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No. RSA is an inclusive, secular program that welcomes families and students of all religions, personal beliefs, cultures, and backgrounds. Although our school meets in various church locations, we are not affiliated with any church or location, and are grateful for their caring and open-minded support of our diverse community.

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RSA is an Educational Cooperative because it is operated by our members. We are a private, non-profit organization, but do not have any full time employees.  We pay for a service to help with our accounting and taxes, but all other aspects of RSA are completed by our members families as volunteers. Daily operation of our large school, along with planning, scheduling, recruiting and choosing instructors, organizing events, recitals, shows, fund-raising, marketing, location coordination, etc are all accomplished by our very talented and hard-working parents and students. We are proud to be such a successful educational organization, and credit the many dedicated parents and students of our community for our success.

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RSA is an educational cooperative, but is unlike many cooperatives for homeschoolers where the parents take turns teaching classes. Our instructors are recruited from all over Hampton Roads. They are chosen for their expertise, education, knowledge, skills and abilities in a particular subject area.  Instructors are chosen who love what they do and are able to share that passion with our students.  You will sometimes notice paid instructors who also happen to be parents of homeschooled students who attend RSA.  They are not chosen because they are family members; they have had to apply for these positions along with other applicants. All instructors who have children attending RSA also meet all of their RSA membership responsibilities, such as signing up for volunteer tasks and assisting with day-to-day operations.

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Students are not required to take a class each period.  On Thursdays, a parent is required to be on-site with their students. Families typically set up at a table in our large indoor gathering room, and bring lunches, laptops, activities, etc. During breaks and at lunch time, students can usually be found hanging out with their friends.  We have students of all age groups--preschool through high school--and they enjoy their "down time" with each other as much as they enjoy the classes.  

Our Tuesday classes meet at a different location. On Tuesdays, students ages 14+ may be dropped off; a parent needs to stay on site with any students under the age of 14. The Tuesday location has a Teen lounge for students 13+ to hang out in between classes, and a Family Lounge for parents, students under 13, and younger siblings.

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No. For insurance purposes, a parent or responsible adult must be onsite when a student under the age of 18 is present on location at RSA.

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Tuesday classes are part of a drop-off program for teens aged 14 and up.  Teens must sign in when the arrive, and sign out when they leave. They are expected to be responsible and respectful of the facility, volunteers, instructors, and other students. Attending without parental supervision is a privilege reserved for teens who are ready for this special program.

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CLOSURES AND LATE OPENINGS

RSA bases its decisions on the public schools in the City of Suffolk and Isle of Wight County.

• Generally, RSA follows the school closings of Suffolk Public Schools and Isle of Wight County Schools, however there are occasional exceptions. We will make every attempt to make this decision and post an email by 9 PM the evening before. There will be a forum email and a Facebook notification. 
• CHECK YOUR EMAIL for an announcement. (This is a change from previous years.  Often, public schools delay opening or are closed in order to allow ice to melt, fog to disperse, or temperatures to warm up. Since RSA begins later than public schools, a late opening on their part may not result in a delay or closure for RSA.)

INSTRUCTOR PAYMENTS

For the first weather-related cancellation of the school year, instructors will still get paid.  For any subsequent weather-related closings, instructors will pro-rate their monthly fees.

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Payments are made on a monthly basis directly to the instructors. RSA is not currently set up to accept monthly instructor payments online.  Many families pay by check; checks are placed in the instructor's mailbox at the front desk.  Some instructors accept PayPal; please check with them if that is your preferred option.

If paying by cash, please give it directly to the instructor; do NOT leave cash in instructor mailboxes.

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If instructor fees are not paid by the end of the shool day one week following the due date, a ten percent (10%) late fee will be due to the instructor.

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Yes, you are still required to pay the instructor even if your student misses a class.

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If an instructor misses a class (for example, because of illness or travel), he or she will either pro-rate the payment, or schedule a make-up class/lesson.

In the event of a school closure because of inclement weather:  instructors will be paid for the FIRST such closure.  Subsequent inclement weather closures will result in pro-rated class payments.

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Parents must provide 30 days' PAID notice to instructors; see the Drop Form on the Home page.

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No, supply fees are not refundable.

Instructors must be given thirty (30) days' paid notice if your child is dropping a class (please see the Drop Class link on the website).

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RSA has a yearly formal dance for teens and various social, fundraising, and community service events in which families can participate. There are occasional group trips with discount tickets to theaters, shows, art events, and more. Events are planned by instructors, volunteers, and families, and we are always open to new ideas for fun events for homeschoolers!

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Yes. We have a friendly and active group of teens at RSA who help to develop various social activities. RSA also has a teen formal dance, a graduating senior recital and art exhibit, social activities for seniors, and a graduation ceremony and graduate exhibits as part of our variety show at the end of each year. RSA also has a Teen Leadership program.

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Teen Leader positions are created in order to assist our teens in developing leadership skills, working toward future career goals, learning how to work on a team, networking, and developing references toward college applications and/or vocational plans. Teens can either apply or be nominated by RSA instructors, parents, or other students for a Teen Leadership position. They must be 14 years or older,  be members of RSA for at least one year, and demonstrate responsibility and good conduct as a student in order to be considered.

Teen Leaders will have the opportunity to positively impact their RSA school community. They will be eligible to serve on adult volunteer teams, assist the administration staff, and use their creativity, knowledge and skills to help make RSA a better program. Each teen leader will be given responsibility and challenges according to their individual goals, and will receive mentoring to assist them in meeting their goals. One teen will be be chosen each year from our teen leaders to serve as a Board member for our non-profit organization.