Florida Virtual School

Florida Virtual School
Motto	Any Time, Any Place, Any Path, Any Pace
Established	1997 (1997)
Type	Online public education provider
President	Julie Young
Students	120,000+

Founded in 1997 by President and CEO Julie Young, the Florida Virtual School (FLVS) is an American online school for grades Kindergarten - 12the grade with a full time elementary school program through Connections Academy. In 2009. Florida Virtual School won the prestigious CODIE award for Best Virtual School Solution for Students.^[1]

According to its website, "FLVS is part of the Florida public education system and serves students in all 67 Florida districts. FLVS also serves students, schools, and districts in 49 states and 57 countries around the globe. "^[2]

Julie Young is a winner of the 2011 Harold W. McGraw Jr. Prize in Education for her pioneering work in education technology. www.mcgrawprizeined.com

Contents 1 Law 2 Funding 3 Grading scale 4 Provided Courses 4.1 Middle School 4.2 High School 4.3 AP 4.4 Clubs 5 Former 6 Awards 6.1 2011 6.2 2010 6.3 2009 6.4 2008 6.5 2007 6.6 2006 6.7 2005 6.8 2004 6.9 2003 6.10 1999-2002 7 See also 8 References 9 External links

Law

A state law required all districts to provide full-time virtual programs by the 2009-10 school year for kindergarten through eighth grades. Legislation was passed in May to expand the option to high school students, but that won't start locally until January. Many of these virtual programs are implemented through Florida Virtual School which allows students of a specific county to log into the county's program through the main Florida Virtual School website and use the "Educator" program. As of the 2011 school year, Florida Virtual School is changing Learning Management Systems from the Educator platform to the Blackboard Learn platform.

Funding

FLVS is free to Florida residents who fund the program through state taxes; students outside of Florida may take the courses on a tuition basis. The fee is $375 for a half-credit (one semester) course and $750 for a full-credit (2 semester) course. There is an added $25 fee per semester for AP courses.

Grading scale

Students are scored based on the same system as any public school in Florida under the following grading scale.

• A: 90-100%
• B: 80-89
• C: 70-79
• D: 60-69
• F: 0-59

Provided Courses

Middle School

The following are academic courses offered for middle school students:^[3]

• M/J Orientation to Art 2-D
• M/J Keyboarding
• M/J Career Education
• M/J Language Arts 1
• M/J Language Arts 2
• M/J Language Arts 3
• M/J Reading 1
• M/J Spanish - Beginning
• M/J Spanish - Intermediate
• M/J Comprehensive PE 6/7
• M/J Comprehensive PE 7/8
• M/J Fitness
• M/J Mathematics 1
• M/J Mathematics 2
• M/J Mathematics 3
• M/J Comprehensive Science 1
• M/J Comprehensive Science 2
• M/J Comprehensive Science 3
• M/J U.S History
• M/J World Cultures
• M/J World Geography

High School

The following academic courses are offered for high school students:^[4]

• Computing for College and Careers
• Web Design 1
• Web Design 2
• Computer Programming 1
• English 1*
• English 2*
• English 3*
• English 4*
• Reading for College Success
• Chinese 1
• Chinese 2
• Chinese 3*
• Latin 1
• Latin 2
• Latin 3*
• Spanish 1
• Spanish 2
• Spanish 3*
• French 1
• Fitness Lifestyle Design
• Life Management Skills
• H.O.P.E. (Health Opportunities Through Physical Education)
• Personal Fitness
• Algebra 1
• Algebra 2*
• Geometry*
• Liberal Arts Mathematics
• Pre-Calculus*
• Calculus*
• Critical Thinking and Study Skills
• Drivers Education/Traffic Safety
• Biology 1*
• Chemistry 1*
• Physical Science*
• Earth-Space Science*
• Marine Science*
• Physics 1*
• American Government*
• American History*
• American History - Conspiracy Code
• Economics*
• Global Studies
• Psychology 1
• World History*

 *Also offered as an Honors' Course.

AP

The following are AP (Advanced Placement) courses offered:

• AP Art History
• AP Biology
• AP Calculus AB
• AP Calculus BC
• AP Computer Science
• AP English Language and Composition
• AP English Literature and Composition
• AP Environmental Science
• AP Macroeconomics
• AP Microeconomics
• AP Psychology
• AP Spanish Language
• AP Statistics
• AP US Government and Politics
• AP US History

FLVS also offers AP exam reviews, free to Florida residents and $100 to non-Floridians. The reviews contain tips and strategies for taking the exam, as well as a number of released practice exams and essays. The following are AP exam reviews offered:

• AP Art History
• AP Biology
• AP Calculus AB
• AP English Language and Composition
• AP English Literature and Composition
• AP European History
• AP Macroeconomics
• AP Spanish Language
• AP US Government and Politics
• AP US History

Clubs

FLVS also offers numerous clubs that students can join.

Future Business Leaders of America Club. -a club to promote leadership skills and develop skills for success in the business field.

History Club. – join other students interested in exploring history topics and competitions.

International Club. – this club promotes international awareness in the school and the community.

Latin Club. – this club encourages an interest in and an appreciation for the culture, language and literature of Latin.

Science Club. – explore various topics in science and participate in the annual Science Fair and Science Olympiad.

National English Honor Society Club. an honor society to expand the knowledge of English in the minds of those who need tutoring and those who are tutoring, this club leads various literacy initiatives at FLVS and in the community.

Model UN Club. – join other students with similar interests as you step into the shoes of ambassadors from UN member states to debate current issues on the organization's agenda.

Newspaper Club. – explore the field of journalism, creative writing, and news reporting with other student writers as we create the student newspaper.

Student Ambassadors Club. – join other students to help represent FLVS in elluminate sessions, on Facebook, and with Legislators.

Former

Florida SMG

The Florida Stock market game is no longer offered it is now only offered in Mrs Sibsons Economics course as a collaboration credit.

Game ran from 2007-2011

Awards

(From the FLVS site^[5]) Awards FLVS has received numerous state, national, and international awards, including:

2011

• FLVS Named Champion at 6th Annual Sterling Conference Storyboard Competition
• Ucompass.com and Florida Virtual School Receive Platinum IMS Learning Impact Award
• Learning 100 Award Recipient, sponsored by Elearning! Media Group. The awards recognize excellence in learning across enterprises that invest in a truly immersive learning culture.
• Dianna Miller Finalist for Online K-12 Teacher of the Year Award

2010

• FLVS Teacher Awarded Florida Social Studies Teacher of the

Year 2010 by the FCSS

• FLVS Teacher Receives the Nation's First Online K-12 Teacher

of the Year Award

• FLVS Reading Coach Named "2010 Just Read, Florida! High School Reading Coach of the Year"
• 2010 CODiE Awards for Best Reading/English Instructional Solution and Best Social Studies Instruction
• Gold Award for Learning Impact from the IMS Global Learning Consortium
• 2010 Best Practices in Distance Learning Programming Award

2009

• CODiE Award for Best Virtual School

2008

• Better Government Competition Award

2007

• EdNet Pioneer Award
• USDLA 21st Century Awards Best Practices in Distance Learning
• Speak Up 100 School (NetDay)
• Chief Learning Officer, Pam Birtolo, wins Wagner Award

2006

• FLVS Wins EdNet's Impact Award

2005

• USDLA 21st Century Best Practices Award
• USDLA Gold Award for Exemplary Online Teaching

2004

• “Excellence in IT Leadership for Central Florida” award from ITFlorida, a not-for-profit membership organization representing Florida's diverse information technology communities.
• Finalist - EdNET HERO Awards are given to the organizations having made the most significant positive impact on education through educational technology and telecommunications. Although the top award was given to NASA's Center for Distance Learning, FLVS was honored to be included as one of the top 3 finalists in the nation for the award and to be named beside such prestigious organizations as NASA.

2003

• FLVS was named one of the web Smart 50 top organizations by BusinessWeek magazine. The November 24, 2003 issue of the magazine named FLVS in the "cutting edge" category. Read the story at BusinessWeek online.
• FLVS and two of its staff were recognized by the United States Distance Learning Association (USDLA) for excellence in programming and teaching, and for individual accomplishment in the field of distance learning. This is the third time within four consecutive years that FLVS has been recognized by the USDLA for its quality of service and commitment to the distance learning field.
• Dr. Dhyana Ziegler, FLVS Board Member and assistant vice president

of instructional technology at Florida A&M was named "One of the 50 Most Important African Americans in Technology" for the second year in a row.

1999-2002

• 2002 - The Global Alliance for Transnational Education (GATE) "Medallion of the Alliance" award to FLVS President and Chief Executive Officer, Julie Young
• 2000 - Canadian Association for Distance Education Award of Excellence
• 1999 - SouthEast Initiatives Regional Technology in Education Consortium (SEIR*TEC) for schools that have demonstrated best practices in instructional technology.

See also

• Virtual school
• Online classes

References

External links

• Official website