Class size limits keeping some students from enrolling in K-12 Virtual

CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (CLARKSVILLENOW) – Amber Johnson recently moved her family from Hawaii to Clarksville, and when she tried to enroll her 11-grade and 6th-grade sons in CMCSS’s K-12 Virtual school, she was met with several roadblocks.

“I had a lady call me (on the first day of school) and tell me my kids can’t do virtual school due to having too many kids already enrolled,” Johnson said. “That is not right, forcing my child to go to (traditional, in-person) school when I don’t want them around this pandemic. There is a pandemic killing people, and every kid had a choice, but mine don’t, and they have to go back to school. This is absolutely unfair. What is a parent supposed to do?”

Anthony Johnson, spokesman for the Clarksville Montgomery County School System, said the issue is a state limit on class sizes for K-12 Virtual.

“The challenge is ensuring both traditional and CMCSS K-12 Virtual class sizes meet the state’s BEP requirements. It’s an ongoing balancing act as CMCSS is essentially operating two different learning environments across 40 different schools,” Anthony Johnson said.

The Basic Education Program (BEP) is the funding formula through which state education dollars are distributed to Tennessee schools.

Class sizes for K-12 Virtual follow the same BEP requirements as the traditional setting. But the Tennessee State Board of Education has allowed districts to increase the enrollment in virtual classes by up to 25% over the class size maximum except for Career and Technical Education (CTE) classes, Anthony Johnson said.

Amber Johnson said someone from CMCSS contacted her to work through the options, and on Tuesday a spot opened up in K-12 Virtual for her 6th grade son. She is still awaiting a call about her older son.

“School-based and district-level staff will continue to work with families on a case-by-case basis to address parents’/guardians’ requests and make accommodations as available and appropriate,” Anthony Johnson said. “In some cases, there may not be any available space in specific grade levels or courses at a new student’s enrolled school. However, CMCSS will work with families to the best of our ability to provide CMCSS K-12 Virtual or other remote learning options if the family has concerns with the traditional setting.”

Anthony Johnson also said while CMCSS isn’t working with other school districts, local schools within the district have been collaborating as needed and appropriate to balance class sizes and to remedy scheduling issues.

Virtual issues

Anthony Johnson also addressed ongoing technical issues being reported by parents.

“We know the beginning of the 2020-21 school year has been frustrating for several of our CMCSS K-12 Virtual families. While a few of the technical issues have been with third-party vendors, our teams remain focused on solutions that are within our control. At the same time that we are answering thousands of work orders and Live Assist and Help Hotline requests, we are continuously reevaluating our systems and processes to improve our services,” he said.

“Please know we are focused on getting 100% of CMCSS K-12 Virtual students learning as soon as possible, and our teams will continue working diligently to reach that goal.”

For assistance, families should go to: https://bit.ly/34A2vSv, utilize Live Assist available at https://bit.ly/2EINenL, call the Help Hotline at 931-920-7779, and put in work orders for Google applications, internet connections, sound/microphones, WiFi connections, and ClassLink.