Oregon’s schools have at least two really big problems heading into the new school year: a graduation rate of only 66 percent, and a budget crisis of historic proportions. Some education officials say you can address both problems with one fix: getting more students to take classes online. Rob Manning reports on a new statewide online option.

Charter schools and local school districts have offered online classes for years. But a publicly-run online program for all of Oregon is new.

The Oregon Virtual Education Center was born literally across the street from high-tech giant, Intel, at the Northwest Regional Education Service District, in Hillsboro.

The ESD’s Paul Nelson says the center is starting with just five courses. Mainly those that can high schoolers need for graduation — but sometimes have difficulty with. Like Algebra 1, 9th grade English, and biology.

For the rest of the article, go to Could Online Classes Help Ease Oregon’s Education Problems?