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District launches ‘Highlands Plus’ portal for a la carte course enrollment
Summary
Officials introduced Highlands Plus, an a la carte enrollment portal tied to scholarship programs; the district said the site will list K–12 courses and allow parents to register and pay through Step Up beginning Monday.
Danielle Erwin, who oversees secondary programs, and Ian Bellinger, director of MIS, demonstrated the district’s Highlands Plus enrollment option, which the district links to the Family Empowerment Scholarship and the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship.
Erwin explained Highlands Plus is an a la carte enrollment system that lets students take anywhere from one to multiple courses — academics, STEM, fine arts, CTE, virtual learning, athletics and clubs — and that the cost includes enrollment fees, district curriculum, textbooks and a Chromebook while participating. “It’s an a la carte enrollment, so a student can take 1 course or they can take 4 courses,” Erwin said.
Bellinger said the district already has a holding page live on the website and aims to begin active advertising and enrollment by Monday; he described the registration workflow, staff support from Erwin’s office to help families complete forms, and payment processing largely through Step Up with scholarship and cash options available. “Parents by Monday should be able to log right into their EMA portal,” Bellinger said.
Bellinger noted the posted price schedule is required by statute and has already been on a past board agenda. Staff said marketing language and outreach to student athletes, nontraditional students and homeschool families are in development. The board received the presentation and several members thanked staff for the work; no separate vote beyond the previous statutory price approval was required at this meeting.
