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Brainerd Online School enrollment nearly doubles in a year; district reports comparable online and in‑person grades
Summary
District presenters said Brainerd Online School expanded from roughly 230 students in 2023 to more than 560 students taking at least one course in fall 2024; staff said grades and pass rates for online coursework are comparable to in‑person courses and the program currently employs 24 teachers.
District staff presented enrollment and outcome data for Brainerd Online School and described rapid growth and plans to expand course offerings.
Online School Coordinator Brandy Hagelin said fall 2024 saw about 561 students taking at least one online course (with roughly 900 total course enrollments owing to students taking multiple classes) compared with about 230 students in fall 2023. Hagelin said the program offers about 33 course offerings under development and currently employs 24 staff members teaching online. Most online students take a single supplemental course while remaining enrolled at Brainerd High School; Hagelin said the program had not had to turn away students due to capacity and that enrollments for the next year looked to be higher.
Hagelin presented grade distributions comparing in‑person and online courses and said the distribution of B, C and D grades was similar across delivery modes; online sections showed slightly different A and F rates but staff said ongoing program improvements (curriculum design, teacher development) are closing gaps. The program uses a district learning management system (D2L) and develops curriculum locally to meet Minnesota standards rather than subscribing to large, out‑of‑state packaged programs. Hagelin said the district intentionally focuses on electives and enough core offerings to allow a student to go fully online if desired.
Board members asked about capacity limits, marketing, and how the online school aligns with in‑person scheduling; Hagelin said the district supervises online students during scheduled class blocks at the high school, provides designated supervised workspaces, and is considering future enrollment capacity decisions based on staffing and sectioning.
