What to look for in a K-12 Virtual Academy
The number one thing you want in an online school is for it to be fully accredited by the Accrediting Commission for Schools of the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. You’re looking for WASC accreditation to signal that the Virtual academy has met the state requirements for a fully and successfully functioning school. And for a K-12 Virtual Academy, it means the online school is fully meeting state requirements as an online elementary school, an online middle school, and an online high school.
Full WASC accreditation is a big deal, and any Virtual Academy that doesn’t have it should be overlooked by families seeking the best educational choice for their students.
Then, you want to know how many years the Virtual Academy was awarded WASC accreditation. The norm is that online schools are awarded one year of WASC accreditation, but virtual schools like PVUSD Virtual Academy can be awarded as much as three years of WASC accreditation. That’s a big deal too!
The curriculum should be Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) accredited and the courses should be Common Core Standards aligned as well as UC and NCAA approved.
So do your due diligence, and find out the scope of educational merit for each Virtual Academy your family is considering. It’s worth the effort and that information should be readily available on their website.