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More paths possible at academy
Switch would open options for students
Academy WEB 1
Forsyth Academy students Emily Walden, left, and Katie Nichols take a lunch break Wednesday. Officials are considering a switch that would open up many different career pathways at the school. - photo by Autumn Vetter
New opportunities could be heading to the Forsyth Academy if the local school district decides to convert it from a charter format to a program.The non-traditional charter high school opened in 2005 to provide an alternative option for at-risk students. Officials used the charter approach because it was the only option at the time.The school has evolved to offer night classes, credit recovery courses and allows students to work at their own pace, often to graduate early.None of those aspects would change, said Forsyth County Schools Chief Accountability Officer Cindy Salloum, who first made the recommendation to the system leadership during a recent retreat.According to Salloum, with the state requirement that high school students follow a career pathway, there’s evidence that “a continued operation of the charter school would be contrary to the best interest of the students.”“We don’t have those career pathways at Forsyth Academy,” Salloum said during the retreat. “If Forsyth Academy is still a charter school, it won’t look very good because they won’t be graduating kids in pathways.”Academy students currently have access only to a business pathway.