DETROIT – When most teens are in school, Vindhya Raman is on the court, practicing her serve.
The high school junior skipped class because she's able to do her work later in the night through an online public school called Great Lakes Cyber Academy.
“I think it’s great because they don’t give you (a) big workload,” Raman said. “It helps me in terms of flexibility when playing tennis, and I still get my work done.”
It was a family decision years ago to transfer Raman from regular school to cyberschool.
“She’s a hard worker, she does well in school,” Joy Raman said. “Which is why we are able to homeschool her. She is very independent. Also gives us time to play tennis.”
Flexibility helps this aspiring tennis star devote nearly 30 hours per week to tennis and training. She also travels often to out-of-state matches.
So far, so good. Raman is ranked No. 11 in the state of Michigan with room to grow.
Is this the wave of the future for athletes wanting to become elite? It just may be. Great Lakes Cyber
Academy has many athletes doing the exact same thing as Raman; chasing their dreams.