ANNOUNCEMENTS 2007-08

STATEWIDE TECHNOLOGY PANELS SHINE SPOTLIGHT ON
POLK COUNTY EARLY COLLEGE

Polk County Virtual Early College High School may only be in its first year, but it is already attracting important attention.

The first of its kind in North Carolina, the school was featured Thursday at a joint meeting of three key panels focused on information technology. Leaders from the General Assembly learned about the early college and its aspirations through a video produced by the North Carolina New Schools Project, which has partnered with the school district to create Polk County Virtual.

The other 41 Learn and Earn early college high schools open across North Carolina are located on the campuses of a two- or four-year colleges or universities to allow their students to graduate with both a high school diploma and two years of college credit or an associate’s degree. Lack of proximity to a higher education institution made that kind of school impossible in Polk County.

Committed to giving its students – particularly first generation college-goers – an opportunity to jumpstart their college coursework, the Polk County school district decided to provide access to college using technology.

Polk County Virtual enrolls 23 students this year, most of them 9th graders. They are taking high school courses online through the North Carolina Virtual Public School. When the students reach their junior year, which many will do by the second semester of the 2008-09 school year, they will take virtual college courses offered by the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

The school district plans to grow the enrollment of Polk County Virtual by 20 to 25 students each year until the school serves about 125 students. Currently, the virtual school shares space with Polk County High School but will move next school year to the former public library building in downtown Columbus.

Polk County Virtual’s principal, Dr. Barbara Fedock, attended Thursday’s hearing to field questions from state leaders. Students Michael Bell, Samantha Cox and Tyler Toomey are featured in the video describing their experiences in virtual learning and their interest in attending the groundbreaking school.

The three panels that met Thursday were the Business Education Technology Alliance chaired by Lieutenant Governor Beverly Perdue, the Joint Legislative Information Technology Oversight Committee chaired by Senator Vernon Malone and Representative Joe Tolson and the School Technology Commission chaired by Representatives Tolson and Fred Bartholomew.