Despite efforts from parents and teachers to keep it open, Salt Lake City School District board members voted Tuesday night to shut down the district’s online elementary school, Salt Lake Virtual Elementary.
The school, which was a two-year pilot program created using Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Funds, or ESSER funds, had seen a significant decline in enrollment since its inception. At a March board meeting, district officials reported there were 87 students enrolled, compared to 259 when it first opened.
Interim Superintendent Martin Bates said the decision was one that had to be made on Tuesday, especially as the approved ESSER funding had run its course after two years.
“Pilots that land, they don’t take off again,” Bates said. “So, we’re trying to work through the law to bring the pilot to a close.”
For families who want to continue sending their children to a virtual learning setting, the district will provide them information on how to enroll in Rocky Peak Virtual Elementary in the Jordan School District. The Rocky Peak option would offer students both synchronous and asynchronous learning options, as well as an optional program that allows students to participate in hands-on, in-person activities twice a week.
For those who wish to re-enroll their children for classes in district buildings, Salt Lake City School District will reopen a school choice application period from June 26 to July 14.
Dual enrollment being considered
Salt Lake City schools have been declining in enrollment consecutively in the last eight years. And a critical state audit has put pressure onto the school board to potentially close schools.
Vice President Bryce Williams had praised the work he’d seen after being invited by a teacher to visit one of the virtual classes.
“I don’t think anyone debates this, but the learning that was happening there and the instruction that was happening was very impressive,” he said. “Just overall it was a really positive experience and I was happy that I had the opportunity to see that.”
Williams was the only board member to vote no on the motion to close Salt Lake Virtual.
(Chris Samuels | The Salt Lake Tribune) Laura Jettison leads her Salt Lake Virtual Elementary fifth grade class in a science lesson from Parkview Elementary School, the home base of the online school, in Salt Lake City on Sept. 19, 2022.
Board member Ashley Anderson raised the question of whether students could still participate in district activities in their neighborhood schools — like the districtwide reading challenge Battle of the Books — while attending Rocky Peak as a virtual option.
Bates answered that dual enrollment could be a consideration. And that could be something that the district could develop a plan for over the summer, as well as a plan to communicate that with families, said Tiffany Hall, the district’s executive director of teaching and learning.
Parents, teachers testified to keep the school afloat
Salt Lake Virtual Elementary, which serves grades K-6, started in the 2021-2022 school year as an option for families who looked to still have online schooling for their kids once schools returned in person.
And it’s parents like Erica Carter who have spoken at or sent letters to board meetings, fighting for why they felt their children needed an online school.
Carter, whose son was a first grader at the virtual elementary and has ADHD, said she felt that the virtual option was perfect for him since he is easily distracted.
“The school’s a haven that embraces diversity, nurtures talent, fosters creativity,” Carter told board members at at a meeting earlier this month. “They nurture holistic development of not only my child, but countless others in a way that would not be possible with the fully asynchronous alternatives suggested, or even the distant, mixed programming in the Jordan District which might be difficult for some to access.”
Other parents, like Brandon and Natasha Jensen, wrote to the board about how Salt Lake Virtual has not only given their son “great opportunities,” but also made him feel safe while getting “the education he deserves.”
They added that they knew families who previously decided not to reenroll their student in Salt Lake Virtual, due to hearing about the district considering closing it.
“They all feel it’s not a reliable option to choose. Which in return shows low numbers,” the letter read. “If families knew it would be a viable option I know more would enroll.”
Teachers like De Ann Moore — who had invited board members to attend a virtual class — have also been vocal with the district about keeping Salt Lake Virtual afloat.
Moore, who taught first grade at Salt Lake Virtual, just finished her 16th year as a teacher and taught first, second and third graders before going virtual a couple years ago. She said throughout her years of teaching she’s seen better results — in both test scores and behavior — from her students who are able to choose the virtual, synchronous setting.
“Some students just do better remotely than they do in person, and some teachers are better online than they are in person,” Moore said.
She said that Salt Lake Virtual had students who had undergone medical procedures, had bad allergies or had other situations that kept them from being able to attend school in person.
And as the online elementary is now set to close, Moore said that she hopes that parents and students of hers know that she is always available to help them if they’re struggling with anything. She added that she recognizes that there will be board members “that are going to do whatever it takes to help these families and get these families what they need.”
“In the end, it really is about the students,” she said. “So I just hope that the students get what they need so that they can be successful.
