Public school districts in Pennsylvania are often critical when they open their checkbook to pay for a student to attend outside cyber or brick-and-mortar charter schools.

Lehighton Area School District is going into its fifth year of a program helping to keep those students local.The Lehighton Area Virtual Academy, in partnership with the Carbon Lehigh Intermediate Unit #21, offers an online education option for students who don’t thrive in the brick-and-mortar school setting.“So far we’ve had 121 students in our program,” said June Potts, district librarian, during a presentation to the school board Monday night. “We’re very proud that 17 of those students have graduated and walked across the stage for Lehighton. It’s been successful in that we’ve been able to pull many students back from outside cyber and charter schools.”The academy’s curriculum is aligned with Common Core standards.Lehighton’s administrator’s believe the program is more rigorous than other cyber and charter schools and there is no doubt it has saved the district money.It costs the district $10,000 to send a regular education student to one of those schools and $23,000 for a special education student.To educate those same students in LAVA, it costs just $5,000 per student.Before LAVA was initiated, 130 students in the Lehighton district attended an outside cyber or charter school. That number is now down to 68.“The initial goal was to get students back here to save money,” said Rebecca Tite, librarian. “The goal is no longer about money. It’s about seeing students thrive when they wouldn’t have otherwise. It’s about helping those students who have anxiety to feel comfortable learning in their own home.”LAVA is different from other cyber and charter schools, according to counselor Kelli Costenbader, in that staff knows on weekly basis if students are progressing and making goals set for them.“We get a good sense if they’ll be successful and they’ll be able to tell themselves if this is something they want,” she said. “The students are also fully connected to Lehighton. They can be involved in any extracurricular activities and they’re eligible for Lehighton scholarships.”Costenbader gave an example of a female student who had been kicked out of her house by her parents. She moved in with her boyfriend and took a full-time job.“This was an opportunity for her to work and support herself, while getting her education,” she said. “It gives a student flexibility.”Lehighton Superintendent Jonathan Cleaver said the program has been a great success story over the last few years.It’s also become a model for other districts around the state.“They call us and I tell them we can give you the information, but our success is really built on the people running the program,” Cleaver said. “They are top notch and really go above and beyond to ensure the best for the students.”