Resources

This page provides essential guidelines and technical information for students and parents participating in the Olathe eAcademy program.

Here, you'll find everything you need to successfully navigate your online learning experience, from course content and grading to required technical setup, account access, and communication protocols.

The eAcademy courses use the Olathe Public Schools Board of Education's adopted curriculum, ensuring the same academic rigor as traditional classroom settings. Please review all sections carefully, especially those concerning mandatory orientation, technology requirements, and assignment submission procedures, to ensure a smooth start and completion of your coursework.

eAcademy Program Overview & Grading Scale

Technical Setup and Access

Network Identity and Password

Your network username (e.g., 345sis65) is used to log in to the district network, ClassLink, StudentVue, Canvas, and other district applications.

Initial Login: You must log in to a school computer with your network username at the beginning of the school year to set your personal network password. Teachers know the default password for this first log-in.

Password Requirements: Your password must be at least 8 characters and contain a capital letter and a number.

Email Activation: You cannot log in to your student email until you have logged into a school computer and set your password.

Password Reset: Passwords may expire and require periodic resets. Students with properly set-up accounts can now reset an expired password from home.

Student Google Mail

Your school email address is your network username followed by @students.olatheschools.com (e.g., 345sis65@students.olatheschools.com).

Access: You MUST go to Google.com and log in with your full school email address and network password. You cannot access school email through StudentVue for external messages.

Communication: Check your school email daily. This account is connected to your Canvas course(s) and is the only account for official messages.

Personal Email: A personal email (must be a student account, not a parent's) is requested on your enrollment form for backup contact. Google Gmail is recommended for personal use.

Required Technology and Software

Recommended Browsers: Use Mozilla Firefox or Chrome for eAcademy coursework. Internet Explorer and Edge are not recommended.

Microsoft Office 365: The full local install is recommended over the online version. Students can install this from the Company Portal. Olathe students can download Office 365 on up to five personal devices for free.

Adobe Reader: Students on district-issued computers must install Adobe Reader from the Company Portal to correctly open all PDF files.

Installing Software: Student devices are locked down. Authorized software is installed via the Company Portal (Start menu → Company Portal). Restart your computer before accessing the Company Portal to ensure updates run and new software installs correctly.

Canvas and Coursework

Logging In and Access

Primary Access: Always log in to Canvas through ClassLink. Do not use "get started" links from notification emails.

Course Visibility: Course cards appear on your Dashboard once the teacher has published the course. Expect a delay of at least one day after enrollment for your course to appear in Canvas.

Course Invitation: Once logged in, click Accept on any course invitation links at the top of the page.

Set up Your Canvas Account

Immediately configure your Canvas account by clicking the Account button:

Profile: Upload a photo if desired.

Notifications: Click Notifications and adjust the default settings for how you wish to receive alerts.

Connect Accounts (Settings → Web Services):

Google Drive: Click Google Drive and Authorize Google Access.
OneDrive: Click the OneDrive link and sign in (Optional).

Submitting Assignments

File Format: Follow your teacher's instructions carefully regarding submission format, typically a Word document (.docx) or a PDF document (.pdf).

Procedure: Close the completed file before attempting to submit it. Click the submission button, browse to the saved file, upload, and submit.

Alternative: Some assignments may allow you to type directly into a text box or copy and paste from a document.

Organization: Create and use structured folders on your computer or flash drive for each course and topic to organize and easily locate assignments for submission. Include your name in the file name (e.g., lastname_ch1_reading.docx).

Orientation Requirement

All students, except those only taking Health and no other eAcademy courses, must complete the orientation.

Process: Log in to Canvas, click on your enrolled course, and follow the instructions to complete the first module, titled, eAcademy Orientation & Startup Meeting.

Consequence of Failure: Failure to complete the orientation will result in your counselor being advised of your removal from the eAcademy program.

PE and Health Courses

PE and Health are separate 0.50 credit courses.

Course	Platform	Required Components	Orientation Requirement
PE	Canvas (assignments) and Polar (workouts)	Polar monitor pickup and setup, practice workout upload before start day, assignments in Canvas, upload workouts to Polar.	YES (must complete orientation)
Health	Edgenuity	Separate email with Edgenuity login and special instructions. No workouts (non-physical).	NO (if taking only Health and no other courses)

PE Polar Monitor Setup

Workouts: Configure your Polar watch and complete a sample workout before the course start day. Begin accumulating workouts immediately (one per day).
- School year: 40 workouts (average of 3 per week).
- Summer: 30 workouts (average of 4 per week).
Software Installation: Install the Polar software from the Company Portal to allow the watch to communicate with the computer and upload workouts.
Account Creation: Create your Polar account online using your school email address (Chrome is the preferred browser).
Sync/Upload: Log in to your Polar account and sync your monitor using the sync cord. Workouts must be uploaded to your Polar account to be graded (workouts on the monitor alone are not visible). You can also sync using the Polar app on a smartphone or a personal computer.
Coaching Group: Accept the invite from your PE teacher (received via student email and in your Polar account) to join the coaching group. This grants the teacher access to your workouts for grading.

PE Safety Form

PE students and a parent/guardian must complete the Required PE Safety Acknowledgement form.

Pacing, Communication, and Support

Course Pacing and Time Commitment

Pacing: Courses are not self-paced; a semester calendar of due dates is published, and you must meet deadlines to avoid grade penalties. However, you may work ahead.

Time Commitment:

School Year: Minimum of one hour per day per course on the computer, plus additional homework time.
Summer Term (8 weeks): Minimum of two hours per day per course on the computer, plus additional homework time.

Virtual Meetings: Zoom meetings with your instructor for Q&A, reviews, etc., are optional but encouraged if needed.

Communication Guidelines

With Instructors: Students are expected to communicate directly with their instructors. Use your student (school) Gmail account for all correspondence.

Response Time: Students are expected to reply to emails from instructors within 24 hours. Teachers are expected to respond to communication within 24 hours, five days per week. Be patient, as teachers have regular classroom responsibilities.

Parents: Students are encouraged to CC a parent on their emails to instructors and staff. Parents are asked to respond to instructor emails within 24 hours.

Technical and Course Support

Issue	Whom to Contact
Course Content, Assignments, Zoom meetings, Absences, Due Dates	Your course instructor
Canvas, Edgenuity, Student Gmail issues	Incident IQ ticket or the eAcademy office
District-Issued Computers/Devices	Incident IQ ticket, your building technician, or the Technology Help Desk at helpdesk@olatheschools.org

Travel and Absences

International Travel and Lockouts

If you intend to travel internationally while completing coursework, you must notify the Technology Division at least two weeks in advance to set up multi-factor authentication. Enter a support ticket via Incident IQ and search “MFA” to locate the issue category, or contact the Help Desk at helpdesk@olatheschools.org

Do NOT access district accounts from outside the United States (Microsoft, Google, Canvas, etc.). You will be locked out of your account due to security policies in place.

Lockout Resolution: If you get locked out, you will normally have to wait until you return to Olathe to get help from district technology to restore your accounts.

Domestic Travel and Absences

Notify the eAcademy office and your instructor of any planned absences.

Absences of more than a few days will make it very difficult to complete coursework on time, especially in the compacted summer session.

Short Absences: For absences of a few days, you can work ahead in your course.

Enrollment Decision: If travel and extended absences will prevent you from accessing accounts for a significant portion of the semester, you should not enroll and consult your counselor.

Parent Information

ParentVUE/StudentVUE: Official grades are found on StudentVUE and ParentVUE.

Canvas Parent App/Portal: Parents are encouraged to download the Canvas Parent App and use the Canvas Parent Portal to monitor student progress, review the orientation module, check grades, and view teacher feedback.

Monitoring Progress: Parents should sit with the student at least weekly to review progress, grades, and teacher feedback in the online gradebook.

Self-Advocacy: eAcademy supports student self-advocacy; students are expected to ask questions directly. Parents may certainly become involved, but students should be the primary communicators (cc'ing the parent).

Conferences: eAcademy provides information regarding instructor availability for parent-teacher conferences.

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