Forest Trail Academy Reviews 199

TrustScore 4.5 out of 5

4.4

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Rated 5 out of 5 stars

My son attended Forest Trail Academy for three years - 10th, 11th and 12th grades. He enjoyed the flexibility of the asynchronous courses and being able to work at his own pace and create his own sche... See more

Company replied

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Success: Our son competed ninth and tenth grade with Forest Trail Academy. He then transferred to Running Start at our local community college. When he took the placement test, he was able to advance... See more

Company replied

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Easy to use format, quick turnaround on assignments, great flexibility (can complete one class at a time or work on all of them at the same time). Always quick to respond to questions and helpful when... See more

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Our 11th grade son is attaining academic success at FTA. The teachers and staff are personal, caring and supportive. FTA is helping our son learn, excel and grow. The curriculum is challenging and... See more

Company replied

Company details

  1. School
  2. Association or organisation

Written by the company

Forest Trail Academy is an accredited online school that offers online homeschool programs for students in grades K-12. The classes provide flexibility to study subjects according to a self-paced schedule that’s suited to the individual needs. We help students reach their educational goals by offering a variety of individual classes online. The curriculum we offer is aligned to Common Core State Standards and taught by qualified teachers.


Contact info

4.4

Excellent

TrustScore 4.5 out of 5

199 reviews

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Rated 2 out of 5 stars

INTENSE PROGRAM AND DIFFICULT TO REACH…

INTENSE PROGRAM AND DIFFICULT TO REACH TEACHERS WHEN ASSISTANCE WAS NEEDED.

31 May 2019
Unprompted review
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Reply from Forest Trail Academy

Thank you for the feedback. We take pride in providing our students with an exceptional education. As evidenced by other reviews, many of our graduates have gone on to be very successful in college and career. However, we also take pride in offering exceptional student support and we're sorry to hear you felt it was difficult to reach teachers. All teachers are available by message and respond within 24-48 hours. Teachers also hold virtual office hours twice a week where students can drop in to get live assistance. If students aren't able to attend office hours as scheduled, they may reach out to the teacher to request a time that is convenient to both parties. We welcome additional suggestions for how we can ensure adequate teacher assistance.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

My daughter attended Forest Trails for…

My daughter attended Forest Trails for her 4 years of high school (9th - 12th grade) but completed high school in 3 years. She will be attending Fordham University in the Fall. Thank you to her teachers - Ms. Boisvert, Ms. Marla Smith, Ms. Rachel Johnson, and Dr. Theresa Bogema.

31 May 2019
Unprompted review
Rated 5 out of 5 stars

FTA is the best school ever!

FTA is the best school I have ever been to! The staff is very friendly, the teachers are always encouraging their students to thrive in their lessons, and personally, I enjoy how flexible the school is, so you can have fun and still score straight A's!

31 May 2019
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Administration is not responsive to needs of diverse students

Administration was not willing to work with our views and beliefs. We will not be forced to participate in lessons having content that we find objectionable. They were unwilling to accommodate our needs which resulted in our going elsewhere and losing the time and money we invested in the program.

31 May 2019
Unprompted review
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Reply from Forest Trail Academy

Although we are not a parochial school, we do our best to comply with requests for alternate assignments due to religious views and beliefs. That said, it can be challenging to provide an alternate assignment that meets the request while also meeting the rigor, benchmark(s) and objective(s) of the standards to which our curriculum is aligned. While we regret that we were not able to fully meet all of your requests, records indicate that our teachers complied with multiple requests for alternate readings/assignments.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Not satisfied at all

They don't help students with their course study.

31 May 2019
Unprompted review
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Reply from Forest Trail Academy

Thank you for taking the time to leave a review. We regret to hear that you feel there was inadequate help. Support in online education often looks much different than what students and parents are used to in the traditional, face-to-face, brick and mortar schools. Our teachers are available to students via the message center and virtual office hours. Teachers are required to respond to messages within 24-48 hours and hold live virtual office hours twice a week where students can get help in real time.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

I have found Forest trails to be…

I have found Forest trails to be extremely reliable and lighting quick to respond to any questions we have even if we are abroad. My son has had a positive first time experience with online education and I would highly recommend it for anyone who is looking for learning at their own speed however fast or slow that may be. My sons grades have improved immensely since he has started this program. Highly recommended

31 May 2019
Unprompted review
Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Very highly and enthusiastically recommend Forest Trail Academy

Great education. Great interaction with teachers and administrators when needed. Teachers ' availability prompt and highly accessible. Students set to succeed. Curriculum as tough as you want it to be for your kids. Positive feedback amazing for good performance and suggestions for improvement valuable. Rivals any IB programs out there with flexibility that frees up plenty of time for pursuit of extracurriculars and careers.

31 May 2019
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Crooks

My child could not handle the curriculum due to mental health issues. No credit was earned we literally were enrolled less than 2 months. Wouldn't give me a refund or let me out of payments. Threatened my credit rating and to go to collections. Had to negotiate a "buy out" Spent hundreds for nothing. EDIT: They replied that they have a 5 day "window" for you to decided if the program is right for your child. Because five days is just such a generous amount of time. Please. My child earned NO credit, did very little work and I had to fight to get a "buy out" from full tuition. For what reason? We got NOTHING from them why would they feel they needed a full payment FOR NOTHING? Because they are greedy thieves that's why.

31 May 2019
Unprompted review
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Reply from Forest Trail Academy

We are sorry to hear these sentiments in regards to our tuition policy. In an effort to be transparent about our tuition/refund policies, all information is provided on the enrollment forms (including the parent/student handbook, which must be signed by a parent) and our website. Per policy, tuition is due in full upon enrollment. We also offer a 5-day refund policy, in which families have 5 days from enrollment to determine if our program suits the needs of their student(s).

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Great for my 2nd Grader!

So far, I am very happy with my son's education. We enrolled at the beginning of this year to help him get caught up in 2nd grade after a horrible public school experience. He has been able to get fully caught up and will complete 2nd grade in time for 3rd to begin in August.

After a lot of consideration, I've decided to keep him in Forest Trail since the experience has been so good. At age 8 he is able to log into the classes himself and get his reading done as well as lots of interactive videos. Then we do the written work together.

The curriculum is challenging, but not overwhelming. It also builds upon itself so each unit takes knowledge learned from previous units and applies to new concepts. I appreciate the fact that he is getting a solid foundation that still allowing plenty of time for him to explore other areas of interest for a well rounded education.

I highly recommend!

31 May 2019
Unprompted review
Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Forest Trail Academy is the best choice…

Forest Trail Academy is the best choice I could have made for my son’s education. All staff and teachers are supportive in his work and genuinely proud of his successes. I could not be more pleased with how easy everyone is to work with and how much they care about education. The curriculum is on par with skill development and challenge levels. I recommend Forest Trail to anyone who is considering the homeschool option for their child.

31 May 2019
Unprompted review
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Reply from Forest Trail Academy

It is always wonderful to hear from our Forest Trail Academy families. Thank you for sharing your experience!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Without the wonderful staff and caring…

Without the wonderful staff and caring teachers at Forest Trail Academy, my son would not have been able to earn his high school diploma. He was able to complete high school, even after he turned 18. It was very challenging and prepare students for college

31 May 2019
Unprompted review
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Reply from Forest Trail Academy

Thank you for taking the time to share your experience at Forest Trail Academy. We're pleased to offer students of all ages the opportunity to earn their high school diploma.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Terrible experience

Terrible experience. Heartless people running this wanna be school. My son did not like the program 3 weeks in and did not complete thr course. Now FTA has put me in collections!! Dont waste your time or money folks!!

31 May 2019
Unprompted review
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Reply from Forest Trail Academy

We are sincerely sorry to hear these sentiments in regards to our tuition policy. Upon enrollment, parents are required to sign all enrollment forms including the parent/student handbook which indicates that they are responsible for the tuition in its entirety. Tuition and withdrawal/refund policies are also available on our website.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

Liked the school

Liked the school, but there were a lot of typos in the curriculum and the pricing was kinda high.

31 May 2019
Unprompted review
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Reply from Forest Trail Academy

We appreciate the constructive feedback. We have recently updated our curriculum and we're working on making improvements to our curriculum review schedule to ensure our curriculum remains top notch!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

The staff was very professional and…

The staff was very professional and caring. They answered all my concerns and provided me with all the resources that I needed.

31 May 2019
Unprompted review
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Reply from Forest Trail Academy

Forest Trail Academy holds their faculty and staff to high standards of professionalism. We're pleased to hear about your positive experience. Thank you for the review.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Held our grandson's credits "hostage"…

Held our grandson's credits "hostage" when we chose to take him out after 8 months for financial reasons. He never got the credits and it put him farther behind in school. BEWARE! As far as their competence as an educational institute, they seemed fine.

31 May 2019
Unprompted review
Forest Trail Academy logo

Reply from Forest Trail Academy

We are sincerely sorry to hear these sentiments in regards to the release of records. Your student was enrolled with a partner program that utilizes our educational program. Your withdrawal was from the partner program. And unfortunately, per our policy and the agreement made with our partner program in which your student was enrolled, we are unable to release academic records with an outstanding financial balance. Please contact us upon settlement with the partner program and we will be happy to release your student's records.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

This is a sub-par school

This is a sub-par school. Very disappointed. The #1 most important stressed issue was NO PLAGARISM to the point that it was so time consuming to try to do anything that learning was subjugated. DO YOUR RESEARCH ask around and choose a program that is intuitive and easy to navigate. This one is NOT.

31 May 2019
Unprompted review
Forest Trail Academy logo

Reply from Forest Trail Academy

We do take plagiarism and academic integrity very seriously, as all accredited schools should. Our plagiarism policy is outlined in the student/parent handbook. The mandatory orientation course revisits the policy and explains what plagiarism is and how to avoid it. The introduction chapter of every course includes information about plagiarism and citing sources. Teachers are always available to answer questions about plagiarism and provide students with guidance and support as they learn the proper way to cite sources.

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