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Lancing’s Kansas Heartland Virtual Academy reports rapid growth and staffing overhaul
Summary
Board heard that the district’s virtual academy grew rapidly after rebranding and marketing; staff shifted from many part‑time academic coaches to dedicated full‑time coaches and reorganized operations to support roughly 165–167 students and projected financial benefits.
The Lancing Unified School District told its board on June 8 that its newly rebranded Kansas Heartland Virtual Academy (KHVA) has grown far faster than staff originally anticipated, prompting an operational redesign and staffing changes to support online students across Kansas.
KHVA staff said that what began as a plan to repatriate a few dozen remote students expanded rapidly after outreach and marketing; enrollment interest jumped to a projected ~165 (staff later said the active count was 167). "We were hoping for 20, 25, 30 kids and I was in the 90s at that point," Miles Oza said of initial interest, and staff described a 365% expansion from year one to current projections.
That scale prompted a move away from a model that relied on 23 part‑time academic learning coaches toward two dedicated full‑time academic coaches (one for elementary and one for grades 7–12), a district registrar staffing alignment and additional administrators to run curriculum, registration and counseling for virtual students.
KHVA leaders described who enrolls and why: families seeking flexible pacing, students with anxiety or medical needs, and homeschool families wanting dual‑credit and CTE options. Staff emphasized retention: ‘‘The only students we ever lose are students that want to go back in person or attend their own district,’’ the presenter said, and cited very high retention figures in district‑served cohorts.
Board members discussed operational and financial effects. Administrators said KHVA helps retain tuition and state funding that previously flowed to outside virtual providers and could bolster district contingencies. Staff also noted the need to streamline communications and family engagement (planned in‑person events and regional meet‑ups were proposed).
KHVA leaders asked the board to approve an updated org chart and staffing plan to match the academy’s scale; the board later approved an organizational restructure in the meeting’s finance section. Staff said they will continue to track retention, opt‑outs and withdrawals and bring periodic enrollment and fiscal updates to the board.
The virtual academy also raised state‑reporting questions: KHVA students must take required state assessments; staff said some families opt out but the district met required participation thresholds.
