T-L Photos/GAGE VOTA C-CAP Director Noah Atkinson, from left, Belmont County Probate and Juvenile Courts Judge Al Davies, Morgan Dumas, Virtual Learning Program teacher Melanie Haswell, Chase McIntire, Morgan Keyser, Blaize Edgell, Cheylyn Hall, Winter Palmer, Brandon Reineke, Marshall Ford, and Blake Deviers rejoice at the Belmont County Juvenile Court Virtual Learning Program graduation ceremony at the Belmont County Career Center.

ST. CLAIRSVILLE — Belmont County Juvenile Court Virtual Learning Program held its annual graduation ceremony at the Belmont Career Center.

The program provides a small, supportive classroom setting where the students engage with their peers who are facing similar challenges.

“This is a program where students come from their home school and they might be credit deficient due to truancy issues or some behavior issues, or they just prefer a smaller school setting, and we provide that for them,” Concentrated Conduct Adjustment Program Director Noah Atkinson said.

He added that the students perform all of their school work through Edmentum, which is an online curriculum.

“This environment fosters both academic progress and social development, under the guidance of dedicated staff. Students receive consistent oversight and encouragement, helping them stay on track with coursework and maintain focus on their path to graduation,” he said.

Program staff work in close partnership with participating schools throughout Belmont County to ensure all students are meeting the requirements for graduation.

“This collaborative approach has proven effective in helping students overcome barriers and achieve academic success,” states a release from Belmont County Probate and Juvenile Courts Judge Al Davies. “This milestone reflects the continued success of the Juvenile Court’s Virtual Learning Program, which is designed to support students who are credit-deficient or struggle with independent learning in a traditional home environment. By offering structured, closely supervised instruction, the program bridges the gap for students who need additional academic and behavioral support to reach their educational goals.”

At the graduation, Davies praised the students for their hard work and dedication.

“These kids have come a long way. Some of them have a history with the court, and they’ve been challenged throughout their history. But we don’t give up, and obviously these kids haven’t given up either, because here they are today, graduating, and looking forward to their future, and it’s just wonderful to see,” he said.

Davies added that the program has been going strong for over 10 years but said six years ago, he hired Virtual Learning Program teacher Melanie Haswell when the previous teacher left for another opportunity.

“When the position became available, I was able to reach out to Melanie Haswell who was a dedicated educator with the Shadyside Local School District for years and was retired. She was looking to do something with kids, and she’s just been the perfect match for this program. She just does a phenomenal job,” he said.

Haswell joked that she was retired for about two weeks before she began teaching the Virtual Learning Program.

“A lot of kids come in, but not all of them are on probation. A lot of them may be truancy issues. Some kids just don’t like that big school environment where you have to continuously change classes, and they have trouble getting along maybe with other kids. This is a room where they come in and open their computers. They’re allowed to listen to music, they have their subjects in front of them, and they work. I’m back there for questions, and they’ll come back to my desk and we’ll go over tests and it’s just a better setting for some kids,” Haswell said. “I’m so proud of these kids. They’ve worked hard. Some of these kids came in with just single digit credits, and they worked hard. Some of them were not going to school. So, of course, Judge Davies had to court order them to come to me, but then there were no problems. I’m just so proud of them, and I only wish them the best in their new endeavors.”