, experiential learning, and opportunities to engage with the surrounding community are built into the rhythm of the week. Students may spend time hiking, gardening, caring for animals, learning about local ecosystems, and participating in fun group experiences.
These experiences are not breaks from learning. They are part of learning. They give students opportunities to regulate, take healthy risks, build relationships, discover interests, develop confidence, and experience themselves as capable outside of a conventional classroom.
Students may earn elective, health, or physical education credit through portions of this work while also developing the practical and interpersonal skills we call Life Prep.
A Day at Actias
There is no single Actias schedule because there is no single Actias student.
Students begin and end the day in community, while the hours in between are intentionally structured around what each student needs to make meaningful progress. One student may be working directly with an English teacher while another is completing a supported math course. Another may be working on a community college class, meeting with a therapist, receiving writing or executive functioning support, or developing a longer-term project.
Later in the day, students come back together for experiences that may include hiking, gardening, animal care, group work, or time in the community. The structure is consistent enough to feel predictable and flexible enough to respond to individual students.
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Nature-Based Electives
Animal Care
Farm-Based Learning
Health
PE
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English 9th-12th
Algebra through Calculus
Core Sciences
World History
U.S History
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1:1 Instruction
Small-Group
Supported Online Learning
Project-Based Coursework
Community College Classes
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Executive Functioning Coaching
Exposure and Response Therapy
Personalized Academic Plan
Regulation Support
College and Transition Planning
