‘Quick turnaround.’ Fayette school board members disagree on nearly $800,000 virtual academy

A nearly $800,000 program for Fayette County schools’ new Virtual Learning Academy that the school board approved this week drew opposition from two members as details about the at-home learning initiative were released.

When learning from home begins Aug. 26, district officials intend for the majority of students to participate in non-traditional instruction, now called NTI-2DL, just as they did last spring when COVID-19 shut schools down.

District officials are also offering to students who are at a higher risk for complications of COVID-19 or who have higher risks among immediate family members, the option to participate in a new online-only initiative called The Virtual Learning Academy.

Board members Tyler Murphy and Christy Morris at a Wednesday meeting voted against purchasing the program from a vendor called the Florida Virtual School for the Virtual Learning Academy.

The Virtual Learning Academy program will be managed and taught by Fayette staff and employees, some high risk employees, some new employees, and some employees accepting additional tasks for additional pay, said school board chairwoman Stephanie Spires, who voted for the Florida Virtual School program.

Morris said she believes the district has the ability to provide online teaching with existing educators and staff, and under the direction of local school councils.

However, she said, “this is a significant investment that I think would have better served our community by diving deeply into professional development at a local level at each school.”

Murphy said he was “greatly concerned about the lack of communication families have received about these options and the incredibly quick turnaround we are asking in this situation.”

“Families need more than a few days to make a decision that locks them into a semester commitment and we need to be doing more to educate them on their options--especially our families with limited access to an online platform through which the applications will need to be submitted,” he said.

Murphy said he thinks the district should have a virtual learning option with more flexibility.

Supporting the program, Spires said the Virtual Learning Academy has been discussed for months and that teachers and students overwhelmingly selected the Florida Virtual School program over other vendors.

Spires said the Florida Virtual School has been used by Barren County for the past 10 years and was recommended by the Kentucky Department of Education.

Now that the vendor has been approved, all families will be given the opportunity to select the program. The deadline to apply is by noon Monday, Aug. 18.

For most students, remaining at their home school and participating in the NTI-2DL is the best choice, Spires said.

“Families have confidence in us as a board ...that we’re not going to send their kids back into an unsafe situation,” Spires said.

Superintendent Manny Caulk said in a letter to families Thursday that going back to school in 2020-21 is certain to be different than in previous years because all students will begin the school year learning from home until infection rates are slowed.

“Our hope is that efforts to reduce infection rates will be successful and that we will be able to transition to in-person learning in October,” he said.

Caulk said at the school board meeting that students who initially choose NTI could not switch to virtual learning half way through the semester.

Students who receive gifted and talented and special education services will still receive services through the Virtual Learning Academy.

However, students currently enrolled in programs such as Spanish Immersion or International Baccalaureate will not receive the same level of instruction as they would in their districted school. Students would still participate in sports with their districted school, similar to the other Fayette program schools.

Spires said families had made it clear that it was not acceptable to begin the Virtual Learning Academy after Aug. 26, when the rest of the district’s students will begin learning from home with NTI.

Spires said the Virtual Learning Academy cannot be offered and implemented by the student’s districted school. In an employee survey, teachers expressed concern about having to teach full time virtual and in-person.

The cost for the Virtual Learning Academy is covered by Covid-19 funds. Spires said no money is being diverted from other schools and programs, but “we do not have a final price tag until we see enrollment numbers and finalize staffing.”

The Virtual Learning Academy does not have a school council of staff and parents, but Caulk said parent feedback would be continuous in order to strengthen the program.

The intent is for the program to be short term, Spires said, no longer than a year. The Virtual Learning classes will be staffed at the same ratios as other Fayette schools.

Spires said as of earlier this week, there were 19 kindergarten students registered. If that remains unchanged there would be one kindergarten class. If 30 students registered for kindergarten, then there would be two classes. Preliminary enrollment numbers for other grades were not immediately available.

When a parent said on social media that she was concerned because the Virtual Academy was expensive and had limited offerings, school district officials responded that Advanced Placement courses would be offered in the Virtual Academy. The opportunity to enter the Academy is available in K-12 grades to more than 42,000 students. That breaks down to roughly $19 per student, officials said.