Description:
This contract was originally authorized by the School Reform Commission (SRC) on May 18, 2018, for Chester County Intermediate Unit (CCIU) to provide online educational services and supports for students enrolling in Philadelphia Virtual Academy (PVA), for a total amount not to exceed $20,000,000 for the period commencing July 1, 2018 through June 30, 2021, with options to extend the contract for two additional years through June 30, 2023, with those extensions based on satisfactory terms and conditions and subject to approval by the SRC.
On June 25, 2021, a contract amendment was authorized by the Board of Education for a one-year no-cost extension for the Online Educational Services and Supports Contract with CCIU, not to exceed $5,300,000 for the period commencing June 30, 2021 through June 30, 2022. This no-cost extension allows District staff and administration sufficient time to run a competitive bid process through a Request for Proposal. The remaining funds from the original contract of $20,000,000 is $5,300,000.
This action item seeks authorization to extend the dollar amount of $5,300,000 to $14,099,000, which is an additional $8,799,000, to the existing authorization to contract with CCIU. For SY 21/22, PVA serves grades Kindergarten through five in addition to grades six through 12 which was offered in previous years. The projected enrollment for grades six through 12 was 750 students. An additionally 2,000 students over the projected enrollment have enrolled in PVA this SY 21/22. The significant increase in student enrollment will take us over the $20,000,000 allotted from the original contract before the end of SY 21/22.
This contract is needed to continue to educate students via the online school model established by the School District in SY 2013-14. This contract directly connects to the District’s plan to achieve Goals and Guardrails, specifically Guardrail 1-Welcoming and Supportive Schools.
The School District’s Office of New School Models/Innovation Network has primary responsibility for the evaluation of this contract with the ongoing support from the District Performance Office. The accountability framework will be used to measure performance and success. Additionally, PSSA/Keystone Exam scores, percentage of credit hours completed, course completion, student retention, and on-time graduation data will also be used as accountability measures to gauge performance and success.