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New director tackles challenges of PA Cyber Charter School
MIDLAND, Pa. – As a 6-7, 305-pound offensive tackle for the University of North Carolina, Andrew Oberg used his intimidating size to protect his quarterback.
As the new director of Pennsylvania’s largest cyber school, Oberg uses his head and his heart, not his hulk, to shepherd the 8,500 students in his care and ensure their academic success.
“When you see him with kids, you realize Andrew is the world’s biggest teddy bear,” said PA Cyber CEO Dr. Nick Trombetta. “He absolutely loves children and is dedicated to protect and educate them.”
Trombetta said Oberg made an impact last year when he testified before the Pennsylvania House Education Committee concerning legislation (HB446) which proposed severe cuts to cyber school funding. Abandoning his prepared remarks, Oberg held up a photo of his young son Max. With tears in his eyes, he urged legislators to preserve school choice for Max and all the other children in Pennsylvania. Supporters of House Bill 446 later failed in their efforts to bring the bill to a vote.
Assistant director under Robert Babish for the past two years, upon Babish’s retirement this summer Oberg assumed responsibilities with the title of director of education and administration.
“Andrew has the knowledge, strength, and fortitude to serve as a great educator for PA Cyber Charter School (www.pacyber.org) in years to come,” said Babish. Babish served five years as PA Cyber director and was assistant director under Ron Young for two years prior to that.
Oberg said among the challenges he and his staff must tackle is preparing students to take the annual PSSA (Pennsylvania System of School Assessment) tests, the academic yardstick by which schools and student achievement are measured.
“Four out of nine students who come to us are performing below grade level,” said Oberg.” We find that if we can keep them for a year or two, they will show improvement.”
In the 2008 PSSA, some 1,535, or 41 percent, of the 3,721 PA Cyber students who were tested (in grades 3 to 5, 8 and 11) had been with this school for less than a year. Of those 1,535 new students, 418 came to PA Cyber from school districts under “corrective action I or II” status.
After two years with PA Cyber, 40 percent of students who tested at “basic” or “below basic” levels improved to “proficient” or “advanced” levels, said Oberg.
A native of Rochester, Pa., and graduate of Rochester High School, Oberg attended the University of North Carolina on a full football scholarship and earned a bachelor’s degree in political science. He was a three-year starter at offensive tackle, was co-captain his senior year and played in the Blue-Gray Game.
Oberg was a late-round pick of the Green Bay Packers in the 1992 draft but did not make the team. He played a season for a German football team in the city of Braunschweig, which by happy coincidence placed him near his mother’s hometown. His mother Karin, a Red Cross nurse, met his father, John, when he was stationed at a U.S. Army base in northern Germany during the 1960s.
“I had cousins, aunts and uncles all over. It was a great time,” Oberg said of his year in Germany.
Returning to his home area, Oberg enrolled at Geneva College in Beaver Falls, Pa. He renewed an earlier interest in education by earning dual certification in elementary education and in secondary education social studies, while serving as a graduate assistant with the Geneva football team.
Oberg went back to Chapel Hill as a graduate assistant football coach and started work on a master’s degree in special education. While there he met and married Amy Hoover.
He accepted a position in 1998 at West Allegheny School District, teaching civics to ninth graders and coaching football. He later moved into administration as the middle school assistant principal. He earned his principal’s certification and a master’s in educational leadership from the University of Pittsburgh, where he currently is working toward superintendent certification and a doctorate in educational leadership.
Oberg joined PA Cyber as assistant director in 2005.
He and wife Amy have a son, Max, 8, a daughter, Addie, 4, and a newborn daughter, Mia Grace.
PA Cyber is a public K-12 charter school providing a superior tuition-free online education to the children of Pennsylvania residents. The school website is www.pacyber.org.