Full-time virtual-school enrollment in Kansas reached nearly 9,900 students in the 2023-24 school year, up from about 5,700 in 2020, according to a recent review of state data. The increase makes online programs a significant part of the public-school system even as Kansas districts contend with falling overall enrollment.
The review by the Kansas Association of School Boards put full-time virtual enrollment at 9,857 and part-time enrollment at 1,486. If combined virtual programs were treated as a single district, the association said, they would rank among the eight largest districts in Kansas. The figures come from district budget reports collected by the Kansas State Department of Education.
A separate Sept. 18 analysis found that about one in every 50 Kansas students attends school entirely online, compared with roughly one in 80 nationally. Kansas virtual schools must be attached to public districts, and the state approves and audits them annually. Students learn from home, use state-aligned coursework and take the same state assessments as students in physical classrooms.
The growth matters because Kansas public-school enrollment has moved in the opposite direction. The school boards association reported statewide enrollment fell about 3.1% over five years, from 492,102 students in 2019-20 to roughly 476,800 in 2024-25. It attributed the longer-term pressure largely to lower birth rates and net out-migration. Because state aid follows enrollment, movement into virtual programs can shift funding among districts even when the statewide student total does not change.
The state lists virtual education as an alternative learning environment outside a brick-and-mortar school through its program page. Districts may run their own programs or contract with outside providers. Stride Inc., a publicly traded education company, says its K12 brand powers two statewide programs through the Spring Hill district: Insight School of Kansas for grades 7-12 and Kansas Virtual Academy for grades K-6.
In a March release, Stride said both schools use Kansas-certified teachers, live instruction and state standards, while offering credit recovery, advanced courses and in-person activities. That description is the company’s account of its programs, not an independent measure of results.
Available performance data also counsel against treating enrollment growth as proof of academic success. Axios reported that 14% of Insight students were proficient in math last spring, compared with 54% at Spring Hill High School, citing state data compiled by SchoolDigger. The comparison concerns one virtual school rather than all Kansas online programs, but it highlights why annual state audits and school-level outcomes matter alongside enrollment totals.
The policy question for Kansas is therefore broader than whether families should have an online option. As virtual enrollment grows within a shrinking statewide student population, officials will need to track which districts gain or lose students, how public funding shifts, and whether individual programs deliver measurable academic progress.
