Tabb is the only local school, and the only one in Virginia, on the list of 29 across the country that will have their units eliminated because they haven’t met minimum student enrollment standards for the program, according to a statement from Navy officials.

“The students are disappointed, but they understand,” said Tabb High Principal Angela Seiders.

For host schools with enrollment of 1,000 or more, the minimum NJROTC enrollment is 100. For schools with less than 1,000 students enrolled, a minimum of 10 percent of the total enrollment is required.

Both York and Tabb were on probationary status for low enrollment at one time, but York’s numbers moved up above the minimum requirement, said district Chief Academic Officer Stephanie Guy.

School officials made efforts to shore up enrollment. Offering P.E. credits through the virtual high school to free up a spot in students’ schedules yielded just five more students, Guy said.

Officials are considering starting a Navy National Defense Cadet Corps unit at Tabb as an alternative to the NJROTC program, or allowing Tabb students to participate in York NJROTC, Guy said. They are examining the benefits and cost of implementing NNDCC.

A decision is expected sometime this fall.

Benefits of NJROTC include teaching students leadership skills, unity, how to be a team player and lifelong skills, Seiders said.

“That’s why (students) think it’s so important,” Seiders said. “But they understand enrollment’s down and they understand the economy. They want to keep those skills at Tabb High.”

For the rest of the article, go to Options in the works for Tabb NJROTC

Penn Manor School District is promoting an online learning opportunity as an option to spending $758,779 to educate students at cyber charter schools.

The expense of cyber charter schools is “an astounding amount,” Superintendent Michael Leichliter told the school board Monday when he and technology director Charlie Reisinger announced a campaign to entice “virtual” students to enroll or re-enroll at the district’s brick and mortar schools.

Virtual Solutions, launched by Lancaster-Lebanon Intermediate Unit 13, offers “a new and exciting virtual high school choice for students and families,” Reisinger said.

The pilot program offered by Penn Manor is focused exclusively on secondary students, he said.

It is being implemented at seven other districts in Lancaster County, according to published reports, and enrollment varies from zero to 15 students in the participating districts.

Leichliter and Reisinger held an information session regarding the Penn Manor Virtual School on Aug. 4 for district families currently enrolled in a cyber charter school. Since then, Penn Manor has enrolled five virtual students, marking the “break-even point,” Leichliter said. The district pays a fee to be included in Virtual Solutions.

“With one more student, we will start seeing a return on our investment,” Leichliter said.

The district reported it is aiming to enroll 10 students.

The program’s appeal to families is flexibility. Under a blended model program, some students may never have to set foot in a school building, while others may be able to attend traditional classes on a part-time basis.

“Right now, it’s all or nothing,” Leichliter said.

Theresa Kreider, director of special education for the district, said there are many reasons given by students who opt for a cyber charter education, including psychological and medical. In most cases, however, Kreider said students in cyber charter schools report “traditional high school just isn’t for them.”

For the rest of the article, go to Penn Manor adds virtual school