Pleasant Valley School District’s board of directors unanimously approved a five-year rate agreement with Seneca Valley School District for cyber education services.

The agreement outlines the terms under which Pleasant Valley students can enroll in Seneca Valley’s cyber services, which offer both synchronous (live instruction) and asynchronous (self-paced) learning options. According to the contract, Pleasant Valley may withdraw from the agreement annually by providing notice before April 1 of the preceding school year.

Financially, the contract includes tiered pricing for full-time and part-time students. For the 2025-26 school year, the cost for a general education full-time student is $5,370 per year, with a discounted rate of $4,565 if the district commits to a minimum of five enrollments. Special education students have a higher rate, starting at $8,850 annually. Single-course enrollment options are also available, with semester courses beginning at $330 and full-year courses at $660.

An initial motion was introduced to table the approval of the five-year agreement with Seneca Valley, which has provided cyber services to Pleasant Valley students for several years.

Director Ryan O’Keefe voiced concerns about the effectiveness of the program, citing his own child’s negative experience with online instruction.

“The incompetence of the teacher that we were interacting with was horrific,” he said. “If that’s one small slice of what our kids are getting, we’re failing them.”

He also questioned why Pleasant Valley continues to contract with Seneca Valley instead of exploring alternative options.

“What makes Seneca so great that we keep going back for five years?” O’Keefe asked. “What are other schools using?”

A vote was taken on whether to table the contract approval, but the motion failed, and discussion continued on the agreement itself.

The board discussed the feasibility of creating an in-house cyber program that could potentially reduce costs and allow more direct oversight of teachers.

“To educate 59 students in our own program, we would need a significant investment in certified teachers,” Superintendent James Konrad said. “It could cost upwards of $700,000 annually, which is why many districts turn to outside cyber programs.”

In-house cyber program

The district has been gradually shifting toward a model where more courses are taught by Pleasant Valley teachers rather than Seneca Valley instructors.

“At the elementary level, we’ve already started incorporating our teachers,” Assistant Superintendent Rae Lin Howard said.

Director John Gesiskie expressed concern over the slow pace of this transition.

“We were told last year that we were a year away from launching our own middle school program. Now we’re hearing the same thing again this year,” they said. “We need a firm timeline.”

Administrators acknowledged the challenges of hiring and scheduling teachers for a full in-house cyber program, particularly given certification requirements.

“Middle school and high school require subject-specific teachers,” Konrad explained. “Unlike elementary teachers who can cover multiple subjects, secondary teachers need certification in specific areas, which complicates scheduling and staffing.”