DES MOINES, Iowa -- Middle school students in the Des Moines Public School district will have the option to go to class online in the next school year.
The district says it's Virtual Campus expansion from high school is partially in response to what's likely to be some COVID-caution into the fall.
"It hasn't gone away completely, people still have concerns--they still want to look for options for their children they feel is safer for them" says Phil Roeder with Des Moines Public Schools.
He the virtual school option works better for some students, even beyond the pandemic.
"Work schedules or other commitments in their families, the traditional hours that school operates can be a challenge," Roeder says. "Also, some students simply are better at succeeding on their own than being in a room with two dozen other people."
Roeder says the COVID-19 pandemic hastened the district's expansion of virtual learning to the middle school grades.
"Maybe one the bright sports that's come out of the pandemic for our school district has been that experience with online learning--giving more students that experience, giving more of our staff that experience of what works and what doesn't," he says.
The district says enrollment for grades 6-8 will initially be limited to 500 students.
They say funding to launch the virtual middle school expansion will come from the Elementary & Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund, part of the federal government’s COVID-19 support for K-12 education.