Chambersburg board hears CVA enrollment gains and raises concerns about outside cyber-charter residency and costs

Chambersburg Area School District administrators updated the school board Tuesday on the district’s own online program — the Chambersburg Virtual Academy — and on the district’s spending to enroll students in outside cyber-charter schools.

District staff told the board the district currently pays about $8 million a year to outside cyber-charter providers and expects costs to exceed that amount for the current year. Bobby Stein, director of support services, said the district has about 550 students enrolled in 12 out‑of‑district cyber schools and that those tuition rates are calculated using a PD‑363 form that applies the district’s prior‑year budget and average daily membership (ADM) to arrive at per‑student rates.

The administration emphasized the steep rise in costs. Stein said annual outside‑cyber costs grew from about $3.6 million to $7.3 million between 2018 and 2023, and that the district expects the current year to exceed $8 million. She said special‑education tuition rates rose faster than general‑education rates, noting a roughly 73% increase for special‑education cyber rates over the last decade and a 39% increase for regular education rates.

Why it matters: the district pays tuition for students who enroll in external cyber charter schools. Rising tuition — especially for students coded as special education — is driving significant budget pressure and prompting district action on verification, partnerships and potential legislative remedies.

What the board heard and asked - Residency verification: Stein described the district’s residency verification effort: the district mailed letters and made phone and email contacts to students enrolled in outside cyber programs. So far, 88 families provided acceptable documentation proving residency; four students were confirmed as living outside the district, producing about $52,000 in recoverable savings, Stein said. More than 400 families had not responded to the district’s outreach as of the report. - Partnerships and limits: Superintendent Mark Bigger and others said some cyber providers have responded positively to partnership requests to verify residency, but that a legal gray area remains. Bigger said one cyber operator sent a letter contending the district has no right to verify residency and that residency verification responsibilities primarily fall to the cyber providers unless legislation or rule changes shift enforcement. - District’s own program: Heidi Menier, principal of Chambersburg Virtual Academy (CVA), described CVA’s expansion. CVA’s full‑time student counts were reported as 23 elementary students, 57 middle‑school students and 293 high‑school students (about 370 full‑time students total). Menier said the district retains roughly $5 million in local tuition by keeping students in CVA rather than losing them to outside cyber charters. In addition to full‑time virtual enrollment, CVA serves about 70 hybrid students and supports roughly 250 students via credit‑recovery enrollments (about 600 course enrollments). - Program changes: Menier said the district will discontinue the elementary CVA for next year because enrollment fell to 23 students and because district priorities emphasize in‑person instruction for early grades to ensure building foundational reading skills. CVA will add a “learning coach” next year to re‑engage disengaged students and support home visits and outreach. - Program staffing and supports: Menier said CVA now has a core staff — full‑time principal, secretary, 10 full‑time secondary teachers, 10 part‑time secondary teachers, 2 full‑time elementary teachers and itinerant staff who rotate — and that social‑emotional and behavior‑support classrooms in the district receive online instruction from CBA teachers.

Board members pressed on details including: the basis for tuition rate calculations, the district’s current per‑student in‑district costs (elementary roughly $10,000; secondary roughly $11,000 based on AFR/ADM calculations), the district’s residency verification process (including occasional home visits by social workers), and whether cyber providers must employ certified teachers (Menier said cyber providers do hire certified teachers and some cyber employers are receiving dozens of applications per posted position).

What the district is doing next - Continue outreach to families who have not responded and pursue partnerships with cyber providers to improve residency verification. - Consider staffing or contract positions to pursue verification if response rates do not improve, and pursue legislative advocacy to change the verification and funding rules. - Maintain and expand CVA offerings at the secondary level, discontinue the elementary full‑time option for 2025‑26 and add a learning‑coach role to reengage students.

Ending: Board members applauded CVA’s role in retaining funds and supporting students who need flexible schedules; administrators said the residency verification work will continue and that potential legislative change would clarify the district’s authority and reduce financial risk.

"We don't object to school choice as long as the choice is quality," Bigger said, explaining the district’s stance on cyber‑options and quality oversight.