Academic and Learning Support

The LSC works collaboratively with teachers, counselors, students, and parents/guardians to provide additional support for Pilots to achieve their full academic potential. 

The primary function of the center is to offer academic support services, including:

• Tutoring in various subjects (e.g., math, science, English, foreign languages)
• Assistance with executive functioning skills
• Homework help and assignment clarification
• Workshops on study skills, test-taking strategies, time management, and other academic skills

The center fosters collaboration between students, teachers, and parents/guardians to develop individualized learning plans and strategies for academic success.

Students may be referred to the learning support center by teachers, counselors, or parents/guardians if they are struggling academically or require additional support. 

Overall, the learning support center aims to provide a comprehensive and supportive environment for high school students to receive the academic assistance they need to achieve their full potential. Learning support staff includes our Learning Support Specialist, Education Specialist, Counselors, and additional staff. 

The Sisters and Scholars Program is an academic support program for students with identified learning disabilities, other medical conditions that affect learning, and students who have been struggling to demonstrate consistent, academic progress. Candidates for the program will need to provide the school with recent psycho-educational testing and/or an IEP/ISP that states the diagnosis and the recommended accommodations. The testing will be necessary for accommodations on the SAT, ACT, and AP exams as well as eventual accommodations at the college level. The CollegeBoard website lists tests that can be used to document a need for accommodations due to a learning disability.

The Sisters and Scholars Program is a four-year program. Students are individually assessed and placed into academic levels of support by the Sisters and Scholars staff. The course placement assessment is done on a yearly basis. The main goal of the Sisters and Scholars Program is to build academic independence in the students the program serves. 

Academic interventions and accommodations are implemented for students based on individual learning needs supported by documentation.

Sisters and Scholars provides support and accommodations to students with a variety of different Learning Disabilities including:

•      Dyslexia (reading -based)

•      Dyscalculia (math-based)

•      Central Auditory Process Disorder

•      Nonverbal Learning Disorders

•      Visual Processing Disorder

•      Other Health Impaired (including ADHD/ADD and medical problems as they impact learning)

Is the Sisters and Scholar Program considered a Special Education Program?

No, however, OLP students who are identified as in need of academic learning services will have a Learning Support Plan put in place to support their learning. When applicable, OLP will work in partnership with the student's district of record to identify and continue learning services. OLP will determine the services that can be provided on the OLP campus.

Students who do not qualify for a Learning Support Plan, but have other forms of documented educational disabilities, may be able to be academically supported by the Sisters and Scholars Program through things such as the strategic support study hall and the learning support specialist. Students who have this form of documentation will be placed on an Academic Intervention Monitoring Plan (AIM) in partnership with the Assistant Principal for Student Support.

What interventions and accommodations are provided through the Sisters and Scholar Program?

OLP attempts to provide reasonable accommodations in order to support the student's participation in her courses and learning experiences. Based on the recommendations in the student's psychoeducational assessment report from the psychologist, in consultation with the Assistant Principal for Student Support and the lead Counselor for the Sisters and Scholars Program, and in partnership with the student and student's parent(s)/guardian(s), will semi-annually review the accommodation(s) plan for the student in alignment with the College Board.

Reasonable accommodations may include:

• Attending the tutorial center during study hall
• Preferential seating
• Extended time on assessments
• Alternate forms of assessments such as written tests versus scantrons, etc.
• Testing in a separate location
• Use of audiobooks (Learning Ally)
• Access to a support study hall for four years if needed
• Preferential seating in the classroom

It must be noted that OLP will determine whether certain accommodations are reasonable with respect to our resources, training of the teachers in the general education classroom, and if in alignment with the College Board. OLP can only consider the possibility of an accommodation if a student and parent/guardian alongside the submission of proper documentation substantiating the need for such accommodations are supported. 

The St. Joseph Scholars Program at OLP is designed to provide an inclusive Catholic high school education for young women with moderate to severe cognitive learning disabilities that place students academically below grade level. 

Young women with disabilities, such as Down syndrome, Autism, and other developmental, genetic, and learning differences are given the opportunity to partake in a religious educational setting.

While at OLP, the St. Joseph Scholars will be a part of an inclusive educational environment and have the ability to engage in many academic and elective courses with their typically developing peers. They also will have unique real-world courses developed and paired with their areas of passion and interest. A special education teacher will work with students during their A & D block on specific skills in connection to the student's IEP plan and goals, and identified in partnership with the St. Joseph Scholar, their family, and the general education teachers. The Learning Specialist and Education Specialist work with the general education teachers to provide modifications, interventions, and accommodations to assist in the inclusion and education of the St. Joseph Scholars. 

The St. Joseph Scholars Program offers two graduation options. Students and their families may choose to earn (1) a certificate of completion or (2) a diploma. 

The St. Joseph Scholars have access to participate in many extracurricular activities, clubs, and sports as a part of the OLP student community. The student body has a strong support for partnership of the St. Joseph Scholars. There is also a Big Sisters Club that fosters inclusion, community and sisterhood throughout the school.

Our unique St. Joseph Scholars program focuses on the educational needs of our students as well as their overall social-emotional well-being. This includes mental health resources, physical health education, stress management techniques, community involvement, and mindfulness practices. 

There are many amazing qualities about the OLP environment, but the most unique quality is the ability to provide a previously unattainable faith-based education for students with special needs. All OLP students benefit from this program, whether it is by receiving a more typical high school education than a student with special needs and their family ever could have hoped for or by other students learning, accepting, and understanding that not all people are the same and that these differences should be embraced. OLP and the St. Joseph Scholars are forever changing the face of Catholic education.

Eligibility Requirements

• Eighth grade student at current grammar school (preferred attendance of Catholic grammar school for at least 7th and 8th grade)
• At least 14 years of age
• Basic Math proficiency
• Basic English proficiency
• The ability to follow high behavioral expectations
• The ability to appropriately interact with peers
• The ability to participate in conversational exchanges 
• The ability to initiate written and verbal expression
• The ability to participate in classroom and social activities without the assistance of an educational assistant
• The ability to maintain self-care independently

Acceptance Process

• Evaluation of current Individualized Education Plan (IEP)
• Evaluation of current psychoeducational evaluation
• Shadow day for prospective student at OLP
• Observation of the prospective student in their current educational placement
• Evaluation from at least one 8th grade teacher
• Interview with the prospective student, their family, the St. Joseph Scholars team, the Assistant Head of School, and the Director of Admissions