Situated on 119 acres, in Leesburg, Virginia, resides The Academies of Loudoun (ACL). The Academies of Loudoun is a magnet school that accommodates three schools that are centralized around STEM education: The Academy of Science (AOS), The Academy of Engineering and Technology (AET), and the Monroe Advanced Technical Academy (MATA). Students who are enrolled, spend every other school day there, and when they are not at ACL, they are at their home high school.
At the Academies, the school day starts at 9:30am, just like any other Loudoun County public high school. Because there is no direct bus to the Academies for Woodgrove students, students who are unable to drive must take a bus to Harmony Middle School and wait for the bus to the Academies to take them to school. Violet Berendt, a freshman enrolled in the AOS program who follows this transportation regime shared, “I have an hour bus ride in the morning.”
For AOS students, the school day consists of three periods: math and two science periods. Senior Katie Tully who has been in AOS for four years shares, “I have Research [AOS Senior Science], which is really cool because I get to work with sea anemones this year.” In contrast to AOS, AET students also have three periods, but they take an AET class that is specific to what discipline a student applied for instead of an extra science class. Aside from those in AOS and AET, MATA students stay in their designated pathway option throughout the entire school day. Although ACL is a magnet school, it is not strictly focused on academics. During lunch, students are able to participate in clubs and activities, which occur between the second and third blocks. On an advisory schedule, Advisory is right after lunch. Unlike the 4:18 dismissal time at LCPS high schools, ACL students are dismissed at 3:30, giving students time to return to their home high school to participate in sports and extracurricular activities. Once the students arrive from the bus at their high school, they hop on their designated bus to go home. However, students who can drive are not required to go back to their home high school, and can go straight home.
Because students are at each school every other day, and must take their core classes on the day they are at their home high school, there is conflict. There is no study hall embedded in the majority of students’ schedules, therefore students must find their own time to work on unfinished assignments. Tully shared, “It’s really hard to keep up in both schools and be able to take tests and everything, because I’ve really never had a study hall and when I need extra help in a class, it’s hard to get it when I’m only at each school on one day…I get [to the Academies] at 8am and I do extra work until 9:30.” ACL students must be proactive in seeking help and staying on top of their work.
The social opportunities and connections that students can make are diverse at the Academies of Loudoun. It presents an opportunity for students to meet people from different schools while maintaining friendships at the students’ home high school. “I’ve made a lot of new friends, because there’s people from all different schools that go there,” Berendt mentioned. “I still get to interact with my friends at Woodgrove enough.” Students are able to commit to a wide range of activities, showcasing the well-rounded nature of ACL students who thrive both academically and in extracurricular pursuits. “I do this one club that’s called Health 2 Hearts. It’s charity work, so you can write reports and get volunteer hours,” Berendt adds.
The programs at ACL provide students with diverse knowledge and critical thinking skills, while also fostering a positive learning and social environment. Tully reflects on her experience at the Academies, stating, “It’s become more positive over time, and it’s definitely prepared me for college and I’ve just learned a lot from it.”