Watson Educational Services

McKinney Byrd Academy is a Louisiana nonpublic school whose admissions and programs follow a nondiscrimination policy covering disability, race, color, national origin, and age.

Students ages 14 to 21 attend Pathways in Education - Shreveport, a tuition-free public charter high school with a learning center on Youree Drive and a second Shreveport center on Mansfield Road. Students can enroll on virtually any weekday of the year. Our hybrid model mixes online coursework, one-on-one help from teachers and in-person classes at the center. Small Group Instruction in math, science and English usually runs 5 to 15 students, and free tutoring is available in core subjects. Students recover credits at their own pace year-round, set personalized schedules around work and family, and can earn college credit through dual enrollment. We accept students with IEPs and 504 Plans, and our network is Cognia accredited. Learning extends past the center through free, credit-earning trips in the U.S. and abroad, with destinations such as Italy, Ireland, WWII sites in Europe and Washington, D.C., plus camps in California and Colorado. Students also join clubs, sports and events such as prom.

A Different World Academy opened in 2003 in Marrero with 10 students, including our founders' two daughters, and today serves kindergarten through 12th grade from our campus on Bellemeade Boulevard in Gretna. We call our model a Homeschool Away from Home: a Christian private school with live, traditional classroom instruction using the Abeka curriculum, combined with computer instruction. Classes are small, and we offer one-on-one student-teacher instruction, individual assessments, annual testing and AP courses. We serve gifted and talented students and students on the autism spectrum, and IEPs are welcome. A year-round program lets students who are a grade or two behind catch up and graduate on time, and we offer after-school tutoring and grade-level testing. We are accredited by the National Association of Private Schools. Each summer we run a day camp at $60 a week with academic enrichment, field trips, science dissection, music and dance, arts and crafts, and breakfast and lunch included. Our graduates have gone on to colleges, universities and the military.