Online school inspired my study

In 2013, I graduated from Ohio Connections Academy. I enrolled in the online charter school before my junior year because I had a very difficult experience in my previous school. I had grown to hate everything about school (especially my math courses) and I didn’t care if I finished high school.

College wasn’t even a consideration. Once I started at OCA, I discovered I could learn at my own pace and my teachers motivated me to dive deeper into subjects that interested me. Along the way, I started to love studying and learning and I even found that I actually liked science. Four years later I’m graduating from the University of Alabama with degrees in physics and mathematics and minors in German and Russian.

In September, I will travel to Germany to do research on a Fulbright Scholarship for 10 months. When I return, I will begin working toward my Ph.D. at Princeton. I really don’t think that I would be anywhere close to where I am today if I hadn’t had the opportunity to attend Ohio Connections Academy.

As this is National Teacher Appreciation Week, I wish to thank all my teachers and counselors at OCA who worked with me and inspired me. They really changed my life at a time when I thought education was pointless.

Alex LeViness Tuscaloosa, Alabama (Formerly of Upper Arlington)