Central Minnesota Virtual Academy (CMVA), an online academy through St. Cloud Area School District 742, has been in the making for two years and will provide another pathway toward graduation for students. Beginning as early as this winter, students will be able to enroll for the 2023-24 school year.
The Minnesota Department of Education and District 742 School Board approved the Central Minnesota Virtual Academy which will host online classes for students in grades six through 12, and any student who lives in the state of Minnesota can enroll in an online academy.
In planning for CMVA, District 742 listened to student voice. Forty percent of students in the graduating classes of 2024-27 expressed interest in the academy.
There will be two types of offerings: comprehensive full-time online learning and supplemental which will be part-time online and in-person. The academy will offer supports in special education as well as English language learning. Students enrolled in the academy are still eligible for after-school activities.
A day in the life of a student could be in-person for the first three periods of the day and online for the last three periods. A full-time online student will have asynchronous (learning on your own schedule) learning and start the day without worrying about travel time. Apollo students may be in an online class together with Tech students.
Ryan Cox, Director of Innovation and Instructional Technology for District 742 says, “[It will be a] learning opportunity for all of the learners in our district.”
CMVA will allow some students to take classes outside of traditional school hours to fit their schedule similar to PSEO (Post Secondary Education Options) or possibly take an additional class for a one class overload.
Some of the many benefits the academy will provide are online video support, student independence and responsibility, and the ability to devote more time to learning. The other benefit is the ability to teach students where they’re best able to learn.
“We make the mistake [that] we think that a student who’s struggling in a brick and mortar, face-to-face classroom will automatically struggle in an online environment,” says Cox. “Something we’ve seen the last couple years is some of those students have very surprisingly thrived … in an online environment. They’re getting more work done when they’re not having the distractions of other students or the school environment.”
Watch for more information in the coming weeks for enrollment information and class offerings.
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