Molly Carroll enrolled at PA Distance when she was in 8th-grade after leaving her local school district in Tarentum, PA. Now as an 11th-grader who has adapted to an online learning environment, Molly is excited to start exploring opportunities after she graduates from PA Distance next school year. 

“It was definitely a transition for me to go from physical workbooks at my old school to all online learning,“ she said.  “However, I think PA Distance is more organized. It’s easier to find all of the resources that I need on my own. Everything is in one place.

“PA Distance is a family-like environment,” she said. “My counselor and teachers are always checking up on me and are there for me whenever I need them.” 

“I also have the ability to be independent,” she said. “We also have a lot of choices from what classes we want to take to a topic we want to research in a certain class.” 

Before enrolling, Molly and her mother came to the PA Distance office to meet teachers and administrators before making a decision about attending. 

“As soon as I came to see everyone, I knew this was the school for me,” she explained. “Everyone was really welcoming and even showed me how to use some of the programs.”

Molly is actively involved in extracurricular activities at PA Distance including Student Leadership, Yearbook Club, and Social Justice Club in her free time. The after school Club programs provide students with a safe space to socialize and learn about topics they are interested in, outside of their schoolwork and guided curriculum. All after school clubs take place when the school day is over, after 3:30 pm. 

Molly was elected by her peers to serve as Co-Vice President in Student Leadership for the 2020-2021 school year.

“As Co-Vice President, I work alongside the teacher sponsors and the President to organize events and activities for the school,” she explained. “We have a list of new ideas, projects, and things that we want to accomplish. In our general club meetings, we go over all of that and see what we can do.”

“We try to get everyone involved as much as we can,” she added. “I like having the ability, as a student, to make real changes at PA Distance.”

Molly is also a member of the Yearbook Club where her and her club-mates work together to design the 2020-2021 yearbook for her and the rest of her classmates. The Yearbook Club also incorporates student photo submissions that showcase their interests. 

“I work on editing the pages that I am assigned,” she said. “I am a very crafty person and like to make things colorful.”

Molly is also actively engaged in Social Justice League Club.

“The Social Justice League Club is for students to come and talk about the issues within the LGBTQ+ community and other social issues,” she said. “We try to come up with ways to help each cause.”

Molly has also been an Odyssey Fellow for the last few years, working on her Life on a Wall project, and now is working on something brand new. 

“We are writing a children's book about bog turtles which are native to Pennsylvania and are critically endangered,” she explained. The book’s purpose is to bring awareness and expand the reader’s knowledge about a topic in which she is passionate. 

“I like the Odyssey Fellowship program so that I’m able to expand my creativity and knowledge beyond my school work,” she said. 

Like many other PA Distance students, Molly has had the opportunity to form friendships with her classmates and has had the chance to interact with them, in person, on past field trips. Although many of them live across the state, Molly virtually keeps in contact with them inside and outside the classroom. 

“I’m able to talk to my friends on g-chat whenever I want,” she explained. 

When she's not in class or in her club meetings, Molly also works at Bob’s Subs part-time and volunteers at the Pittsburgh Zoo during the summer as “Zoo Teen”.

She works at the Zoo’s “touch tables” where she handles animals that young campers are able to interact with - in person.

“I usually gravitate towards handling the reptiles,” she said. “I love them.”

During this experience, zoo campers are given the opportunity to learn, see, and touch the animals with Molly’s assistance. 

“It’s a great way to expose kids to animals that they may be unfamiliar with or afraid of,” she explained. 

Now that Molly is half-way through her junior year at PA Distance, she is beginning to think about her future by researching and visiting colleges and universities across the country. 

“I’ve gone to some virtual college tours and presentations that Ms. Budd hosts,” she said. “But, I want to go on some in-person tours this summer.” 

“I’m thinking about going into a career in wildlife, biology, or ecology because I really like animals,” she explained. 

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Do you have a story to tell about PA Distance? To be featured on our blog, website, and social media, contact Kelsey Holsinger at kelsey.holsinger@padistance.org.