This qualitative study applied the theory that reading skills are predictive of high school graduation to examine the impact that reading proficiency has on student success in online credit recovery programs for credit deficient students, many of whom struggle with reading. Since reading proficiency impacts academic achievement in general, this study sought to understand whether reading proficiency impacts student success in online credit recovery programs in particular. The study examined how schools identified students to participate in online credit recovery, the program components that either facilitated or interfered with learning, and how reading achievement impacted student success in these online programs. Through interviews with school staff, observations of students working online, and anonymous student surveys, this study captured the divergent experiences that five charter public high schools have had with online credit recovery. Interview, observation, and survey data were transcribed and coded for analysis. Findings indicated that convenience was a compelling reason to enroll students in online credit recovery because it opened up opportunities for learning. However, learning online was made more difficult because of the lack of an actual teacher, although a key advantage was the ability to self-pace and to neither be rushed nor held back by one's classmates. Reading skills mattered in a text-based online environment because it could contribute to better understanding of the material, it allowed for better self-regulation, and it saved time. This study contributed to the research base for the relatively new phenomenon of online credit recovery, and it provided insight into how to improve student success in these programs by taking students' reading skills into account. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]