By: Florida Virtual School

It’s easy to ignore a slow drip. As humans, we often do. But a slow drip can turn into a trickle, and a trickle, when left untended, can turn into a flood.  The flood for the Landreth family came when its patriarch, a silver star recipient in the military, was about to be deployed, resulting in the fifth move for the family.

But when he was only in sixth grade, Florida Virtual High School Class of 2021 graduate Logan Landreth, was committed to building a dam to keep his family together using online learning and resiliency to build the foundation.  

By the time Logan was in fifth grade, he had already moved seven times and been to five different schools, forcing him to grow up quickly and make new friends often. After so many moves, Logan’s mom, Cheryl, decided she didn’t want to uproot her kids’ lives anymore, which could have meant separating their family.

“I didn’t want to move but I also didn’t want my family to separate. We never thought about homeschooling until we realized it could be a solution to keep my family together. And I am very proud and honored to say that it did,” said Logan.

Here’s how FLVS gave Logan the skills, support, and values he needed to help keep his family together.  

Breaking the Mold

Logan has always been a very positive, enthusiastic, and outgoing person, but in a traditional in-person learning setting, he often felt like he had to do certain things to fit in with other students. Whether that was dressing the same as everyone else, or acting a certain way, Logan didn’t want to change who he was to fit a specific mold.

Which is why when Logan first joined FLVS, he couldn’t believe how supportive his teachers were and how much they loved his energy. Due to their encouragement to be himself, Logan’s confidence soared, and it changed his outlook on life.

“I was nervous at first, but with the support and guidance of my new teachers I found myself in a whole new world where I could be a kid again.”

The Power of Self-Discipline

When Logan first joined FLVS, his mom was nervous when it came to building his schedule and being self-motivated. But shortly after, those nerves subsided because Logan’s teachers gave him advice and guidance on how to set his own pace, stay on track, and set goals.

“I was absolutely floored with the responsiveness from teachers,” said Logan’s mom, Cheryl. “They truly wanted me to be kept up to speed with how Logan was doing in his classes.”

Due to his time at FLVS, Logan was able to learn valuable skillsets such as self-discipline and organization, allowing him to fully enjoy the flexibility of his education. With these new skills and his teachers to support him, Logan became the first FLVS student in his Forensic Science class to score a perfect score on all his exams, assignments, and discussion-based assessments. 

Finding His Passion

From a young age, Logan saw the world in numbers. By the time he was two years old, he could count to 2,000. Math was attracted to him!

“When Logan was younger, I used to go running with him in his stroller,” said Cheryl. “To keep him engaged, we would count the trees together. Looking back now, maybe it was the trees that sparked his love for math.”

But it was Logan’s Forensic Science course that became his true passion, not only because it combined his love for math and science, but because his teacher, Mr. Carlyle, showed him how math could create realistic crime scenes.

Now, Logan attends the University of Central Florida where he is studying Forensic Science with the hopes of getting his Ph.D. as a medical examiner.

Looking back at his time at FLVS, Logan and his mom are most thankful for the time they were able to spend together, as a family. Before FLVS, Logan was afraid his family would separate, but seven years later, his parents are renewing their vows and they are stronger than ever.

About the author: Florida Virtual School (FLVS) has been leading the way in Kindergarten-12 online education for more than 25 years. FLVS provides a robust, award-winning curriculum to public, private, charter, and homeschool families and school districts nationwide.