K12 Inc. today announced that since August 2012 it has signed new agreements to provide its Homebound Education and Alternative Learning (HEAL) program to more than 110 school districts. The HEAL program is one of four full-time online learning programs that K12 provides to school districts.
Designed to meet the needs of students who are away from the classroom for an extended period due to injury, illness, behavioral, or other issues, K12's HEAL program combines online curriculum, interactive technology, and services, such as instruction by certified teachers and mentoring, to enable students to maintain their rate of progress toward graduation.
Lacey Township School District in Lanoka Harbor, New Jersey, launched the HEAL program this past fall. Carly M. Londrigan, Counselor for Lacey Township School District, says, "The K12 HEAL program has been a great asset and addition to our school district. We are now able to service students who require homebound instruction at various levels and times to meet their individual needs."
In Southbridge, Massachusetts, the HEAL program is benefiting students like "Samantha," an 11th grader who suffers from debilitating migraines, hyper somnolence, and severe social anxiety. "Samantha" fell behind while attending therapeutic residential school away from her home. Since "Samantha" had a positive experience with K12 years earlier, her mother introduced Southbridge Public Schools to K12. The district decided to implement the HEAL program, enabling "Samantha" to return home and complete her school work there. She is now on track, often working ahead of her assignment schedule.
"Samantha's" mother says, "I'm so grateful to K12 for being there, allowing my daughter to be home ... I believe that the flexibility in scheduling is imperative for children like her." To read the full story, visit k12.com/educators/targeted-solutions/homebound-alternative.
In addition to New Jersey and Massachusetts, K12 now provides its HEAL program, either directly or through agreements with educational consortiums or cooperatives, to school districts in Arkansas, California, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, South Carolina, and South Dakota.
The HEAL program not only provides students flexibility, but also has been reported to lower school district costs to provide homebound education. For example, one Florida school district reported that the K12 HEAL program was expected to reduce the cost to serve its homebound students by 20 percent over a full school year. Further, each student who participated in the district's HEAL program successfully kept on pace with their schoolwork.
