Pat Barcas
Staff writer
Thursday, March 21, 2013
     A proposed virtual charter school met with strong criticism at a special Indian Prairie District 204 public hearing regarding the matter March 18 in Aurora.
     “Diverting dollars to this corporation is neither fiscally nor educationally sound,” remarked teacher union president Val Dranias, who spoke out against the Illinois Virtual Charter School @ Fox River Valley, which seeks to operate in 18 area school districts. The schools would be run by the for-profit K12 Virtual Schools, which would provide curriculum and management.
     Peter Stewart, senior vice president of school development for K12, took to the podium for much of the night stating the positives of the program, which would give students a computer to do their school work from home.
     “Yes, it’s for profit. We sell content, and we’re proud of it, and we do a good job,” said Stewart, defending the for-profit aspect. “You use Apple Computers, you hire for-profit IT professionals, this building was built by a for-profit contractor. It’s no different.”
     Stewart said potential candidates for the program are students who range from those with behavioral problems, to those who are gifted and talented, or constantly moving due to military parents.
     “No one is forcing students to go. It’s their choice, and parents seek it out. There is no signed service agreement,” he said.
     Dranias countered with studies showing poor performance from those learning from home.
     “Affluent students who are better prepared still fall farther behind than average students who attend a brick and mortar school,” she said. “Online students lose ground, and wide gaps exist. There are double digit gaps in achievement here.”
     Another hurdle is the financial aspect of the program. K12 is asking for around $8,000 to teach each student, but the number could rise to 125 percent of the roughly $10,000 that the district spends per student.
     “This seems nothing more than a subsidized home schooling program,” said board member Lori Price. “You employ learning coaches, which are really parents who work six hours a day.”
     Dranias ended her argument with more criticism of the program.
     “K12 is all things to all students. They can do it all. But a summary of virtual schools shows that more students fail, more drop out, it costs more, students score lower on tests, and it takes away funding from public schools,” she said.
     District 204 board members will vote on the charter school on April 8.

Pat Barcas’ e-mail address is pat@foxvalleylabornews.com.