Lani Lum
Middle School
Lani Lum is a middle school student at Tennessee Connections Academy. Lani enjoys the flexible schedule online school makes possible, which allows her to focus on her many passions, including acting, modeling, and dance. She shares her story below:
"I attended a brick-and-mortar school until Tennessee Connections Academy. I didn’t have the opportunity to work ahead or at my own pace. With Tennessee Connections Academy, I am more relaxed because I don’t have to rush things. Even for something as simple as eating lunch, I have a lot more time. I feel more in control and independent since I started with this school.
What works well in the program for me most of all is the flexible schedule to do classwork on my own time, and I can work around acting jobs as well as my dance schedule. I also really like how the lessons are set up and provide me with easy instruction. If I ever have a question about the lesson, I know my teachers are just an email or phone call away. And I love that I get to spend more time with my family!
I have a close relationship with my teachers because I interact often with them, whether it is in a LiveLesson® session or in WebMail messages. I also love when I get to talk to them on the phone! I feel my teachers listen to my thoughts and ideas. They are always helping me understand what I am learning in a fun and exciting way. My teachers are like family.
I love Tennessee Connections Academy because I have so many opportunities to work at my own pace and be independent but know I have amazing teachers there if I need them. I am also getting a great education, and best of all, I’m able to maintain good grades and have the freedom and flexibility to do all of the activities that make me who I am.
— Lani
My favorite subjects are gifted and talented science and literature because of all the fun experiments and hands-on activities. I love to make PowerPoints! I feel confident doing them because I have done PowerPoint presentations since I was in first grade. Math is also fun for me because it is neat learning so many new tricks with numbers!
I’m passionate about many things. I enjoy agriculture and helping our environment and animals. I am Little Miss Agriculture America, and I love to use my title to spread the word and knowledge about all things agricultural. I love to garden and read books!
I am an actress and a model, so I love to keep busy traveling to different jobs and meeting new people. I also enjoy dance, acrobatics, tumbling, and contortion. I have found it much easier to manage everything I do with Tennessee Connections Academy because I can finish school and go straight to my hobbies. I love being able to take school with me and learn virtually anywhere! With acting, I have done classes while I was on a break on set. I have even gone outside on a sunny day and done classes, which I liked a lot! I also get to hang out with my brother more because we both attend Tennessee Connections Academy.
I stay in touch with my friends normally by texting and video chatting with them, but I am also looking into getting a pen pal because that would be fun! One of the activities I like to do with my friends is dance. I also love to be outdoors, so we climb trees and jump on the trampoline too!"
Lani’s parents share what led them to choose Tennessee Connections Academy for Lani’s education. "We became interested in Tennessee Connections Academy initially because we loved the fact that there are so many ways to be flexible in this school. We travel a lot for Lani to act and model, so having the option to do her work on a weekend, later in the day, or even while we are on the road was a huge bonus for us. We love that she won’t miss anything now for acting jobs, as she can just do her work when she is done with the job. What also caught our attention was that there are gifted and talented classes. That option won us over big time because Lani loves to keep learning and likes a good challenge and keeping her mind busy as much as she possibly can."
