Ball State University will open the digital doors to two virtual charter schools in the fall, but not without facing opposition from the state legislature and Indiana's largest teachers union.
Last week, Democrats in the state House of Representatives proposed provisions in the budget that could ban virtual charter schools, said Dan Clark, deputy executive director of the Indiana State Teachers Association.
"There will be a vote on it [this] week," Clark said. "They're pretty serious."
According to the Ball State Office of Charter Schools, a virtual charter school would provide more than 50 percent but less than 100 percent of instruction through distance learning.
Clark said the ISTA has two main concerns regarding the virtual charter schools: funding and whether the law allows virtual charter schools.
"The law was never intended to allow virtual charter schools," Clark said. "Also, there are students in the state with greater needs than those Ball State intends to serve."
Larry Gabbert, director for the Ball State's Office of Charter Schools, said Ball State would open the Indiana Virtual Charter School based in Indianapolis and the Indiana Connections Academy based in Muncie.
"Online learning is a growing trend," Gabbert said. "We've had a few people express concerns. It's a whole new thing, a little unknown, and that can concern people."
Indiana would be one of 15 states with virtual charter schools, Gabbert said. He was not aware of any research to support the ISTA's claims against them, he said.
"What it really comes down to is what happens at the end of the day," Gabbert said. "Just because somebody is talking about change at this point, that doesn't mean it'll happen. We'll see what happens at the end of the day, if anything."
Clark said the virtual charter school will receive about $10 million for the student body, which the ISTA believes is too much.
Gabbert said the maximum enrollment for the Indiana Virtual Charter School is 1,500 students and the Indiana Connections Academy is 700.
The state allots $6,000 of funding for each public school student, including those in the virtual charter school programs. The virtual charter schools do not need to pay for things such as facilities or insurance, so they should only require about a quarter of what they are receiving, Clark said.
Gabbert said the schools would ship materials, including textbooks and a computer, to the students' homes.
Clark said state budgets do not pay public schools enough to purchase a computer for every student, which forces them to share. It is unfair for virtual students to have a computer of their own when other students who are paid for by the state have to share, he said.
"They're saying they need all this money because they're giving parents computers," he said. "What they're really seeking here is something that's not available in all the [public] schools."
The Office of Charter Schools has examined both schools' proposed budgets and Gabbert said both budgets are reasonable for what they intend to do.
The schools are open to any Indiana resident, Gabbert said. The virtual charter schools are intended for students who are homebound and unable to attend public schools, he said.
"They're meant for students who have physical disabilities, those who find it difficult to get into a regular school setting or students who work at a very advanced rate," he said.
The online programs began advertising after receiving approval on Feb. 2, Gabbert said. Registration will be online, and the schools have received more than 12,000 inquiries, he said.
"There's quite a demand for students who want to get into charter schools," Gabbert said. "It's a choice thing. This country is a democracy, and people want to have choices."
The majority of the instruction for high school is online, but the lower grades' instructions are in books that are shipped to the students' homes, Gabbert said.
Most of the program is done at home, but students still interact with teachers, meeting in person and taking field trips, he said.
"They work like any regular charter school currently operating," Gabbert said. "They are independent schools with local boards of directors."
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