Only 180 students have made a commitment to attend virtual classes for the coming fall semester at Hamilton Southeastern (HSE) Schools.  Superintendent Allen Bourff says his staff will need to “study that,” because the numbers are far below projections, meaning the virtual learning option for the 2021-2022 school year is not a certainty.

Of the 180 students, 92 are Pre-kindergarten through grade 6.  For grades 7 and 8, 24 students are committed online.  In high school, 63 students opted for virtual learning.

Bourff says the low enrollment numbers for the virtual classes will create a staffing challenge, since teachers will be assigned to instructing online only.  For example, if only 5-7 students are virtually learning in one elementary grade, does the school district assign one teacher to that small number of students?  Combining grades for virtual classes may be an option, Bourff said.

Also, high school students would be utilizing Indiana Online, a contractor.  Bourff is not certain whether the contractor could deliver the services at the price quoted ($2,400 per student) with only 63 enrolled in grades 9-12.

However, Dr. Bourff says he is “pleased” at the low virtual learning numbers, because he believes in-person classes provide the “richest educational experience.”