'Virtual' Charter School Wants Tax Dollars From Wheaton, 17 Other Fox Valley Districts

By Rick Nagel, Geneva Patch

Illinois Virtual Charter School @ Fox River Valley will present an online alternative to a public-school education—using your tax dollars—during a public hearing Monday night at the Geneva School Board meeting.

The charter school would include Community Unit School District 200 and 17 other Fox Valley districts.

According to the charter school application, the 18 school boards—which serve more than 250,000 students in grades K-12—will have an option to jointly issue the charter, but "if any of the school districts denies the application, the proposal will be appealed to the State Charter School Commission." If approved, the school would open in August for the 2013-14 school year.

Organizers describe the virtual school as "a 21st-century learning community focused on results."

"The ILVCS@FRV team of hard-working, highly qualified staff, in partnership with parents, will strive for student mastery of a rigorous, research-based curriculum aligned to Illinois’ Learning Standards, including the Common Core State Standards," according to the application's overview.

"Delivered on- and offline, this unique program will put public school accountability, teacher competence, and meaningful parent/adult involvement at the center of student learning.

"ILVCS@FRV will provide a high-quality, innovative, and effective individualized online charter school education to students who, for a variety of reasons, choose to be educated in an online school setting."

The Fox Valley schools would partner with K12 Virtual Schools LLC (K12), which provides online eductionn to 100,000 students "in distance learning programs in all 50 states." 

The charter school hopes to have 500 students in its first year and 2,000 by the fifth year of its five-year charter.

The charter school would be funded by transferring the per-pupil expenditure tuition from the public school to the charter school, Kaneland Superintendent Jeff Schuler told The Beacon-News.

The amount varies by school district, but Schuler estimated that the virtual charter school could collect about $11,000 per student.

Schuler told the Kaneland School Board that if a student enrolls in the charter school and decides to return to the public school, the funding stays with the charter school once it is diverted.

The charter school offers curriculum for all students, including gifted students and students with a disability. For students in the latter category, an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) meeting is set up upon enrollment with the appropriate team members in attendance.

District 200 spokesman Erica Loiacono said the district will hold a public hearing at 7 p.m. Monday, March 18 at the School Services Center.

Read the full charter-school report here.

Districts Targeted for a Fox River Valley Region

1. School District U-46
2. Indian Prairie School District 204
3. Plainfield Community Consolidated School District 202
4. Community Unit School District 300
5. Valley View Community Unit School District 365U
6. Naperville Community Unit School District 203
7. Oswego Community Unit School District 308
8. East Aurora School District 131
9. St. Charles Community Unit School District 303
10. Community Unit School District 200
11. West Aurora School District 129
12. Batavia Public School District 101
13. Geneva Community Unit School District 304
14. DeKalb Community Unit School District 428
15. Yorkville Community Unit School District 115
16. Kaneland Community Unit School District 302
17. Sycamore Community Unit School District 427
18. Central Community Unit School District 301

What do you think of the idea? Let us know in the comments section below.