“Preserving Principles of Public Education in an Online World” highlights the issues that policymakers should consider when developing virtual schools. Recommendations for implementing virtual schools are also included in the report.  

West Virginia’s Virtual School’s success is noted throughout the report. It received high marks for its role as a broker of online education and how it selects schools that are aligned with the state’s content standards. It also cites how the state negotiates the tuition rate.  

“A number of students are now able to take courses that otherwise may not be available to them thanks to the Virtual School initiative,” said State Schools Superintendent David Stewart. “I applaud all of those that have worked extremely hard on this project and am proud that they are being recognized on a national level.”  

The report also cites the state’s Virtual School for its development of online language courses for middle school students and for its recognitions of teaching credentials from another state, as long as the teacher is certified in the subject being taught.