January 18, 2012

The New York Times
Editorials on Education

To Everyone’s Concern:

The article published in the New York Times on December 12, 2011 has compelled me to respond.  The content presented such a shallow view of virtual education and k12 specifically that I feel it paramount to share my experience. 

A thirty-seven-year career in major Northern Virginia and Maryland school systems, as both a teacher and an administrator, prepared me well to be hypercritical of virtual

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I thought Tennessee state representative Fitzhugh’s column was over the top until I read this piece from state senator Andy Berke (D-Chattanooga). 

Senator Berke slams Tennessee’s new law expanding online school options for children calling it the “most destructive piece of legislation” that “could do the most damage to Tennessee education.”  Quite an inflated indictment, but that’s about the extent of his argument, at least as it relates to actual policy.  After that he packs

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Boy, did the Memphis Commercial Appeal get it wrong.

On August 20, the Appeal published a slanted article calling the new Tennessee Virtual Academy, “a real headache,” suggesting  widespread frustration among families attempting to enroll their children in the new online public school.

Considering the high level of excitement from Tennessee families and the rush to participate in Tennessee Virtual Academy (TNVA), I was very skeptical.

The Appeal’s story is based almost entirely on a

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Recently, K12 Inc. partnered with the Union Country school district in Tennessee to open Tennessee Virtual Academy (TNVA) to serve students throughout the state. While many are excited to have an alternative for their children and welcome the innovation, there are some who are unsure.

The Memphis newspaper, Commercial Appeal, wrote a largely one-dimensional story about TNVA charging that it will “siphon off taxpayer funds,” as if that was the only goal of Union County Public School when it

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A recent article in Bloomberg Businessweek paints a misleading picture of online charter schools, teachers and students.  Throughout the article, there is a fundamental misunderstanding of online learning and the role of education providers such as K12 Inc.

Online public schools offer parents and students educational options and the freedom to choose the public school that works best for them. Every student who enrolls in an online public school using K12 curriculum is there by choice. No

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Washington State has been progressive in education policy in many respects.For instance, it embraced online learning in public schools earlier than many states, created Alterative Learning Experience (ALE) programs, and approved the 2005 digital program law.

Since then, ALE programs have become an accepted, valued and vibrant part of public education in the Evergreen State.But some legislators in Olympia seem willing to roll back progress by singling them out for significant and additional

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