News Details

More than 25,000 students in 17 statewide virtual public schools use the K12 learning program

HERNDON, VA, July 24, 2007 – The Georgia Virtual Academy (GVA) is the newest statewide virtual public school to use the nationally-acclaimed curriculum and school services provided by K12 Inc. The Georgia Virtual Academy is a program of Odyssey School, Georgia's first state-approved charter school. The new virtual public school program will begin serving students throughout the state in grades K-8 this academic year.

The Georgia Virtual Academy joins 16 other statewide virtual public schools that provide students with the high quality and innovative K12 learning program. Three virtual public schools located in major metropolitan cities also offer the K12 program. The K12 curriculum is currently used by more than 25,000 students and 700 teachers in virtual public schools across the U.S. Many of the nation's top-performing virtual public schools are using the K12 curriculum and school services.

The Georgia Virtual Academy will give every student an individualized learning program using lessons developed by K12 in Math, English/Language Arts, Science, and History, in addition to a Physical Education/Health course. Students will access lessons through the innovative K12 Online School (OLS) and use other K12 education materials (textbooks, workbooks, math and science supplies, and other hands-on projects) that will be shipped directly to each student.

A state-certified teacher will be assigned to every student enrolled in the Georgia Virtual Academy. Teachers will assign lessons, provide instruction, guidance and support, and regularly communicate with students and parents via phone, e-mail, Web-based "e-classrooms," and face-to-face meetings. Teachers will also organize a variety of school outings for students and their families.

Because the Georgia Virtual Academy is a program of a public charter school, there is no cost to enroll for residents of the state.

Ron Packard, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of K12 Inc., praised the partnership between K12 and Odyssey School.

"K12 is pleased to be working with Odyssey School to deliver a high quality public education to students across the state of Georgia," said Packard. "K12 is passionately devoted to our mission of helping students maximize their potential by providing them with an excellent education program, regardless of their academic, geographical or financial circumstance."

Packard added, "K12 has developed a rigorous, standards-based curriculum that enables mastery of core concepts and skills for all types of students. The program we offer public virtual schools includes a combination of exciting Web-based lessons, traditional education materials, and teacher engagement that is focused on delivering results for students."

"The demand for excellent online learning programs is rapidly growing in Georgia," said Andy Geeter, School Director of Odyssey School. "Offering an online public school program for students in Georgia will help Odyssey expand on its mission to provide a challenging, high-quality education through innovative curriculum that focuses on the needs of each student. We are also very excited to be working with a partner in K12 who shares our commitment to serving kids."

Founded in 1999, K12 has emerged as a leading national provider of individualized, one-to-one learning solutions for students in online public schools and traditional classrooms. K12 has developed extensive partnerships with public schools and school districts across the country, responding to the increasing demand from parents, students, and educators for the K12 program.

Developed by renowned and respected education experts—including scholars, writers, teachers, and designers—the K¹² curriculum is based on time-tested and research-based methods of instruction. Central to the K¹² learning program is the Online School which hosts more than 11,000 interactive, engaging and comprehensive lessons presented in a mix of printable and multimedia forms. The K¹² Online School also includes lesson assessments, planning and progress tools, and an attendance tracking system to determine the number of instructional hours completed by each student.

The K12 program enables a diverse group of children to achieve mastery through a combination of individualized learning approaches, passionate teacher engagement, adherence to the best educational research that has been conducted over the past several decades about how young minds really work, and rich, engaging content.

More information can be found at www.K12.com

17 statewide virtual public schools using K12:

Agora Cyber Charter School (Pennsylvania)
Arizona Virtual Academy
Arkansas Virtual Academy
California Virtual Academies
Colorado Virtual Academy
Florida Virtual Academy
Georgia Virtual Academy
Honors High Online of Wisconsin
Idaho Virtual Academy
Lawrence Virtual School (Kansas)
Minnesota Virtual Academy
Nevada Virtual Academy
Ohio Virtual Academy
Pennsylvania Virtual Charter School
Utah Online Academies
Washington Virtual Academy
Wisconsin Virtual Academy

3 city-wide virtual public schools using K12:

Chicago Virtual Charter School
Texas Virtual Academy (Houston, TX)
Washington D.C. Community Academy Public Charter School Online (CAPCS Online)