Tumwater Virtual Academy faces suspension from lack of students

'The school is no longer financially sustainable'

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Tumwater School District Interim Superintendent Carole Meyer moved to suspend Tumwater Virtual Academy (TVA)’s operations during a board meeting last Thursday, May 11, citing enrollment issues.

Meyer said that the online academy is currently not receiving enough enrollment.

“We projected that we would have about 256 students in this program. At the beginning of the school year, we had about a total of 126,” Meyer said.

“This was on the list of cuts last year. It is no longer cost-neutral. We would have done it last year,” District 4 Director Melissa Beard explained.

Meyer said that although the new enrollees in the lower levels are low, several high schoolers are in the program.

“There are 55 students in that group. While was just 16 for kindergarten through 8th-grade group, there are 55 that are most likely to stay with us. We’re still keeping all of our TVA high school students that wanted to continue through Cascadia ALE (see below),” Meyer added.

TVA Principal Jody Halterman says that TVA is “no longer financially sustainable.”
TVA Principal Jody Halterman says that TVA is “no longer financially sustainable.”

Early times of TVA

The TVA is an Alternative Learning Experience (ALE) initially approved by the Office of Superintended of Public Instruction (OSPI) as a Single District Online School Program expected to extend until the 2024-2025 school year.

The school was established in 2020 and served students in grades K–12 who live or attend school in the Tumwater School District.

TVA Principal Jody Halterman wrote a letter to the concerned parents and students last April about the then-temporary suspension of the academy.

Halterman mentioned that the decision to suspend TVA for 2023-2024 is due to a significant drop in enrollment projections. He also added that “the school is no longer financially sustainable.”

“Our team has been working diligently to ensure that all in-district students have the opportunity to enroll in their boundary school within the Tumwater School District,” Halterman wrote in her letter.

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  • AugieH

    Well, I predict human teachers will eventually be replaced by AI robots anyway and the former will fall by the wayside like the screenwriters in Hollywood on strike. Time to cross train!

    Monday, May 15, 2023 Report this