- March 9, 2025
With the three-year pilot program coming to a close at the end of the school year, district officials said Tuesday they don’t just plan to keep the Phoenix Academy open — they plan to expand it.
The academy, which is a one-to-one program on the campus of Flagler Palm Coast High School, offers a smaller learning environment for elementary students.
The academy began with two teachers and fourth-grade students. The teachers and the students have progressed together, and at the end of the school year, the students will move on to regular middle schools for seventh grade.
But instead of just starting back at fourth grade, Phoenix will offer both fourth and fifth grades next year, with a plan to add sixth grade the following year.
Right now, there are about 70 students at Phoenix Academy, said Jacob Oliva, assistant superintendent for the district. The goal is to get the academy to its maximum: 88 students.
Officials said the academy has done much more than what can be measured academically, such as self-esteem growth and getting students to be excited to learn.
Surveys conducted by the district showed that parents are interested in bringing siblings into the academy.
Officials said there should be some admission guidelines as the program expands, and School Board Chairman Andy Dance said he would like to see siblings have precedence.
Because Phoenix Academy is a one-to-one school, all students are assigned an Apple MacBook, which they use throughout the day and also take home with them.
Phoenix was also recognized Tuesday night as an Apple Distinguished Program, making it only one of about 200 schools across the United States that were recognized this school year.
The goal is for Phoenix to become entirely paperless by next school year, Oliva said.
“We’re moving from a delivery-based model, where the teacher is the primary deliverer of content, to a discovery-based model, where the students have the knowledge, and they’re asked to apply it in real-world settings,” he said.
