Since classes started on Aug. 17, students in Manatee County are either full-time at the physical school, full-time distance learning or a combination of the two.
Last week Manatee County School Superintendent Cynthia Saunders recommended eliminating the hybrid program which would affect close to 8,000 students. The school board rejected that plan.
Manatee's efforts are similar to options being pondered across Florida as school districts try to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus. But even as plans develop, the issue of who pays for online learning may complicate matters more.
Florida schools won state permission to get full funding for the virtual model for the first semester only.
Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran has yet to say whether that support will be extended.
