ASSISTANT DEPUTY SECRETARY OF EDUCATION JIM SHELTON OBSERVED H1N1 FLU LEARNING CONTINUITY DRILL AT VOISE ACADEMY

October 7, 2009 - Chicago, IL - On October 7, 2009 at 12:30 pm, US Dept. of Education’s Assistant Deputy Secretary for Innovation and Improvement James H. Shelton III visited the VOISE (Virtual Opportunities In a School Environment) Academy, a Chicago Public School in the Austin neighborhood (231 N. Pine Chicago, IL, 60644), to observe a H1N1 flu learning continuity drill. The drill demonstrated how VOISE Academy’s unique use of learning technologies and digital curriculum materials promote exceptional student learning during normal school days as well as enable learning continuity in the event of a school shutdown due to a flu outbreak or other emergency.



VOISE Academy principal Todd R. Yarch led the event, accompanied by Chicago Public Schools (CPS) leadership. Sandi Atols (CPS, retired), a founder of the school, and Dr. Kemi Jona (Director of the Office of STEM Education Partnerships at Northwestern University), a member of the VOISE Academy design team, also attended. Dr. Jona is a nationally recognized expert in educational technology and online learning. ”VOISE Academy is a real working model of the promise of online and blended learning in improving the learning of all students,” said Jona. “In 5 years, this is what most schools across the country will look like. Not only are the digital curriculum and tools used at VOISE engaging students in individualized learning every day, they also make it a snap to implement continuity of learning in the case of a flu outbreak or other emergency.”



The impetus for this event is the Dept of Education’s focus on the important role that educational technologies and online curriculum materials like those used at VOISE Academy can play in improving learning for all students. "Technology is core and essential to the strategies we are using to reform education," Shelton said. These same technologies can help meet the challenge of continuity of learning for possible upcoming H1N1-related school closures. There is concern in the education community that the H1N1 flu pandemic will pose significant challenges for educators this school year.



Principal Yarch said: “I think the benefits of online learning and digital curriculum in the case of crisis such as an H1N1 shut down is obvious. Schools like ours can continue to deliver high levels of instruction even when students can't get to school, although what you see in a hybrid school like VOISE is the ability of our outstanding teachers to integrate face-to-face instruction with the rigorous online curriculum on a daily basis. The hybrid model makes the online environment less daunting because students and teachers know each other on a personal level--this creates a nurturing environment, which is something our students desperately need.”



“Interest in online learning solutions for continuity of learning is in high demand by school districts,” said Susan Patrick, President and CEO of The International Association for K-12 Online Learning (iNACOL). “The recent outbreaks of swine flu in schools has prompted the need for continuity of learning using online learning. Online learning offers solutions for helping prepare schools for pandemic planning as well as for natural disasters caused by weather, hurricanes, fires and other closures. States and district education leaders are reviewing policies for learning continuity and virtual education to help establish new school models using blended models of online learning every day to help engage students in 21st century classrooms – and prepare schools for readiness to use online learning in the event of a school closure,” Patrick added.



VOISE Academy has been collaborating with iNACOL and has contributed to and benefited from their newly released continuity of learning website at www.inacol.org/col.



About VOISE

A model of the future of schooling, VOISE Academy: Virtual Opportunities Inside a School Environment is one of the only urban public (non-charter) non-selective schools in the country to use online materials all the time. VOISE is open to all neighborhood students who choose to apply. It uses a hybrid model, integrating face-to-face teacher instruction with rigorous online curriculum. VOISE’s mission is to provide all students with choice, flexibility, scholarship, and individual attention by combining the use of technology, best distance learning practices, and quality online curriculum with exemplary secondary classroom teachers and student-centered philosophy.



About the Office of STEM Education Partnerships (OSEP) at Northwestern University

OSEP is a service organization that supports K-12 teachers, schools and other educational institutions by connecting them with the world-class science, technology, engineering, and mathematics resources of Northwestern University for the benefit of K-12 students. OSEP also supports Northwestern researchers in developing proposals and implementing research projects that incorporate K-12 educational components, particularly in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).

About iNACOL

iNACOL is the International Association for K-12 Online Learning, a non-profit 501(c)(3) membership association based in the Washington, DC area with more than 2,500 members. iNACOL is unique in that its members represent a diverse cross-section of K-12 education from school districts, charter schools, state education agencies, non-profit organizations, colleges, universities and research institutions, corporate entities and other content and technology providers (www.inacol.org). iNACOL hosts the annual Virtual School Symposium (VSS). VSS 2009 will be held Nov. 15 – 17, 2009 in Austin, TX