Class of 2008 Valedictorian Austin Bissot Is Now a Pennsylvania Math Teacher
Class of 2008 graduate Austin Bissot was one of the first students to enroll when our cyber school was formed in 2004. In the 14 years since then, Austin has been busy running her own classroom teaching mathematics to 6th graders at Waynesboro Area Middle School in Waynesboro, PA.
As one of the inaugural students to join the virtual classrooms at PA Distance, Austin said her experience in cyber school worked best for her and her family and prepared her for her future.
"I had some health issues growing up,’ and my local district didn't understand or work with me on my absences," she explained. "My family started looking for other options and found PA Distance. It worked well for our situation so I didn't have to miss school."
Austin also noted that her time at PA Distance also helped her gain valuable skills like independence and computer literacy. As a cyber school student in the early 2000s, Austin was learning math, science, and English while on the cutting edge of educational technology.
“It was a whole new world back then, but it worked really well,” she said. “It was also a unique experience having to teach my students online during the pandemic when our school building was closed. It was surreal being on the other end of the computer and teaching students like I had been taught years before.” 
As valedictorian of her graduating class, Austin gave a speech at her in-person graduation in State College, PA, surrounded by her classmates and teachers. She also returned to the PA Distance graduation stage in 2012 as a guest speaker.
“The graduation ceremonies are always awesome,” she said. “It was nice seeing all my teachers and classmates at my graduation and then the one I spoke at later, too.”
Now, after earning a degree from York College, Austin teaches math to her own group of 6th-grade students each school year.
“I love teaching math and teaching 6th graders,” she said. “They’re so fun. They’re still babies and so they let me do silly things.”
She recently completed a Master’s program in Educational Technology from Wilson College and noted that her experience at PA Distance helped her organize herself for success.
“When I started graduate school, which was all online, I had helpful experience from my time at PA Distance,” Austin added. “It was so easy for me to plan out my day and what I needed to do before due dates because that’s what I did back in high school. I would map out my week and get work done according to deadlines.”
Left: Austin and her husband. Right: Austin in her Waynesboro 6th-grade classroom
“I had a lot of graduate school classmates that struggled with that type of environment,” she said.
When people hear that she attended a cyber school for her entire high school career, she gets a variety of responses and offers her own experience as a testimonial.
“I hear people talk about how cyber school is a lesser version of an education,” Austin explained. “Then I tell them that I graduated high school from a cyber school and that it’s not true.”
“I remember some of my friends, who were still enrolled at my local district, would look at my work at PA Distance and tell me that it seemed more rigorous than what they were assigned in their honors courses,” she added. “They were surprised.”
Austin also remembers the equipment she received after she enrolled, including a laptop computer and class materials. She also recalls connecting with her teachers and talking about her interests with them.
“I remember it being a big lifesaver for my family that we didn’t have to go out and buy things that I needed for class,” she said. “I also really connected with Mr. K (current Chief Operating Officer, Mr. Kocuba), my math teacher at the time. We both liked racing cars.”
“I’m also still connected with some of my past teachers on Facebook,” she added.
As beneficial as PA Distance was during her four years enrolled, she notes that it has changed significantly since she graduated. From her home in Maryland, right along the border of Pennsylvania, Austin often checks Facebook stay up to date on PA Distance.
"I see new stuff on the Facebook page all the time," Austin explained. "I can tell the school has made positive improvements since I was a student. Now, I can see there are more class options and extracurricular opportunities for students."
“It’s really cool to see the growth since I was there. I see there are honors and AP courses now, which is awesome,” she added. “I can’t wait to see what the school does down the road.”
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