Despite a ‘not that strong’ track record, NC approves another virtual charter school
North Carolina will get its third statewide virtual charter school despite the mostly low scores the online program has had since debuting in 2015.
On Tuesday, the N.C. Charter Schools Review Board approved the application from N.C. Connections Academy to open in 2026. It would be managed by Pearson Virtual Schools, which operates 43 virtual schools in 31 states.
At full capacity, Connections would have 3,500 K-12 students and an annual budget of $33.5 million.
“Is this market saturated?” said Dave Machado, a member of the Review Board. “Our market will tell us if it is or not and then we’ll adjust to that. There seems to be a market for this. This is a very experienced company.”
The vote was 5-2. Todd Godbey and Alex Quigley were the lone no-votes.
High demand for online charter schools in NC
N.C. Connections would join N.C. Virtual Academy and N.C. Cyber Academy, which used to be run by Pearson, as the only statewide virtual charter schools.
Despite their historically low performance in North Carolina, the virtual charter schools have remained popular. Last school year, the Virtual Academy had 2,905 students and the Cyber Academy had 2,385 students.
“If people don’t want that curriculum, parents do what they do everywhere,” said Rita Haire, a member of the Review Board. “They’ll go where there’s the curriculum they want. If they prefer not to have this curriculum that’s the choice, that’s the educational choice component.”
In addition to the online-only charters, seven brick-and-mortar charter schools have state permission to run virtual programs.
Acrimonious split at virtual school
Charter schools are taxpayer-funded schools that are exempt from some of the rules that traditional public schools must follow. More than 200 charter schools are open this school year.
Both existing virtual charters opened in 2015 after state lawmakers required two online charter schools to be approved. They were originally approved as four-year pilot programs that the General Assembly kept extending before eventually changing them to only need renewal like brick-and-mortar charter schools.
The N.C. Cyber Academy was originally called N.C. Connections Academy when it opened in 2015 under Pearson’s management
But in 2019, the local board of Cyber Academy received state permission to end its management agreement with Pearson. The split came with recriminations on both sides about who was to blame.
None of the new members of Connection’s board were on the board of the old school.
“We are all local and we want the best for our state,” said Warren Ulmer, a member of Connection’s board. “We want the best for our schools in the area. We’re a balance of that strong community ties and with a very experienced and proven provider.
“Pearson is the largest education company in the world, but they are that for a reason.”
Review board members said they wouldn’t hold the 2019 split against the new application.
Pearson cites data from other states
Schools are labeled as low performing in North Carolina if they have a D or F performance grade and don’t exceed growth targets on state exams.
With the exception of the 2022-23 school year for N.C. Virtual Academy, both existing schools have been labeled as low performing since they opened.
“The track record for academics is not that strong for virtual,” Machado asked. “What would be different now than the last time you were here?”
But Review Board members seem to be satisfied Tuesday by the data Pearson presented showing how several of its virtual schools in other states outperformed their respective state’s average.
“I don’t know of any current program in this state that is doing it this well virtually, according to the data that’s been submitted,” Haire said. “They have a very strong performance. They’ve demonstrated that, Pearson has.”
Brian Rosta, Pearson’s director of school operations, said he takes “tremendous pride” in the academic data. He said virtual schools are often a last resort for students.
“Part of the reason I’m committed to this effort is because I’ve worked with students who were dropping out if they didn’t have another option,” Rosta told the Review Board. “They were going to work from home and study for a GED, do whatever they could do to get through that finish line.”
Other virtual school applicants rejected
Connections was one of three statewide virtual charter school applications that were submitted this year.
One applicant proposed using AI technology to tutor students. Another applicant proposed having students wear headsets during part of the day to work in a virtual reality environment.
The Review Board rejected both applications, saying the technology was uncertain. In contrast, they cited Pearson’s experience.
“I like the fact that they are choosing to partner with an organization that’s proven that they know how to do this,” said Bruce Friend, chair of the Review Board.
New Wake County charter school approved
Also on Tuesday, the Review Board approved the application from Bettis Academy to open in Wake County in 2026. It will be a brick-and-mortar K-12 school that would grow in time to educate 780 “underserved students” in eastern Wake County.
“We are a thoughtful community-driven response to the growing needs in Zebulon and surrounding areas,” Allison Brown, chair of Bettis’ board of directors, told the Review Board. “Ultimately our aim is to address the unmet needs of our proposed demographic in a way that is uniquely ours.”
Bettis is still looking to acquire a site. One of the major challenges for newly approved charter schools, especially independently run ones like Bettis, is finding a site.
A number of charter schools approved by the Review Board have received permission to delay their opening.
This story was originally published December 10, 2024 at 4:26 PM with the headline "Despite a ‘not that strong’ track record, NC approves another virtual charter school."
