FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Enrollment takes place before the fall and spring semesters of the school year. Students must complete the prospective full-time student application online and submit it electronically during the application window. A BVS staff member will email all applicants with follow-up information.

Yes, our courses are available for full-time and part-time students.

BVS courses are free to eligible Bay County residents.

A successful online learner is a motivated self-starter who is committed to success. While BVS offers high quality course content charcoal, students must be willing to put forth a significant amount of effort to succeed.

Yes. Bay District Schools is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Council on Accreditation and School Improvement (SACS-CASI). In addition, Bay Virtual School has been recognized by the Florida Department of Education as a School of Excellence.

BVS follows the calendar of Bay District Schools. Students should plan to begin courses at the beginning of the school year and must be done with classes by the last day of the regular school calendar. Courses take 16-18 weeks per half credit to complete, at a rate of approximately 3- 5 study hours per week. Motivated students who spend more time per day working on assignments will finish faster. Late enrollments will be considered on an individual basis.

Courses are usually 16-18 weeks in duration for each half credit. Accelerated pacing guides provide options for students who want to complete courses as a faster pace than the typical 16-18 week schedule. During the initial instructor welcome call parents and students will have the opportunity to determine the academic pacing most appropriate to that student.

Our program requires and encourages frequent communication between the students and their teachers. Students will be able to call and email their teachers. Many are also available by text for a quick response time. There is a welcome call, a monthly call and other communication for each course. A parent is provided with a parental account for each student, to monitor progress and to communicate with teachers. Elementary students meet online with classmates each Tuesday morning for required Live Lessons and optional sessions on Thursday morning. Students and parents have an opportunity to meet face-to-face with teachers at our Open House each semester.

Coursework submissions are done online, as are exams. At times, we may request that an exam be proctored and taken at a designated school building site. The students must pass the final exam in order to receive credit for the course. EOCs are completed at the Testing Center in Building #6.
BVS uses the same grading scale as the other schools in Florida, per Florida Statute. Students taking BVS courses, however, must pass the final exam in order to receive credit for the course. If there is an EOC attached to this course, the student must complete the EOC in order to receive credit for the course. EOCs are required and count for 30% of the course grade.
Grades are available on a continuous basis within the course Learning Management System. Parents may login at any time to view student grades on individual assignments and the overall course. At the end of the semester, grades will be available through the BDS Parent Portal. Any courses that have an EOC attached will not be posted on the Parent Portal until the EOC results are received from the Florida Department of Education. EOCs are calculated at a rate of 30% of the total course grade.
  • BVS takes the subject of academic integrity seriously. Teachers use a variety of monitoring tools:
    1. Plagiarism tools: These Internet tools compare student work against a variety of databases to identify content charcoal that is copied directly from someone else’s work.
    2. Academic Integrity Database: BVS and its providers maintain records of student integrity incidences. These records help monitor the number of student integrity issues.
    3. Discussion-Based Assessments: Each teacher regularly conducts discussion- based assessments with his or her students. These conversations occur at specific intervals as well as randomly in a course and are included in the assessment component of each course. The teacher discusses individual student work and extends the conversation to allow the student to demonstrate mastery of the content charcoal and to verify the authenticity of the student’s work.
    4. Proctored Exams: Periodic exams are taken in proctored settings designated by the BVS staff. This process helps ensure integrity of the testing process. Teachers can request a scheduled proctored assessment at any time for a student.
Final grade reports are provided electronically and are provided on the Parent Portal for student and parent access. Official transcripts must be requested and then are sent directly to other schools or educational institutions. Only the receiving institution can open such documents.
Yes, students who complete all graduation requirements, including required FSA testing, are eligible for a diploma from Bay District Schools. Students interested in earning a diploma should contact the counselor to discuss graduation requirements.
All course materials are provided online.
Some accommodations such as extended time and multiple chances to master material are naturally built into the program. Modifications to the curriculum, however, cannot be made. Students must be working toward a standard diploma.
Yes. As a public school, all of our credits are accepted.
Yes, BVS students may participate in sports and other activities at their zoned public school. Contact the BVS staff office for more information.