About KOOL

@KOOL – A Provincial Online Learning School

Kamloops Open Online Learning (@KOOL) is the Online Learning school of School District No. 73. @KOOL serves students in grades K through 12, including a significant number of adult learners. The BC Ministry of Education and Child Care has introduced new legislation that requires online (OL) schools to be designated as “Provincial Online Learning Schools” in order to continue to serve students from outside their own district beginning July 1, 2023. The Ministry has also developed an Accountability and Quality Assurance (AQA) process that will set standards for Provincial Online Learning Schools. Following a rigorous application process, @KOOL is proud to have been designated a Provincial Online Learning School and we continue to serve students and families both within our district boundaries and around the province of British Columbia.

School Sites

@KOOL is unique in that we have a number of campuses, each with a specific focus. Our elementary program is located at Heffley Creek Elementary, serving learners in grades K through 7. The @KOOL middle school program is located at our Victoria Street campus at 675 Victoria Street, serving our grade 8 and 9 learners. Our high school program serves grade 10-12 students, as well as adult learners, and is located at Pineridge Education Centre. Affectionately referred to as the @KOOL Mothership, Pineridge is also the home to the @KOOL school office, including our principal and vice principal, secretaries, and secondary teaching support staff.

@KOOL also has staff located on two privately run campuses that operate in partnership with School District No. 73. Insight Support Services supports students in grades K through 9 with Autism. In addition to Insight Support Services staff, School District No. 73 provides teachers to support students with their K-9 curriculum. Sun Peaks Education Society (SPES) operates Sun Peaks Secondary Academy at the base of Tod Mountain in the Sun Peaks Resort community. School District No. 73 provides a teacher to work on-site to support students in grades 10 through 12, in collaboration with staff provided by SPES.

School Priorities

@KOOL supports student opportunities and achievement in alignment with the School District No. 73 District Strategic Plan priorities. As a K-12 online school we serve a diverse student population who come to us from schools around the province. Because students are able to stay with @KOOL from Kindergarten through to graduation, we have a unique opportunity to support students with not only grade-to-grade transitions within our school but also with transitions from and to other schools around BC.

Each year, the staff of @KOOL spend considerable time on school improvement and professional learning. Our School Learning Plan is updated on an ongoing basis in order to be relevant to the needs of our learners. Our school goals and strategies are intentionally aligned not only with the priorities, goals, objectives and strategies of the School District No. 73 Strategic Plan, but also with the needs of our student population as evidenced by school, district, and provincial data. The strategies outlined in our School Learning Plan have been developed collaboratively by staff, including teachers and support staff at the school and district level. Supports for Aboriginal students and diverse learners are developed in collaboration with school and district Aboriginal and Inclusive Education specialists in order to be inclusive of and responsive to the needs of all students.

Personalized Student Support

Although we operate as an online school, personalized support is available for our learners (and for parents) from our teachers and support staff. Our teachers are available to students and parents by phone, email, zoom, and through in-person meetings at one of our @KOOL campuses. In addition to personalized support, various in-person group activities are available to students throughout the school year to enrich the learning experience and to help students make real-life connections to curriculum. Teachers will communicate these opportunities directly to students as the school year progresses.

Student and Parent Input – your voice matters!

Input from our student and parent communities is gathered each year to inform the development and redevelopment of our School Learning Plan. While gathering this information can be particularly challenging for an online school, the input we receive from the community is extremely valuable as it helps us to understand the specific needs of our families and our students and the unique struggles they face with learning through a primarily virtual learning environment. We encourage students, parents and families to reach out to us if you need help, have a suggestion, or are looking for a resource. We are here to help you and we pride ourselves on being available to our students and parents. We are only a phone call or email away – please don’t hesitate to reach out if there is something we can do to help!

Individualized and Flexible Programming

Many of our students come to @KOOL because of the flexibility and individualized programming we can provide. Elite athletes who must work around training and travel schedules, students travelling with their families temporarily, and families living in remote/rural locations are just a few examples of our many success stories. @KOOL’s flexible, diverse, digital learning allows students to be successful at school while fitting into their busy schedules, with our professionals helping to set due dates and keep students on track with course completion deadlines and graduation goals. 

Contact us for more info!

Do you have questions about whether @KOOL may be right for you or your child? Please call our office to speak with our administrative staff or one of our academic advisors. We are happy to answer your questions:

Phone: 778-471-6061

Toll Free: 1-855-471-6061

Email: kool-clerical@sd73.bc.ca

Paul Hembling, Principal

Kamloops Open Online Learning (@KOOL)