March 29, 2024

Florida Business Profile

Julie Young is a Principal Entrepreneur

How a restless assistant principal built the nation's leading online public school.

Mike Vogel | 9/1/2011

Virtual School

How Many and Who

97,011 — Students who took at least one high school course online in 2009-10 — 12% of all high school students.

57% — More than half of all students taking a course online are female.

Ethnicity

57% White, non-Hispanic
17 Hispanic
14 African-American
5 Multi-ethnic
4 Asian


Where the Students Come From
Students from large counties constitute nearly 40% of all online students.

County % of All Online Students
Orange 9%
Hillsborough 9
Broward 7
Palm Beach 7
Miami-Dade 7

Type of School

Public schools, including charters 66%
Home school 27
Private 7

What They Study
The top virtual courses, as a percentage of overall online enrollment:

Course Students % of Online
Algebra 1 5%
Spanish 1 5
Driver’s Ed/Traffic Safety 5
Geometry 4
English 1 4
World History 4
Personal Fitness 4
American History 4
Algebra 2 4
Biology 1 3


3,565 — Number of students enrolled in online Advanced Placement courses (3.6% of the total)

42% of the students in online AP courses are minorities.

Tags: Education

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