Virtual charter schools accepted too many students. But NC will let them stay anyway.

Nearly 950 students won’t have to change schools at the last moment after the State Board of Education voted Thursday to let the two virtual charter schools enroll more students than allowed.

N.C. Virtual Academy and N.C. Cyber Academy both accepted more students than they’re allowed to have under state law for the 2022-23 school year. State board members said Thursday they’re only approving the enrollment waiver to help the students who are in some cases days away from starting a new school year.

“Students have been promised enrollment in these schools and we are mere days away from the scheduled beginning of the school,” said state board member Amy White, whose committee oversees charter schools.

“The State Board then feels compelled to act in the best interests of those students, notwithstanding the failure of the virtual schools to follow the required processes. However we want to make it clear that this cannot happen again.”

The vote was 10-1, with only vice chairman Alan Duncan against allowing the schools to have the additional students.

Both virtual charter schools opened in 2015 in what’s officially a pilot program, so they’re each limited to 2,592 students unless they get a waiver. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the General Assembly allowed both schools to exceed the cap for the past two school years.

Lawmakers didn’t extend the waiver when they voted this year to allow both schools to stay open through the 2024-25 school year.

‘A disappointment’

White said the state Department of Public Instruction didn’t learn the schools had more than 2,592 students until they requested additional state funding on July 29.

N.C. Virtual Academy has 3,425 students registered for the new school year that starts Aug. 22. N.C. Cyber Academy has 2,705 students for when classes start Monday.

Both schools were ordered to immediately stop enrolling any additional students.

White said the schools should have requested a waiver from the state board before enrolling more than 2,592 students. She said the schools are responsible for knowing their statutory limitations.

“The State Board of Education is now in the position of having to address this issue at the last moment when these schools have gone outside their legal authority in over-enrolling students and failed to ask for waivers in a timely manner,” White said. “This was a disappointment.”

As part of the state board’s waiver, neither school can replace any student who drops out this school year unless their enrollment falls below 2,592 students.

White said the schools are being put on notice that they’re limited to 2,592 students for the 2023-24 school year unless either state lawmakers or the state board gives a waiver. She said any waiver request to the board must be submitted in a timely manner.

But White warned that any waiver requests will be weighed against their academic performance. The scores for the 2021-22 school year haven’t been released yet. But both virtual charters have been designated as low performing by the state since they opened.

“The state board remains concerned about the low performing academic status of these virtual charter schools and will review performance data in any consideration of further enrollment increases,” White said.