Baldwin County Public School’s Virtual Elementary School will shut down after this school year due to low enrollment as the area moves further away from the COVID-19 pandemic.
In an email …
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Baldwin County Public School’s Virtual Elementary School will shut down after this school year due to low enrollment as the area moves further away from the COVID-19 pandemic.
In an email sent to parents of virtual students at 4:59 p.m. Friday, Superintendent Eddie Tyler noted student numbers have continued to decline and that the district is “now to the point where we cannot sustain the school.”
The change will impact students in kindergarten through sixth grade. Middle and high school students in seventh through 12th grade, can still attend the county school system’s virtual schooling.
“We hope you will enroll them at the school they are zoned for in the county as we have come back better than ever from the days of at-home learning,” Tyler wrote in the letter to parents.
The secondary school was the state’s first virtual high school when it opened. The expansion to elementary and middle school was a response to the pandemic as a way to offer direct, personalized instruction from real teachers in a safe-from-COVID-19 setting.
“It was an option for parents who did not feel comfortable sending their children to brick-and-mortar, and it worked fantastically through the pandemic,” Tyler wrote Friday.
From welcoming a new principal to expanding offerings for elementary and middle school students, the program experiences change for the 2022-23 school year.
Virtual students do schoolwork from their homes and log in to participate in lessons with a live teacher, separated only by a screen. They follow the same pacing and lessons as all schools and students in the district. It is promoted as an environment beneficial to both children who struggle in a traditional classroom setting and who need more rigor and aren’t being challenged enough. Virtual students can participate in sports, band and ROTC at their zoned school.
Ahead of the closure, all services will remain the same for the remainder of this school year for all grades.
“We simply wanted to get this information to you as soon as possible so you can weigh your options and make a decision as a family,” Tyler wrote. “We appreciate your understanding and want you to know we care about your children. We hope you will keep them in the Baldwin County Public Schools’ family.”
