The Arkansas School for Mathematics, Sciences, and the Arts will provide an online option this fall for its students and their families who are not ready to fully participate in the residential experience because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, according to a news release.
"The core of ASMSA's identity has always been a residential community of talented and motivated students. While an online option is new territory, the opportunity is grounded in the school's long-standing commitment, experience and expertise in digital learning," Director Corey Alderdice said.
The University of Arkansas System Board of Trustees announced in May its intent for member institutions to offer on-campus instruction in the fall, Alderdice said, noting ASMSA's campus leadership and the planning committee have been working the last two months to develop the necessary measures to allow for an on-campus experience beginning in August.
"We will provide additional information to families on what modifications the year ahead will require in a guiding document scheduled to be released on July 8," he said.
Alderdice said the school first identified more than a dozen courses that have broad appeal and satisfy both ASMSA and state graduation requirements for both new and returning students.
"We contracted with a variety of ASMSA instructors this summer to build on their work from the spring semester and flesh out the classes with a clear focus for online learning," he said.
In its conversations with parents and surveys of both new and returning students, it was clear there's a high level of uncertainty about what the fall semester will bring, Alderdice said.
"The surveys showed that there was a genuine interest in an online option for the fall semester, especially if students remained eligible to join the on-campus residential experience in either January or August 2021," he said.
Alderdice said it is no surprise many families across the state and country are concerned about their students returning to school in the fall.
Schools are defined by their commitment to meet students' needs, and numerous districts and colleges in Arkansas are also giving families choices through hybrid or online classes, he said.
"Under these extraordinary circumstances, we wanted to give families every opportunity to be a part of ASMSA's community of learning," Alderdice said.
The residential experience remains ASMSA's greatest priority both this fall and into the future. The sense of community and the relationships developed among students and their peers are one of the most transformative aspects of ASMSA, he said.
"Some aspects of our advanced STEM and arts programs are difficult to translate to online learning, which underscores why physical learning spaces are, by design, part of our experience," Alderdice said.
The school has been at the forefront of the state's distance education efforts since the passage of Act 1083 of 1999, he said, noting ASMSA currently supports more than 1,000 students and teachers statewide each year through its STEM Pathways programs.
"The tools today for digital learning are far more robust than they were two decades ago, and we believe that the best parts of learning at ASMSA can be translated into digital experiences that can reach students across the state," Alderdice said.
"ASMSA administrators, faculty, and staff had already been pursuing discussions about alternative forms of enrollment as part of our 2025 strategic planning process," he said.
"After evaluating this initial phase of online learning, I believe there will be opportunities to engage with legislators and other stakeholders about how expanded avenues for enrollment at ASMSA can help provide one of the top academic experiences in the nation to even more talented young Arkansans," Alderdice said.