Gainesville City Schools employees were able to get the Johnson & Johnson shot on Friday, but it doesn't mean the pandemic is over, especially for virtual learners.
The Gainesville City School Board heard from their Chief Technology Officer Monday night about the latest on the Virtual Academy.
Currently, about 350 Kindergarten through 12th grade students are enrolled, according to Jill Hobson. Enrollment for next year will begin April 12th and last until the 30th.
Students will need to enroll either through ESP for K - 5th, or by course request for middle and high school students.
There are some requirements in place, though, including readiness assessments, a good track record in the classroom, and living in the area.
"Periodically, throughout the year, GVA families are going to be expected to come to school in person for meetings and assessments," Hobson said. "We want to start the year by making it clear that is part of the expectation."
Board member Sammy Smith asked Hobson if she thought the academy would continue once the pandemic was deemed "over."
She deferred an official answer to Superintendent Jeremy Williams but said that in her 25 years experience in technology, many school systems in Georgia were already using similar virtual schooling before the pandemic, as far back as the turn of the century.
"I think there are students who benefit from that opportunity and it opens up other things they are able to accomplish... I hope that we might consider going ahead and teaming with that regardless if we have a pandemic or not."
More information about the Gainesville Virtual Academy can be found here.
http://accesswdun.com/article/2021/3/988241/gainesville-virtual-academy-continues-into-next-fall