Shenandoah Community School District has experienced tremendous enrollment growth. Over the past three years, enrollment increased by 13.93%. This growth can be largely attributed to the expansion of the IGNITE Online and Personalized Learning School, which allows students to attend school virtually and maximize work-based learning opportunities. The online school started as a response to retaining students in a post-COVID environment and bolstering the District's alternative education. Today, it serves students in 33 districts in Iowa and has an enrollment of over 230 students.
There are many stories of students' success, such as Mandi, who enrolled in IGNITE to increase her flexibility. She graduated early, enrolled in Northwest Missouri State, and is now employed full-time in the District's early childhood program. Tyson was able to attend IGNITE but also earned his associate's degree from IWCC and received training in cyber security. He also completed an internship in the District's IT Department, allowing him to learn and apply his skills. There are also stories of students who had dropped out of school, returned, and completed their High School Diploma just before becoming ineligible due to their age. It has been rewarding to see the students demonstrate their capabilities, earn their diplomas, and meet the goals they set for themselves. Lelynn, a student who returned to school, shared in her student spotlight that "traditional school was just not working for me." The good news is that IGNITE is meeting her learning needs today.
It is fantastic to see the growth, but there are challenges associated. We ask ourselves daily how we can ensure that the work we are doing and the instruction we are providing is highly reliable, effective and robust. It has caused us to seek feedback from students, staff, and other stakeholders, knowing that if we do this, we will become stronger and serve our students better. As a result, we are increasing our instructional staff and adding a new Online Enrollment and Student Support Specialist to ensure we engage our online students and meet their needs.
While IGNITE has made a sizable contribution, the District has also reduced the number of students who are open enrolled out of the District by 2.95% this year. This is a positive indicator of the work that is being done in several areas across the District.
I recently read a brief article, Education is Having a Netflix Moment, by CheeTung Leong. The main point of the article was that "public education can no longer be educators of last resort, or risk going the way of Blockbuster." Public education needs to carefully consider whether or not our current systems are effective and if they remain relevant. There are many alternatives to public education; we mustn't underestimate the present options. IGNITE is different, and it may not be the perfect answer to meet the needs of all students, but the data would suggest it is worth continuing to invest in the school.
