Westby Area School District Virtual School Handbook
Tammy Gilkes, Virtual School Coordinator
tammy.gilkes@westby-norse.org
The Mission of the Westby Area School District
- We are a community dedicated to high levels of academic and social-
emotional growth for all in our ever changing world.
The Vision of Virtual Education at Westby Area School District
- The WASD will work in conjunction with the Rural Virtual Academy to provide opportunities for our students to participate in both part and full time enrollment in online classes to best advance our students academically.
Why Virtual?
- If no two students are alike, then why should they have the exact same educational solutions? (RVA) A student’s education should be as unique as he or she is. Not all students learn the same way; technology may provide the vehicle needed for student engagement and success.
Belief Statements
We believe in. . .
- Creating a structure so students can be successful as virtual learners.
- Offering virtual programming options for students, but we are not a virtual charter school.
- Offering flexible and customized course delivery to meet the diverse learning needs of our students.
- Sharing in the responsibility for students’ success by ensuring that all curriculum requirements are met.
- Focusing on the importance of these parameters to help guide us when making decisions to ensure that students are receiving a complete and quality education.
Table of Contents
The Mission of the Westby Area School District
The Vision of Virtual Education at Westby Area School District
APPLYING TO RURAL VIRTUAL ACADEMY
Westby Elementary School/Coon Valley Elementary School
Definitions
Academic Probation--if a student is earning 2 or more failing grades, he or she will be given notice of the problem and two weeks to improve the grade--failure to make adequate progress can result in dismissal from the program
Acceptable Use Policy--the set of rules established by the Westby Area School District related to the use of its technology resources
AP Courses--Advanced Placement courses are taught at a higher level and at the completion of the course, students may try to test out of the class for college credit or recognition
Blended Learning Model--the combination of classroom and online education
Consortium Schools--Schools that are working in conjunction with RVA--the resident district of the student
Course Instructor--RVA’s online teacher assigned to the student
Curriculum--The RVA curriculum will align with local, state, and national standards.
Earned Flexibility--an earned right of the student to work at his or her own pace by demonstrating he or she is able to make adequate progress
Home Mentor--parent or guardian responsible for content at home
Middlebury--an online language curriculum provider that partners with virtual school providers to offer language programs to schools and districts
Odysseyware--an online curriculum provided to schools without an online instructor (the schools must provide a teacher to direct the students with the curriculum)
Parent Advisory Council--a group selected by the RVA Governance Board to give advice in directing the board
Pass grade--a student may be given this grade to show that he or she has completed the course work for school requirements, but the pass grade will have no effect on grade point average
Rural Virtual Academy (RVA)--an online school operating in Medford, Wisconsin partnering with WAHS to provide full and part time virtual options for our students
Rural Virtual Academy Governance Board--the board empowered under the charter and authorized by the Medford Area Public School District to select the curriculum, content, staffing, calendar, budget, advisories, and operations of the charter school.
Virtual Classroom--an online classroom is similar to a brick and mortar classroom except the teacher is demonstrating concepts on the screen
WEN Catalog--a list of classes offered through the RVA that students can engage in online
APPLYING TO RURAL VIRTUAL ACADEMY
Full time students
Any student in the Westby Area School District can apply to the Rural Virtual Academy. The Academy is a virtual school that allows students to take their classes online. Students who enroll at RVA are still considered Westby Students;they can participate in Westby school activities. The RVA is a school within our school, but students participate from home. Students are also welcome to take some classes in the building; for example, if a student would like to participate in band, he or she could attend in school.
To enroll, families can access all of the information needed at RuralVirtual.org. The Rural Virtual Academy Handbooks for both K-8 and high school are attached.
The RVA Coordinator is also available to help families apply.
Full-time students may attend the brick and mortar building on a limited basis for socialization purposes or for supervision when necessary, provided supervision is available. This must be pre-arranged with the virtual learning coordinator and the “home” school
Blended students
Students who wish to take only a single class or two online, need to work with the virtual school coordinator in the district to find suitable classes. Because online classes may not be suitable for all students or in every situation, students and classes will need to meet certain criteria in order to qualify for online classes.
Criteria
- The online class cannot be a class that is already offered at Westby Area Schools unless there is an irreconcilable scheduling conflict or the student needs to take the class for credit recovery.
2. Students who wish to take an online class must be in good academic standing.
3. Students may only take one online class at a time until they prove successful
with the online style of learning.
Testing
Full time RVA students can test in their home schools.
Westby High School
The ACT and Work Keys tests will be administered to all juniors in the high school on the day mandated by the state. Students will arrive at the high school at 7:45 and be assigned to a room in the building. Information will be shared with families in advance of the testing day. The students will be required to come to the high school before the test day to complete the required paperwork. Again, that information will be shared with families in advance.
The ACT Aspire will be given to all freshmen and sophomores during the testing window in the spring. Students from the RVA will be added to groups testing in the high school. Information regarding the testing times and sites will be shared with families in advance of the testing days. Students will need to have a computer with them for the testing, and an app for testing will be applied to the chromebook ahead of the testing day.
All sophomores will be also be taking the forward test for social studies during the spring testing window. Information about test times will be shared with the RVA students in advance of the testing days.
Westby Middle School
The students of the Westby Middle School will participate in the Forward testing at all grade levels 5 through 8. Testing schedules will be sent to families in advance of the testing dates. Those RVA students will be placed with other groups of same age peers to complete the testing. Students will need to have a chromebook with them on testing day or request a computer to use in advance of the testing day.
Westby Elementary School/Coon Valley Elementary School
RVA students who would attend the Westby Elementary School and Coon Valley Elementary School will test with their same age peers in classrooms at the school. The students will need to bring their laptops and are asked to arrive a little early to become familiar with the testing room. A calendar will be shared with the families in advance of the testing days, and RVA students will also receive information about incentives and practice websites in order to prepare for the tests.
Scholarships
There are several scholarships available to Westby High School students. Each organization offering scholarships is able to set the criteria for students who can apply.
Many local scholarships are open to any and all students who reside in the Westby Area School District
Some scholarships are open only to students who attend the brick and mortar building (Westby Area High School) for all of their classes.
Some scholarships require that students take no more than 2 classes online with the remaining classes being taught in the brick and mortar building.
Students will need to check the criteria as they begin applying for the scholarships.
Expectations
When RVA students are in the Westby Area School District buildings, they will be expected to follow all of the rules established by those schools. Each of the schools have a handbook that you may request to review so you are aware of school rules, policies, and procedures
Participation
Students enrolled in the RVA full-time are still Westby students. Those students are allowed and encouraged to participate in any and all school activities.
The elementary schools celebrate Books for Breakfast each month. There are before school activities encouraging healthy habits like the Westby Whips. Contact the building principals to get a full list of activities to add to your calendar.
Many sports and other extracurricular activities start in middle school and continue throughout high school. Sixth graders can participate in cross country, track, gymnastics, and wrestling. Seventh grade starts volleyball, basketball, and softball. High school adds golf and coop teams for hockey and boys tennis.
There are clubs to join as well: FFA, FCCLA, Green Club, and more.
Special events happen throughout the year, and our RVA students are invited to participate. All students are invited to our homecoming celebration including the pep assembly, the parade and the homecoming dance for high school students. High school students may also attend the Junior Prom the last weekend in April.
RVA students are welcome and encouraged to take part in our high school graduation.
Contact the high school and middle school offices to get more information
To find the rural virtual handbooks go to ruralvirtual.org/handbook