Pennsylvania Online High Schools

Commonwealth Connections Academy

By the middle of last year, Cole knew something had to change. He wanted to be able to practice with his band Time Out, so he asked his parents if he could enroll in a cyber school. The question caught his dad off-guard.

“My wife and I grew up with traditional school,” he said. “Everyone we know does that, too.”

But after several phone calls and reviewing many options, the Sipes decided to let Cole try The Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School.

Unlike thousands of York County students, Cole won’t be heading to class this week. He will be staying home to take online courses, a choice that more students are making.

For the rest of the article, go to An endless summer for kids?

The school hopes to offer blended classes in the future, with students taking online courses both at home and in school.

With the amount of students leaving the traditional school setting to attend one of the Pennsylvania cyber schools, the district is striving to keep students registered within the district by providing the cyber education.

Since the 2001-2002 school year, cyber-school tuition costs for the district have risen over $500,000, and a solution to those numbers is to offer something similar within district itself.

“I was a little nervous at first,” instructor John Sharp said of the online courses held at the high school. “I didn’t think that they (the students) would have enough time and I wasn’t sure if they would work in this environment, but I think that this has gone well. Extremely well.”

For the rest of the article, go to Laurel Highlands district’s online courses pass summer test

MUNCY – Muncy School District has developed online courses taught by certified staff members that are much cheaper than cyber school expenses, according to school officials.

The administration recommended and the school board approved Monday night payment for a pre-approved online course.

The course costs $1,500 for one to five students and $2,400 for six to 10 students.

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GREENSBURG — The projected financial benefit from closing Laurel Valley Middle-High School will shrink significantly if all of the students who appear headed for cyber school actually enroll, it was revealed in court Friday.

Ligonier Valley school board member and New Florence resident John Maier testified that 24 students have already registered for cyber school. It also was learned that 50 additional students are in the process of registering.

Calculating an average cost of $10,000 per student, the rush to cyber education could cost the district several hundred thousand dollars.

For the rest of the article, go to Closure may be costly

There’s still some tweaking to do, but after three years of researching, cyber school in Red Lion is now in its infancy.

Red Lion Area School District students who attend cyber school will be able to receive a diploma from Red Lion, instead of through programs not affiliated with the district.

“It was like an albatross around the neck trying to find a solution for kids going elsewhere for cyber education,” said Jared Mader, district director of technology.

At a recent meeting, Mader presented key points such as goals and benefits about the new cyber education. One major benefit comes from Red Lion partnering with Bridgewater Online Academy, saving the district more than $4,000.

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