Sparta — A new path will open up to high-schoolers this fall with the launch of Spartan Virtual Academy, an online and hybrid learning option for Sparta students in grades 9-12.
The program was developed in response to a few trends administrators observed in the years following the COVID-19 pandemic, when virtual learning, for a time, became a necessity. For some students, the online model was a better fit, and the district has seen students enroll elsewhere in order to maintain the level of flexibility that virtual learning affords.
But the options available for virtual learning didn’t always include the level of support students needed to thrive, said Sparta High School Principal Stacey Rumsey.
“We had kids that were Spartans that were going to online learning at third-party vendors who didn’t really know the kids and didn’t have any connection to the kids, and the kids weren’t successful,” said Rumsey.
In many of these instances, she said, students ended up returning to the district with gaps in learning.
“We were seeing kids coming back to us and we felt terrible that they’d lost so much time in their education,” she said.
So the district got to work researching and implementing a solution that would offer students options as well as support.
Students enrolled in Spartan Virtual Academy will have access to dual-enrollment opportunities and internships, and will have mentor teachers at the high school to oversee their progress. They will be eligible for sports and other extracurriculars.
Rumsey also noted that in-person resources will be made available to virtual students “all day, every day” at the high school, should students need assistance with assignments or just a quiet place to work.
Around 35 students have already signed up for the program, and if it’s a success, Rumsey said it’s possible the district will offer something similar at the middle-school level as well.
For more information, email Rumsey at stacey.rumsey@spartaschools.org or Assistant Principal Matt Landry at matt.landry@spartaschools.org, or call the high school at 616-887-8213.
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