Presented during the European Virtual Schools Colloquium that took place on 22nd-24th May 2012 in Sheffield, UK.

1. Case Study USA:
Illinois Virtual School (state)
and Clovis Online School
(local district)
Matthew Wicks
Dr. Rob Darrow
VISCED. May 2012
www.inacol.org

3. How to Start an Online Learning Program
• www.onlinehowto.org

5. Illinois Virtual School
• Founded as Illinois Virtual High School in
2000, changed to Illinois Virtual School in 2009.
First offered courses in January, 2001.
• Online schools were not very common in US at the
time – a handful of other states had similar
programs.
• Created primarily to provide equity of access to
curricular offerings. Like most programs at the
time, IVHS was created to supplement opportunities
available to students at their local school.

6. Keys to Initial Success
• Partnership between multiple governmental
organizations
• Inclusiveness in initial planning – Illinois is a very
diverse state.
• Rapid evolution of offerings, responding to needs of
the schools.
• Focus on the importance of the online teacher and
support of the local school staff.
• Initial licensing of course content, followed by
development of own content in some, but not all areas

7. Policy Challenges
• Local schools have ultimate control on participation
• Funding – fixed appropriation, especially in
challenging fiscal times, limits the ultimate reach
• No clear standards for teacher quality, had to create
our own teacher professional development plan

8. Keys to Initial Success
• Partnership between multiple governmental
organizations
• Inclusiveness in initial planning – Illinois is a very
diverse state.
• Rapid evolution of offerings, responding to needs of
the schools.
• Focus on the importance of the online teacher and
support of the local school staff.

9. Clovis Online School
• School district online school

10. California, USA
San Francisco
Clovis Unified
Los Angeles

11. Clovis Unified
www.cusd.com
• 35,000 students
– 14,000 in high school.
– 34 elementary schools (K-6 grades)
5 intermediate schools (7-8)
6 high schools (9-12)
Alternative Education
– Online Charter School, Clovis Online School
(www.clovisonlineschool.com)

12. Clovis Unified
Clovis Online School
• Opened Aug. 2009 for 9th and 10th Grade
students – full time online (50 students)
• Aug 2010 expanded to all high
school, grades 9-12. (75 students)
• Aug 2011 (approx. 200 students)

13. Handout:
Online Program Planning Chart

14. Course Management System
• Moodle (kind of free)
• Use of school district server
• Full time online tech specialist who
monitored and organized courses
into Moodle

15. Course Content
• Created by district teachers based on
state standards
• On a Wiki, mostly text based
– http://clovisonlineschool.pbworks.com

16. Other Online Tools
• District Student Information System
• Blackboard Collaborate Online
Conferencing System

17. Materials/Equipment
• Textbooks,
• Science Lab Kits
• Loaner netbook computers

18. Administration
• Full time
– Principal
– Office Manager
– Tech Specialist.

19. Teachers
• Part time
• Taught one section of one course
• Paid on sliding scale
(20 students or more = $5000)
• Ongoing training (learn as you go)

20. Students
• Full time
• Only way to get funding

21. Other Needs/Costs
• Provided by Principal:
– Student Training and Support
– Counseling Services
• Provided by Tech Specialist
• Tech Support (Especially at beginning)
• Special Education (provided by district)

22. Costs
Ongoing One Time
• Administration • Set Up
• Teachers • Course Management
• Training System
• Equipment/Computer
s (4 years)
• Course Content
(Teacher Developed)

23. Lessons Learned:
Via research and experience
• Economy of scale for sustainability: Need
money or students
• Get all district admin on board
• Include all “stakeholder”groups in the
conversation (counselors, special
education, etc.)
• Identify budget income for 3 years
• Lack of money = no program

24. Resources
• iNacol, International Association for K-12 Online
Learning – www.inacol.org
• Keeping Pace Reports - http://kpk12.com/
• Online Learning Research Reports (in addition
to iNacol) -
http://www.onlinelearningvisions.com/research