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We love interviewing our incredible students at Georgia Cyber Academy (GCA) and showcasing them on our podcast: Hootworthy. Karen, a 10th grader at GCA, sat down and discussed her hobby that turned into a surprisingly successful business.  In 2020, Karen created her own business, 2UNIQ Collection, where she makes and sells products such as key chains, wristlets, pens, and lanyards. She started with key chains and most recently added lanyards. Her best-selling product is the wristlet. 

Not many students start a business, so we discussed Karen’s
“Why?”. Karen shared that she noticed how her mom always seemed to be losing
her keys. She began making key chains, and then the wristlet idea came next.
Her business solved a real problem—offered a solution to losing your keys—what
many successful businesses do. Karen has always been somewhat a creative
person, but she decided to take it to another level with the business. 

She acquired her startup funding from her parents, which took six
months of convincing after making a business plan, but she has paid the loan
back and then some! She has been very surprised at how popular and successful
her business has become. She didn’t expect so many people to buy her products.
She has learned many different things from running her business, but a key
takeaway has been money management. For example, she must balance spending
money on materials to then make products for sale. 

Despite the success of her business, Karen would like to
ultimately become a real estate broker after high school. She loves the
experience and lessons she is learning from managing her own business, and how
it will apply to her future career in real estate. She enjoys the flexibility
GCA offers for her to do school and work on her business on the side during breaks
or after school work. She has found her teachers always willing to help and her
classmates to be very nice.

We encourage everyone to check out Karen’s products! They can find
them at the website https://uniqcollectionllc.myshopify.com/. Karen ended with shouting out her mom, dad, supporters, Mrs.
McCarthy for recommending her to be on the show, and the Hootworthy team. Stay
Hootworthy, Karen! 

Hootworthy: The Podcast That Gives a Hoot
We spotlight the students and faculty of GCA and the stories that deserve to be heard.

Watch full episodes on YouTube or learn more at georgiacyber.org/hootworthy.

Follow, subscribe, and share. Every story deserves a spotlight.

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 Georgia Cyber Academy (GCA) is fortunate to have plenty of talented faculty; Mrs. Amy Blanchard is no exception. Third grade ELA teacher Mrs. Blanchard, who has been with GCA for four years, won the esteemed award of GCA District Teacher of the Year! Throughout her 21 years of teaching experience, this is her first Teacher of the Year title. Winning this award means so much to her; she still feels like it’s surreal. Mrs. Blanchard also noted that it was particularly meaningful because she was voted in by her peers—the very people who understand the ins and outs of teaching. 

Mrs. Blanchard shared that despite being from a family of educators, she didn’t always want to be a teacher. In fact, because she saw her parents come home each day fulfilled, but exhausted, she didn’t want that for herself. But, after working multiple summers at a camp for children and volunteering with her mom at school often, she couldn’t deny the passion she had developed for teaching. She emphasized the feeling that overcame her when she helped kids understand something, as a primary motivator for deciding to pursue an education degree in college.

There are a couple things Mrs. Blanchard wishes others knew about the teaching profession. First, a change in public perception over the teaching schedule, hours, and vacations of teachers. For example, even though teachers have summer or winter breaks “off,” much of that time is made up throughout the school year, as teachers are working overtime outside of school hours. Another aspect is how emotionally involved teaching can be. Many teachers are not only teaching students academically, but also are emotionally invested in their students and their overall growth—they care! 

If Mrs. Blanchard could give one piece of advice to students, she would give two. First, to let them know to believe in themselves. Students need to have confidence in their abilities and believe that they can improve. The other is to stop comparing themselves to others. People have different strengths and weaknesses, so students should stop fixating on the work of their peers and start focusing on their own work. 

There are many things that Mrs. Blanchard loves about teaching at GCA, but her favorite is that she doesn’t have to wear shoes! She also likes how involved she can be in her daughters’ lives thanks to the ability to work from home. She has also found that teaching at GCA allows her to focus more on the academic aspects of teaching rather than all the other things that can come up with teaching. 

Of course, like with any career, there are rewards and challenges. She highlighted one of the most rewarding aspects of teaching has been how students are excited to see her every day. Even though she was their elementary school teacher, she also highlights how some students will reach out after they graduate and remember her as their favorite teacher. She mentioned how fun it is to see these students grown up after all the years. One of the challenges she noted, particularly teaching online, was connecting with students. She emphasized how important it is to be creative to create relationships with her students.

Mrs. Blanchard was incredibly thankful for all the support she has received over the years, and wanted to shout out her family, students, administrators, and colleagues. She highlighted the importance of her husband and how he has listened over the years, her daughters and how they put up with her, how she believes being a mother has made her a better teacher, the support of the teachers she works with, and how helpful her administrators have been. She stressed how fortunate she feels to work for GCA, and we are happy to share that the feeling is mutual! Stay hootworthy, Mrs. Blanchard!

Hootworthy: The Podcast That Gives a Hoot
We spotlight the students and faculty of GCA and the stories that deserve to be heard.

Watch full episodes on YouTube or learn more at georgiacyber.org/hootworthy.

Follow, subscribe, and share. Every story deserves a spotlight.

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Many of our Champions have hootworthy hobbies, and our most recent interview is no exception! Easton has attended Georgia Cyber Academy (GCA) for two years, and when he is not at school, he is busy riding bulls. Easton shared he has been a bull rider for over a year, but he has always wanted to be one ever since he was a kid. This is more than just a hobby for him because he hopes to be in the Professional Bull Riders Organization (PBR) one day. 

Even though bull riding is referred to by some as the most dangerous sport on dirt, that has not stopped him from pursuing his dreams. Easton has competed in around 30 events, all the while getting bucked, slammed, or stepped on by bulls!  Fortunately, he wears a chest protector and helmet to soften the blows, but not by much, as one can imagine what it is like getting hit by a bull no matter the protective gear.

At the events, riders are trying to ride for eight seconds because if they ride any less, they fail to score any points. There is no reason to ride over eight seconds, so if riders are skilled enough to last 8 seconds, they must dismount as cleanly as possible to earn a higher score. The rider is scored on the ride and the dismount plus the score of the bull. Easton said he has not made it eight seconds more than six times, but that is his goal every time he hops on a bull. Surprisingly, riders only get one chance to ride, so they must make it count!

There is plenty of training involved with bull riding, as Easton described. He trains on the bull once a week in addition to getting on a drop barrel and standing on a basketball for 20 minutes per day.  He also goes through body movement repetitions that train his body to counter the bull’s movement—bow chest out, avoid keeping a “C” in his back, and prevent  his arm from going behind his body. 

Easton is very grateful to GCA for how friendly everyone is, especially his teachers and peers. He loves how he can bring school with him to some of his rodeos because even when he is traveling, he can participate in his classes. He wanted to thank his parents and GCA for the support. We cannot wait to see you in the PBR, Easton! Your GCA FAM is rooting for you.  

Keep soaring, but not off that bull before eight seconds!!

Hootworthy: The Podcast That Gives a Hoot
We spotlight the students and faculty of GCA and the stories that deserve to be heard.

Watch full episodes on YouTube or learn more at georgiacyber.org/hootworthy.

Follow, subscribe, and share. Every story deserves a spotlight.

Send us Fan Mail

We get to interview many Hootworthy Champions at Georgia Cyber Academy (GCA), and our latest student is no exception! Xavier, an 11th grader at GCA who has attended since the 6th grade, won first place at the Wells Fargo Junior Investment
National Competition awarding him 1,500 dollars! Xavier highlighted that
winning the competition taught him that if he puts in the work and limits
distractions, he can accomplish anything.  

The competition was in partnership with a national organization he
is involved in, the 100 Black Men of America. Xavier shared that the
organization teaches many things to youth like life skills, etiquette, and how
to succeed in the real world. 

He explained the details of the contest that led to his victory.
Contestants started with 100,000 virtual dollars and had seven weeks to make as
much virtual money as possible in the stock market. He had to use investing
principles of buying low and selling high to maximize his investments. He took
a less risky, more moderate approach that ultimately led to his success and
ended the contest with 110,000 dollars, making 10,000 virtual dollars in just
seven weeks!  

The contest culminated in an all-expense paid trip to Hollywood,
Florida this past June where he stayed in a five-star hotel, ate fantastic
food, and connected with new people. It was Xavier’s first time flying, but he
mentioned he wasn’t scared at all. Mentors and mentees attended the trip, as
well as parents. What Xavier loved most about the competition was getting to
travel. He loves going places and meeting new people. He wanted to shout out
his family (especially his mom), all the people who have supported him, GCA,
and the 100 Black Men of America organization. 

Keep soaring, Xavier! 

Hootworthy: The Podcast That Gives a Hoot
We spotlight the students and faculty of GCA and the stories that deserve to be heard.

Watch full episodes on YouTube or learn more at georgiacyber.org/hootworthy.

Follow, subscribe, and share. Every story deserves a spotlight.

Send us Fan Mail

Hootworthy had the pleasure of speaking with 10th grade GCA Champion Zeke, who crochets fictional character figurines as a hobby. He got into this unique hobby because of his mom, who created her own crocheting business and taught Zeke how to crochet when he was 7 years old.  His crocheting enjoyment, interest, and skill hasn’t stopped growing since.  During the show, he surprised us with a crocheted Champ figurine made for the podcast.

Zeke highlighted the crocheting materials and process of creating a figurine. The main materials are his crochet hook, yarn, and polyester fill. His process begins by making the pieces one at a time starting with the legs.  As he works his way up he is always thinking about the “magic circle”—the guide for creating the figurine where the yarn builds and builds upon itself.  After he creates one piece of the figurine, he must cut it, lay it aside, and then begin the next piece. Once he has all the pieces completed, he can sew them together to create the completed figurine. Zeke referred to this approach as “sculptural”. Before using this method, he would usually do a single crocheted piece that builds upon itself, like his first attempt at Toon Link, but the proportions would never turn out as good. He emphasized the importance of getting the figurine’s head right because, as he mentioned, the head “makes or breaks the figurine”.

Zeke loves making these figurines as gifts for his family and friends, which is one of the main reasons he does it. He also loves getting to bring some of his favorite fictional characters to life through crocheting these figurines. He mentioned that his favorite figurine was a Mother’s Day gift for his mom, Darkwing Duck. He explored a different method for the face—rather than making one big oval he crocheted four different pieces that were sewn together to make the face. He also had to do a little cloth sewing for the cape.

Zeke shared two things that make crocheting these figurines challenging. First is getting the head just right, by making sure all the proportions are spot on, like the hair, eyes, mouth, and nose—if one is off, the head is ruined! The second is making sure all the pieces fit or work together. Before he sews the figurine together, he places the pieces together to make sure everything looks proportional, but if a piece looks off or wrong, he must redo the piece, like if the legs are too long for example.

When asked about student life at GCA, he expressed how much he appreciates all the available resources and how great and helpful the teachers are. He thinks that it would be very difficult for him not to succeed given the number of materials and support available. He wanted to shout out his mom for teaching him how to crochet and getting him into crocheting in the first place and his siblings for encouraging him in his hobby. Keep soaring, Zeke, and we cannot wait to see what you crochet next! 

Hootworthy: The Podcast That Gives a Hoot
We spotlight the students and faculty of GCA and the stories that deserve to be heard.

Watch full episodes on YouTube or learn more at georgiacyber.org/hootworthy.

Follow, subscribe, and share. Every story deserves a spotlight.

Send us Fan Mail

We had such a great time sitting down with our 5th grade GCA champion, Kai, to talk about his incredibly hootworthy hobby: Kart racing! Kai competes around the country in the Swift race class that includes go-karts which can reach up to 70 mph! He has participated in over 25 races so far with several top 5 finishes, but winning first-place continues to elude him. Kai got into racing after watching a tv show featuring a Formula One driver going 200 miles an hour.  While watching the show, he thought to himself, “That sounds cool. I want to do that!” 

Kai prepares for races and trains to be a better driver in various
ways including using a racing simulator at home that includes a driving chair,
steering wheel, and pedals that mimic a go-kart racing experience. He  has
a local track that he can practice driving on regularly and also has a coach
that provides feedback on how he can improve and where he is excelling. A lot
of this information also comes from data sent from a computer and camera that
captures his driving. For example, Kai and his coach can analyze his lap times
and turns to see where he is slowing down, how much faster he could have gone,
and what he needs to focus on to get faster. 

Kai mentioned that the most difficult thing about racing is consistency.
Drivers must stay as fast as possible the entire race. These go-karts do not
have auto steer, so they are more difficult to turn, drivers can experience
forces up to 4 Gs, and small mess ups can cost them the race. He emphasized the
importance of consistency in the fact that 2 tenths of a second can separate 15
positions. He finds racing rewarding in winning and having fun, but it’s even
better when he beats an opponent who has a reputation for winning because then
the win means even more to him.

He has appreciated being a GCA student because it has allowed him
to pursue his Kart racing hobby, while simultaneously completing his education.
He hasn’t felt like he has missed out on racing or schooling thanks to GCA and
his teachers. 

If you want to keep up with Kai, you can find him on his Instagram
Racer_Kai, or at his local track Atlanta MotorSports Park. He loves it there
because it feels like a real community, family. He hopes to go 200 plus mph as
a professional racecar driver one day but knows he must work to get there! He
appreciates his mom, dad, coach, and teammates for all their support and GCA
and his teachers for being flexible with him. Keep it up Racer Kai! Your GCA
Fam is rooting for you!

Hootworthy: The Podcast That Gives a Hoot
We spotlight the students and faculty of GCA and the stories that deserve to be heard.

Watch full episodes on YouTube or learn more at georgiacyber.org/hootworthy.

Follow, subscribe, and share. Every story deserves a spotlight.

Send us Fan Mail

We were so happy to have our hootworthy Valedictorian, Matthew, come on the show to discuss his time at Georgia Cyber Academy (GCA), his accomplishments, and life outside of school. Matthew has attended GCA since Kindergarten, and he topped off his education with the highest honor. He shared that becoming Valedictorian validated the idea that hard work pays off.  From the time he was 15 years old, he has worked 40-hour weeks at Chick-fil-A and played competitive tennis, all the while excelling in his academics. 

One of his favorite memories at GCA was the time he was able to spend with his family in the mornings. He appreciated the convenience of GCA and the ability to do school from home.  Two role models came to mind when Matthew thought about the people he looked up to.  First, he shared about one of his bosses at Chick-fil-A who had taught him many leadership skills, life lessons, and time management.  The other role model he could not leave out was his favorite tennis player, Rafael Nadal.  He admires Nadal’s fighting spirit and success on the court. 

Matthew highlighted that a challenge he has overcome would be affording college and being able to graduate college without significant debt.  Thanks to working hard, saving, and earning scholarships, he believes he has positioned himself to be more financially stable after college.  One of his favorite hobbies is tennis, which he has been playing since he was six years old.  He enjoys how it challenges him because he has no teammates to count on, and how it blends mental, physical, and tactical components to the game.  Matthew also emphasized how he formed many friendships and met tons of great people through the sport.

Out of all the opportunities that GCA afforded Matthew—the convenience—was his favorite part. Specifically, he noted that he did not believe he would have been able to work as a supervisor at Chick-fil-A for 40-hours per week, training and competing as a division 1 tennis player, while completing school anywhere else. The advice he would give new students to GCA would be to give it a chance and to stick with it.  He mentioned that a lot of good things can come if you do it effectively—certainly shows from his experience!  Along the same lines, he advised current students to maximize their school time while at home, so they can be as efficient as possible.

After GCA, Matthew plans to pursue a degree in Business Management with a minor in Music at Georgia Southern University (Southern).  He will be playing tennis at Southern as a walk-on, with hopes of achieving a scholarship.  After college, he would like to own and operate a Chick-fil-A.

We are so incredibly proud of Matthew’s hootworthy drive and Valedictorian achievement!  We cannot wait to see what is next for him—stay hootworthy, Matthew!

Hootworthy: The Podcast That Gives a Hoot
We spotlight the students and faculty of GCA and the stories that deserve to be heard.

Watch full episodes on YouTube or learn more at georgiacyber.org/hootworthy.

Follow, subscribe, and share. Every story deserves a spotlight.

Send us Fan Mail

We had the pleasure of speaking with Darrese, one of our 12th grade Champions who has attended Georgia Cyber Academy (GCA) for the past 5 years. She achieved quite the hootworthy honor and award, as being selected as one of two delegates in the state of Georgia to participate in the United States Senate Youth Program. She was hesitant to apply after not being selected for the Governor's Honors Program the year before, but following a timely phone call from her Dual Enrollment Counselor, Ms. Debrody, who encouraged her to apply, Darrese decided to go for it! She could not believe she was picked, but she credits her involvement in many clubs at GCA including being Student Council President and her passion for social activism during the interview process, as landing her a spot in the program.

The Senate Youth Program Washington Week event typically takes place in Washington, D.C., but last year and this year, the event was virtual over Zoom. Even though it was not in-person, Darrese enjoyed the online sessions where she heard from many different past and present government officials including their experiences and what they would do differently. She mentioned that every group was assigned a military mentor who she connected with and appreciated the entire time. After the talks, the participating delegates would reflect on the sessions together and share their different perspectives. 

The most important thing that she took away from the experience was the power of unity. She noticed that even though the delegates came from different backgrounds, they were all together; they focused more on how they could help each other and what brought them together. She realized that their differences disappeared. She shared that the most rewarding thing from the experience—other than the 10,000 dollar scholarship and being selected as one of two people in Georgia—was getting to know the delegates. She knows that these people could be the future politicians of America, and who knows how these connections could impact her future. 

As a busy person, what she enjoys most about being a student at GCA is the convenience. She loves how she can take her laptop anywhere and attend class anywhere. If she could give advice to new students, she would tell them to find their balance between school and life outside school. She would also tell them to join clubs at GCA; this is where students can meet people, form relationships, serve their community, and gain extracurricular experience. Darrese mentioned she would like to pursue a Musical Theater Major, but she has yet to decide on which college to attend because she has four acceptances! We are super proud of Darrese and her hootworthy achievement participating in the US Senate Youth Program. You can find more information about the program here.  Keep soaring, Darrese!

Hootworthy: The Podcast That Gives a Hoot
We spotlight the students and faculty of GCA and the stories that deserve to be heard.

Watch full episodes on YouTube or learn more at georgiacyber.org/hootworthy.

Follow, subscribe, and share. Every story deserves a spotlight.

Send us Fan Mail

We are excited to share our latest Hootworthy episode, an interview with Georgia Cyber Academy’s (GCA) District Teacher of the Year: Mrs. Erica Sims.  Mrs. Sims is a Middle School Special Education teacher and will be representing GCA at a state recognition banquet with other District Teachers of the Year in April, where the Georgia Teacher of the Year will be named.  She has taught for 10 years, four of those at GCA. This award means so much to Ms. Sims and she is somewhat speechless because she is so honored to receive this recognition knowing the quality of faculty she interacts with that she feels are so deserving of recognition themselves.

Her journey to become a teacher is one of teaching finding her. When she was a child, her best friend’s little brother was autistic. She was automatically drawn to him, and they loved spending time together. She was so great with him that his grandmother commented that Erica should become a special education teacher as a career. As time went on throughout high school and even into college, she continued to gravitate toward students with disabilities. Eventually she decided that being a special education teacher was what she was meant to do after all. As a teacher in the LIFE department, she and her co-teacher teach all academic areas and skills for independent living like counting money, telling time, and how to read a menu.

Over the course of her teaching career, she has had many good memories. One of her favorite times was a few years ago when she taught middle grades at her local brick and mortar school. She had a few students in her class who loved Ghostbusters and always asked if they could dance to one of the songs. She had the idea to participate in the school’s talent show, but if they were going to do this, they were going to go all out. They practiced every day, found matching Ghostbuster style jumpsuits, and poured their hearts into it. Their efforts paid off when they ended up winning the talent show.  She recalls how everyone felt in that moment—like they just won the World Series.  

Teaching comes with its challenges, but it is also filled with wins. She loves it when she sees disengaged students turn into engaged students. She uses shock factors to engage her students-- singing student names or doing backflips on the trampoline—a favorite thing about teaching at GCA. She finds it so satisfying when she will see previous students out in the world being successful. She shared that a GCA student of hers started a dog sitting business, and it is so rewarding for her to see this student out following through with an idea, making money for himself, getting jobs, succeeding, and gaining independence. 

If Mrs. Sims could give one piece of advice to students, she would tell them to keep their lives in perspective. Even though it may seem like if something does or does not happen it may seem like the end of the world or that life will always seem so stressful, but take a breath. Pause and remember that there is so much more life left to be lived, and that this is just a small part, a glimpse of it. Keep a perspective knowing that in the grand scheme of things, one may look back and say that it wasn’t as big of a deal as you thought it was at the time.

When Mrs. Sims isn’t teaching, you can find her spending time with her family, enjoying nature, doing cycling classes, or teaching cycling classes as a certified instructor. She couldn’t praise her co-teacher Ms. Knight enough, or her lead Ms. Spear, who she is so grateful for in the way that she leads as a servant, is constantly willing to help, and shares the workload with her team. We are proud of Mrs. Sims and her accomplishment as district teacher of the year, and we are grateful to have such amazing faculty work at GCA. 

Hootworthy: The Podcast That Gives a Hoot
We spotlight the students and faculty of GCA and the stories that deserve to be heard.

Watch full episodes on YouTube or learn more at georgiacyber.org/hootworthy.

Follow, subscribe, and share. Every story deserves a spotlight.

Send us Fan Mail

We love sitting down and talking with Hootworthy champions. Nia, a seventh grader at Georgia Cyber Academy (GCA), published her first book, One Amongst The Runaways, this past January through Amazon direct publishing. Her book is historical fiction set during World War II (WWII), a thriller that includes many plot twists, written in first person omniscience, and took her about a year and a half to complete. The story consists of five characters, though the main character is a girl who is taken from her family and sent to Auschwitz. Each chapter is told from a different character’s perspective, each running away from something both literally and figuratively. Want to find out how the story turns out?  You’ll have to read it!

Nia has always enjoyed writing as a hobby and telling stories, so she decided to give writing a novel a shot. Not many seventh graders decide to write a book, but Nia was inspired after reading The Devil’s Arithmetic, and she thought she had plenty of stories swirling in her head that she wanted to share with the world. She knew about the WWII death camps but appreciated how The Devil’s Arithmetic helped her feel about the camps while reading the story which created an emotional impact. She thinks that not many people can really feel what was happening in those camps, and she aimed to create an emotional response in her readers while they read her story.

While writing her book, the most difficult thing she experienced was the dreaded writer’s block. She mentioned that she continued to focus on one thing so much that it killed her creativity. She kept the book on chapter five for months because she found it very difficult to be motivated to write; however, she discovered that music helped her through the writer’s block; it gave her the motivation needed to keep storytelling. Due to the sad nature of the story, it was listening to sad music melodies that kept her writing.

She first found time to write the book during quarantine because she started the book in the fifth grade when Covid hit. Before coming to GCA, she would finish school early and work on the book. Even when she joined GCA, she found she still had time to write because of how helpful the teachers were during class; she discovered she didn’t need much time outside of class to work on school. She also likes how at GCA she had more time to work on the book because she spent less time getting ready for school or driving to school.

Nia thinks she will continue writing, and perhaps be an author on the side, but she really wants to become a neurosurgeon. She is currently working on her next book, which she plans to be the second in the series. She is thankful to her family for their support.  We are very proud of Nia and this Hootworthy accomplishment! We encourage everyone to find and to read Nia’s book on Amazon, One Amongst the Runaways!

Hootworthy: The Podcast That Gives a Hoot
We spotlight the students and faculty of GCA and the stories that deserve to be heard.

Watch full episodes on YouTube or learn more at georgiacyber.org/hootworthy.

Follow, subscribe, and share. Every story deserves a spotlight.