ASHEBORO — The Randolph County School System will be closing The Virtual Academy at Randolph.
The decision comes following a unanimous vote by the Randolph County Schools Board of Education at its June 2 meeting, which reversed a prior vote made just a few weeks earlier.
“Last month, it was a 3-3 tie and it stayed as is,” said board chair Gary Cook. “I voted to leave it open. We didn’t have the full board here and we probably should have tabled it until we had a full board for a decision like that. I’ll own that mistake.”
Board members Cook, Phillip Lanier and Shannon Whitaker all changed their vote from opposing the closure to instead supporting it.
“That meeting opened my eyes to really just what a budget crunch we’re in right now,” Cook said. “We are falling short right now and some of our funding has been pulled back. I’m not exactly sure of the shortfall, but it’s maybe close to $4 million.”
“We should have acted on this six months ago,” board member Phillip Lanier said. “I know we’re afraid of losing teachers and this and that, but it would have at least given these parents time to weigh their options and give a little bit more room to do what they want to with their child. That’s what bothers me more than anything.”
The recommendation to close the virtual academy was made back in April by superintendent Stephen Gainey based on a study that the district had done. The reasons given for the closure were budget concerns, the expiration of ESSER funds, the anticipated continued decline of enrollment and the fact that the closure would not cause significant inconvenience or hardship to currently enrolled students.
The cost of running the virtual academy was approximately between $1.2 million and $1.3 million per year and with Randolph County Schools’ current budget issues, the funding just isn’t there for it.
“After doing my homework, I cannot … I’m not sure the number of people we’d have to send home this summer, but people will lose their jobs,” Cook said. “And I just don’t think it’s fair to send people home without a job when our school system can still accommodate these people.”
“We tried our due diligence to do what’s right,” said board member Tracy Boyles. “I hate it, but we have to do what we have to do.”
“We’re dealing with reality,” Gainey said.
Gainey said for those looking for more information on the status of The Virtual Academy at Randolph or for more information on other potential virtual options for students, to call Tammie Legere or Shenna Creech, the district’s two executive directors of Curriculum and Instruction, at 336-633-5000.
“I’m fully confident that Randolph County School System will accommodate anyone going to school to make it work for those people,” Cook said. “That’s what we do. We make it work for special situations.”
The Randolph County Schools Board of Education will next meet June 26.
