Douglas County board approves switch to Edmentum for middle- and high-school online instruction

The Douglas County School District Board of Trustees voted unanimously to approve moving the district's online curriculum from Edgenuity to Edmentum for grades 6–12. The board approved the recommendation after staff said teachers and students reported better usability and stronger supports from the vendor.

District staff presented the adoption process, saying an adoption committee of about 13 people — parents, teachers, students, inclusive-education staff and building leaders — reviewed three state-approved online curriculum vendors. "Overwhelmingly unanimous, it was Edmentum," said a district staff member leading the review. The presentation included a live vendor team and demonstrations for district staff and teachers.

In discussion, staff said Edmentum provides more guided notes, tutorials and multi-modal lessons, and that teachers reported it was easier for students to navigate. District staff compared recent annual costs and said the new contract will cost "only $58,000," versus roughly $72,000 the district previously paid for Edgenuity, though those numbers were described as estimates and subject to final contract terms.

A motion to proceed with the Edmentum contract was made by Trustee Erin Miller and seconded by Trustee Susan Jansen. The motion passed unanimously.

District staff said next steps are to finalize the contract and begin rostering and training work with principals and teachers. Principal Gavin Ward and a vendor representative, Christie Grossnickle of Edmentum, were present remotely to answer board questions about rostering, teacher supports and the product's suitability for both middle- and high-school graduation requirements.

The board did not set a public rollout date in the meeting; staff said summer will be used to complete rostering and to use Edmentum for summer school.