Minnesota Digital Learning Landscape
| State virtual school? | NO |
| Multi-district fully online schools? | YES |
| Online learning requirement for graduation? | NO |
| State approval process for online providers? | YES |
| State approval process for online courses? | YES |
Minnesota has multi-district fully online charter schools, multi- and single-district supplemental and fully online programs, intermediate district programs, and consortia. There is no state virtual school. Minnesota has 29 multi-district fully online schools that enrolled 19,305 students during the 2021-22 SY, up from 12,848 students during the 2020-21 SY and 7,598 in SY 2019-20.
Minnesota was among the first states to allow students to choose a single online course from among multiple providers. The Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) reviews and approves online learning providers and tracks enrollments for both supplemental online course enrollments and students in fully online programs. The MDE maintains an up-to-date list of approved providers including program type and grades served. Some of the approved districts include:
St. Paul Public School District’s SPPS Online offers a fully online program for students in grades K-12.
Minneapolis Public Schools’ MPS Online School is a full-time option for all MPS K-12 students as well as students across Minnesota.
Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan ISD’s 196Online is a full-time option for K-12 students.
Osseo Public School District’s 279Online is a full-time online program that launched in the 2021-22 SY. It is available to all Minnesota K-12 students.
South Washington County School District’s SoWashCo Online offers full-time and supplemental online enrollment for high school students, both in-district and across Minnesota. The district also has an Elementary Virtual Learning Academy for students in grades K-6.
Anoka-Hennepin Public Schools’ A-H Virtual Academy serves students in grades 9-12.
The MDE engages in a standards-based application and internal review process to assure online provider quality and ongoing accountability, as well as eligibility for program expansion. Public schools offering full-time online programs to students in their district boundaries and those enrolling part or full-time students outside of their district are required to become a state-approved online learning (OLL) provider and publish a full course listing. Only approved OLL providers generate funding. Providers submit a letter of intent, complete a standards-based application, host a site visit, and address any concerns that arise during the application process. Approved providers participate in a three-year continuous improvement process that includes a reflective self-study report. OLL providers submit annual reports to MDE with enrollment information and course completion rates. Course information is updated annually and is available to the public via a searchable database. OLL providers seeking to expand their program require one year of experience and must complete an application process. As of October 2022, there were 72 approved online learning public school providers that represent a mix of consortia, regional service districts, charter school programs, and district programs serving students statewide.
State Policies
No major legislation impacting online and/or blended learning was passed January through August 2022.
The Omnibus K–12 Education Act of 2003 (amended in 2010) set forth a number of policies affecting online education. The Department of Education (MDE) was subsequently required by statute to review, approve, and publish a list of all fully online schools, as well as schools who enrolled online students on a part-time basis from a nonresident district.