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Williamsburg Academy Private School is an online private school serving students in grades 6-12 worldwide. Our program is built on the award-winning Williamsburg Curriculum and emphasizes leadership and the liberal arts. We’re on a mission to prepare promising students for meaningful lives as principled leaders!

We currently serve grades 6-12.

Yes. Williamsburg Academy is accredited by Cognia and the Accrediting Commission for Schools, Western Association of Schools and Colleges (ACS WASC). All credit earned at Williamsburg is recognized by all other schools accredited by Cognia and ACS WASC, and most other accredited schools. More information can be found on our Accreditation page.

Yes. All of our live-online core courses are approved by the NCAA, so your student can work towards Division I or Division II eligibility while attending our school. Please see our NCAA accreditation page for a complete list of approved courses and additional eligibility requirements.

We are a fully online school with no physical, in-person classrooms. Our students live across the U.S., Canada, and other countries worldwide.

Williamsburg Academy does not affiliate with or support any faith, church, or religion. Our students come from a variety of religious and political backgrounds. We remain neutral and build a safe environment where students can be themselves, learn from each other, and share their ideas and beliefs respectfully.

Yes, in many cases. Under U.S. federal law, parents can withdraw up to $10,000 per child, per year from a 529 account to pay for private school tuition (other primary or secondary education-related expenses are not eligible). Many states also offer tax deductions or credits when you add funds to a 529 account.

Note: Not all states consider private school tuition an eligible expense for 529 plans. Please check with your state’s education agency and 529 administrator to be sure before you make a withdrawal.

To view our individual course fees and full details on tuition, please see our Tuition Rates & Payment Options page.

Registration for the upcoming fall and winter semesters generally opens on the first Monday in February each year. Check the school calendar for exact dates and watch your inbox for email reminders. Registration is first come, first served, so we recommend registering early to secure your child's preferred schedule.

Registration closes on August 29 for the fall semester and January 17 for the winter semester. You can register your student until these dates each semester, including switching between honors and classic versions of a course.

Williamsburg Academy provides online courses in three formats:

• Live-online: Students meet together with a mentor in an online classroom and participate in live class discussions every week. Some live classes include an Honors version with a larger workload for students who want to go deeper.
• Self-paced: Students complete assignments on their own schedule and communicate via email, online student forums, and mentor office hours.
• Independent Studies (for high school): Students earn academic credit for completing PE, Fine Arts, or Elective studies with a third-party provider.

For more information about each course type, check out this page on the Williamsburg Learning website.

Registration for all courses takes place in SIS. To register for courses, you’ll log in using your SIS parent account username and password. From there, you can follow the steps on our middle school and high school registration pages to select your student’s ideal courses.

For detailed course recommendations by grade, please see the course paths and sample schedules listed on our middle school and high school registration pages.

For questions about selecting the right courses for your child, please schedule a call with an enrollment advisor if your student is brand-new to Williamsburg. For returning students, please contact Customer Support.

Yes. You can add, swap, or remove courses from your child’s schedule through August 29 for the fall semester and January 17 for the winter semester.

Please see our FAQs below for info on our course drop policy and 100% satisfaction guarantee.

Once your student is registered, all that’s left is to prepare for the first day of school! To help with this, we highly encourage you review our How to Prepare for School page and our Parent Orientation videos. We’ll also email you and your student with information about student orientation assignments they will complete in Canvas, our online learning management system.

We maintain a student-instructor ratio of approximately 19:1. Instructors include both mentors and teaching assistants, who help provide detailed feedback on student assignments. For individual courses, our live-online class sessions range in size depending on the content of the course.

In general, we maintain smaller class sizes for middle school grades, with the exception of our seminar-style Leadership classes. It’s also important to note that a large online class is very different from a large class in person: The online classroom is a far less distracting environment for students than even a small class at a brick-and-mortar school. We’ve also pioneered using technology to maximize the online learning experience in classes of any size.

For example, many of our classes are based on engaging visual presentations by mentors, dynamic class-wide discussions, and smaller discussions and activities between groups of students in Zoom breakout rooms. Because of this, even students in our largest classes still make a personal connection with course material, their mentors, and their fellow students.

As Malcolm Gladwell pointed out in his book David and Goliath, smaller class sizes don’t always lead to better learning outcomes.* That’s because smaller classes make it easier for some students to dominate class discussions, among other things. At Williamsburg, we’ve found that offering a range of class sizes gives students a mix of small-group discussion and large-group participation that helps them build strong communication, learning, and leadership skills. We also offer ways for students to get extra support outside of class, such as mentor office hours.

*In fact, in one study cited by Gladwell, researcher Caroline Hoxby found no significant impact on student achievement as a result of class size (see “The Effects of Class Size on Student Achievement”). Instead, Gladwell says, the one thing educational researchers agree on is that teacher quality matters more than class size. At Williamsburg, that’s why we search hard to hire the best teachers and rigorously train them on our Six Mentor Practices.

Yes. Most live-online courses require a certain minimum number of students to register or the course will have to be canceled.

We have two general age guidelines (one for middle school and one for high school):

• For middle school, students should turn twelve during the academic year in which they register for 6th grade.
• For high school, students should turn fifteen during the academic year in which they register for 9th grade.

While these guidelines are highly recommended, we leave the final decision to parents and students because we know some students are ready earlier. If your student is younger, we encourage you to consult with an enrollment advisor before registering to avoid overloading them.

Yes, our drop policy is as follows:

• Students who drop a course within 14 days of the start of classes within a given semester receive no grade or record on their transcript.
• Students who drop after 14 days of classes but before midterms receive a "W" for that course on their transcript.
• Students who drop after midterms receive an "F" for that course on their transcript. 

Note: All courses have a 100% money-back satisfaction guarantee within 14 calendar days of the first day of live classes. No refunds will be issued after the 14-day period.

All courses come with a 100% money-back satisfaction guarantee (effective within 14 calendar days of the first day of the semester). We’ll issue a full refund for dissatisfied students within the guarantee period so you can make sure we’re the right fit. (No refunds will be issued after the 14-day period.)

While students with learning disabilities, such as ADHD or dyslexia, tend to do well in our program (due to reduced distractions from learning at home, the compatibility of our courses with text-to-speech software, and the psychologically safe learning environment in our online classes), we do not provide formal special education services as a private school. By extension, we do not provide Individualized Education Plans (IEPs) or 504s.

If your student needs a school with a dedicated special education department and support for IEPs and 504s, we recommend enrolling in a public school.

All of our mentors hold Zoom office hours outside of regular class time. If your student is having a tough time, a great first step is for them to drop by office hours. Mentors can often adjust the workload to better support your student’s needs. You’ll find the days and times for each mentor’s office hours posted on the course homepage in Canvas.

You’re also welcome to email mentors anytime—expect a response within one school day.

Once each semester, we also host Parent-Mentor Conferences. These are a chance for you and your student to meet with mentors, talk through any challenges, and collaborate on next steps.

For additional support, we offer structured study labs and tutoring. Students can find Zoom links and schedules in their Canvas Hub. 

Parents and students can access unofficial transcripts through SIS. 

• Students: Click on My Transcript.
• Parents: Click on My Students, then the name of the student, then Transcript.

For official transcripts, we partner with Parchment, a third-party digital credential service, to send transcripts securely. To request an official transcript, please visit the Parchment website and follow the steps provided.

Yes! All live-online classes are recorded, and the links to all class recordings are made available to students in Canvas (usually within a few minutes of a class period ending).

Yes, we accept transfer credit from other accredited schools. This does not guarantee that all credits earned at other schools will align with our graduation requirements or count toward graduation. Students who plan to transfer credit should send a transcript from their previous school(s) to our Registrar to find out how their credits will transfer, and what additional work will be required to graduate from Williamsburg Academy.

Yes. Williamsburg Academy is accredited by Cognia and the Accrediting Commission for Schools, Western Association of Schools and Colleges (ACS WASC), two world-leading accrediting bodies. That means nearly all other accredited schools recognize credit earned at Williamsburg Academy, and most colleges and universities recognize credit and high school diplomas from our school. Please check with your student’s transferring school for more details about how they will categorize your student’s Williamsburg credits.

Yes! Students who fulfill our graduation requirements earn a well-regarded, nationally accredited diploma. Our graduates have been accepted at some of the most competitive colleges and universities in the U.S. and around the world.

Yes, we encourage Williamsburg students to take either the ACT or SAT (depending on the requirements of their preferred colleges) once or twice during their junior year and again as a senior. Students are not docked points for retaking these exams, and taking them multiple times increases scores for most students. Students are responsible for registering and paying for the ACT/SAT. 

Our students generally test above the national average, and our alumni have gone on to highly competitive colleges and universities.

Williamsburg Academy’s school code for the ACT and SAT is 450067.

Yes. We expect our students to be truthful in all they say and do and demonstrate integrity in their academics.

Plagiarism, cheating, or other falsification of research on projects, papers, or exams are not tolerated. Students agree in every course that they will not receive unwarranted help from any person and will complete all work themselves. Honor code violations may result in a failing grade and/or being permanently expelled from Williamsburg Academy. Mentors report honor code violations to the Headmaster, and after consulting with the student and their parents, a final course of action is decided.

In a nutshell, we inspire students to find their love of learning and use it to build the foundation for a meaningful, successful life in our modern world. Our school culture is open, uplifting, and brings out the best in us and our students.

Williamsburg students build lasting friendships with their peers and mentors as they explore their interests and unique abilities. On top of that, our students actively challenge and support each other in doing the hard work it takes to gain a liberal arts and leadership-focused education.

Lastly, each member of the Williamsburg team has a clear area of focus to support student success and development. We live lives of meaning, purpose, and adventure while inspiring our students to do the same. 

This all adds up to create a school culture that inspires students to do the best work of their lives so far—both personally and academically.

We call our teachers “mentors” because they play the role of helping students develop as leaders (in addition to the traditional teacher role of helping students acquire knowledge).

Simply put, we have the highest standards and strongest filters in the industry when it comes to hiring talented mentors (who are also all certified teachers). On top of that, once hired, our mentors receive unrivaled professional development training to help them excel even further at bringing out students’ potential.

If you ask a Williamsburg student to tell you about their mentors, you’ll likely hear words like “engaging,” “fun,” “inspiring,” “smart,” “hilarious,” “caring,” and “talented.” For many students and families, our mentors are the main attraction of the entire Williamsburg program!

We attract bright and dedicated students who want to study history’s great minds and learn to think critically. Our students come from diverse backgrounds including home, public, and private schools; no particular background is necessary. A strong work ethic, eagerness to learn, and a desire to serve others are the only key ingredients for success at Williamsburg Academy.

The best way to determine if we’re the right fit for your child is by scheduling a call with an Enrollment Advisor. We’ll ask a few questions to get to know your student so we can give you a strong recommendation either way.

In general, though, here are some things to consider when thinking about enrolling your child at Williamsburg Academy:

The liberal arts and leadership-focused education we offer at Williamsburg Academy is challenging. Since our mission is to prepare promising students for meaningful lives as principled leaders, we have high expectations for our students. This requires students to be self-directed and open to being challenged by their schoolwork.

In addition, we use online learning tools that give students the freedom to guide their own education. We trust our students to use that freedom wisely and appropriately. Specifically, we expect each student to:

• Work, read, and study independently.
• Set daily and weekly commitments, and put in the work to meet those commitments.
• Spend several hours a day in and out of class studying, completing assignments, and reflecting on how their learnings apply to their lives.

We only suggest enrolling your child at Williamsburg Academy if they are determined, excited, and prepared to meet these expectations. If so, our program could be the perfect fit to help your child unleash their full potential!

In general, Williamsburg students do best when a parent or guardian is home to support and encourage them during the school day. To maximize your student’s success, the single most impactful thing you can do is use our 3-Step Parent Support Plan with your child every week. This includes:

1. Helping your student create a daily checklist for each school day, listing the tasks and assignments they will complete each day.
2. Helping your student anticipate which assignments they might need extra support on, such as a quick check from you before they submit it or attending their mentor’s office hours.
3. Checking in with your student for a few minutes each day to make sure they’re completing the items on their daily checklist.

We promise: If you do these three things with your student consistently, they’ll be on track for their best school year ever.

We offer multiple resources to support you in helping your child get the education they deserve! These include (but aren’t limited to):

• Our On-Demand Parent Orientation videos to help you and your student get a strong start to the school year.
• Additional Parent Resource videos to support you and your student at key times throughout the school year.
• The Weekly Parent Update, which includes a summary of important action items, announcements, and upcoming events at our school.
• Parent-Mentor Conferences and Parent-Mentor Updates to keep you informed about your child’s progress each semester.
• Our proven 3-Step Parent Support Plan to help your student stay on track with all their coursework every week.
• Easy access to our Customer Support Team every weekday to get help with any technical issues

Williamsburg Academy does not discriminate based on race, ethnic origin, sex, or religion. We welcome diversity in our programs and strive to have students of high moral character from diverse races, ethnicities, and religions. Understanding and embracing diversity is a key characteristic for leaders seeking a liberal education.