The Appleton Area School District (AASD) has over 3,000 4K-12 students currently enrolled in our charter schools. That said, we encourage all families, residents of the AASD or not, to get a head start on choosing the school your student will be excited to attend for the 2025-2026 school year especially if your family is considering a charter school as an option. Applications are now being accepted for current 8th, 9th, 10th, and 11th graders for students to attend one of our high school charters for the 2025-2026 school year.
Each charter school offers innovative and specialized learning opportunities that await your student in the AASD. We encourage families to explore ALL of our charter schools to ensure that the climate, culture, and academic offerings will meet your student’s needs and help them succeed!
Charter schools in Appleton are all unique in their mission and offer diverse programming. Additionally, AASD offers a wide variety of unique academic programs, supports, and extracurricular activities in locations across Appleton, ensuring students have access to the tools they need to thrive and be successful.
Our charter school application window opened on December 2, 2024, for the 2025-2026 school year. Our application is a lottery process so there is no need to rush; take your time learning about all of our offerings. However, do note that February 21, 2025 is the cutoff to be placed in the lottery. Applications after that date will be put on the waiting list if no spots are available in the order they are received.
All families will be notified by March 7, 2025 if a seat has been reserved for their student, or if their name has been added to a waiting list.
Explore Our Schools
Choosing a school for your child is an extremely important and personal decision, and it requires some research. We do our best to provide you with all the information we can through our district website and social media channels, but nothing can replace visiting a school in person to ensure the climate, culture, and academic offerings of the school will meet your student’s needs. The most important information is collected through personal experience, and we encourage prospective families to visit schools you are interested in and ask lots of questions so you can make an informed choice for your student.
School Tours & Visits
Schools may host virtual events and online informational sessions along with in-person tours and shadow days. Check school websites and the social media channels of schools you are interested in, or contact the school directly, to learn more about its plans.
We’re confident that no matter which school you choose, your student will grow and learn in an inclusive, high-achieving environment, where we strive to prepare our students for their future, Every Student, Every Day.
The Appleton Technical Academy – serving grades 9-12
The Appleton Technical Academy (ATECH) was created in response to a need for workers to fill the growing demand for advanced manufacturing positions in Northeast Wisconsin. The manufacturing environment in the region is strong and growing. Additionally, as more and more baby boomers retire, businesses are finding it increasingly difficult to find qualified workers to replace the retirees.
ATECH focuses on the following career pathways: welding, machining, mechanical design, automation, electronics, and robotics. Our students can earn Fox Valley Technical College credit for coursework completed during their junior and senior years. Many students will earn an industry recognized certification or some will even earn a technical diploma as a student in high school. Our juniors and seniors are also able to participate as a youth apprentice with a local business and further their learning and skills on the job. Thus ATECH students are able to transition directly into the workforce upon graduation with the skills and knowledge they need to prove a valuable employee.
ATECH students are enrolled in specific ATECH courses available only to ATECH students. In addition, ATECH students may also enroll in Appleton Area School District courses available at Appleton West High School to fulfill course requirements that count towards graduation not offered by the charter school such as advanced core classes in math, science, physical education or encore courses such as those in music, band, or foreign language.
ATECH students are also able to participate in any district sponsored club, organization or sport offered at Appleton West in addition to clubs specific to ATECH such as Skills USA, Vex Robotics, and our High School Formula Race Car club.
ATECH launches two new lab spaces in the 2024-2025 school year.
Lab 1: The Amcor Lab
The Amcor Lab is an advanced STEM lab sponsored by Amcor. The lab consists of a number of Amatrol trainers, an ABB industrial robot and a FANUC industrial robot. The interactive and skills based curriculum is designed to prepare students for career pathways in industrial maintenance, industrial systems, electro-mechanical technologies, process engineering, and automation. This lab is the first of its kind in the Fox Valley, if not in our state, and is available only to ATECH students. Students can earn a number of industry certifications through the Smart Automation Certification Alliance (SACA) in these Industry 4.0 career pathways including: pneumatics, motors and drives, AC/DC electrical systems, electrical relays and control systems, and programmable logic controllers.
Lab 2: Academy Bay
Academy Bay is a lab sponsored by Sansung and is another first of its kind in the state, if not the first of its kind in the nation. Students will participate in a cutting-edge program focused on smart home technology. Students will explore pathways in home electrical systems, appliance repair, and home automation. Academy Bay consists of a Dynamic Curriculum designed to keep pace with the latest industry trends, Interactive Courses that foster engagement and collaboration, Hands-on Learning to build practical, job-ready skills, and Real-World Experience to prepare students for careers in the home technology industry.
For more information or to Apply
Families who are interested in learning more about what the Appleton Technical Academy has to offer are encourage to contact Lead Teacher Paul Endter via email at: [email protected] or by phone at 920-852-5410 extension 55152 for more information or to set up a tour of our instructional spaces.
Additionally, you can check out:
ATECH Webpage: https://atech.aasd.k12.wi.us/
ATECH Facebook page: Appleton Technical Academy
If you already know that ATECH is the right choice for your student, you can begin the application process at: https://atech.aasd.k12.wi.us/new-families/apply
