VHS Learning has received a $1.4 million, three-year grant from The Manton Foundation. The funds will enable the nonprofit to better serve students and schools by updating its infrastructure, website, and course offerings. VHS Learning will also use the grant to provide supplemental curriculum and instruction services to schools in rural and high-needs areas.
“In 2013 we received grant funding from The Manton Foundation, and we were pleased to recently reconnect with the foundation to discuss how VHS Learning has grown over the years, and how we are supporting schools during the pandemic,” said Carol DeFuria, President & CEO of VHS Learning. “We are very thankful for the support given to us by The Manton Foundation. This new award will help us to advance our mission and continue providing the very best online learning opportunities for students and schools - something that is especially important during these difficult times.”
VHS Learning’s will use a portion of the grant funding to help enhance its student information system (SIS). These enhancements will help VHS Learning better meet customer needs, streamline operations, and improve reporting capabilities. In addition, VHS Learning plans to use funding to redesign its website. The objective is to enhance both the site’s visual appeal and ensure that site visitors have a clear understanding of all VHS Learning product and service offerings.
With support from The Manton Foundation, VHS Learning also plans to modularize its courses, which will improve the flexibility of their pacing and content. This will enable courses to adapt to more instructional delivery models and schedules. The nonprofit will also use funding to clearly articulate how its core courses map to each state’s standards, making it easier for schools in different states to take advantage of course offerings.
Finally, the grant will help VHS Learning provide services to schools with highly limited resources, especially those in rural areas who need curriculum and instruction support but have been unable to fully participate in its programs until now. “Schools are looking for ways to manage the many uncertainties of the current times,” said DeFuria “Our courses provide the flexibility and tools schools needed to provide quality high instruction from home, in every discipline.”
Because VHS Learning courses are asynchronous, they allow teachers and students to balance the demands of their day with other teaching and learning responsibilities. In addition, since VHS Learning courses are designed from the start to be conducted using online best practices, the courses feature interactive and robust online classroom communities — a critical instructional element during these times of social distancing.
About The Manton Foundation
The Manton Foundation was created in New York in 1991 by Jim and Gretchen Manton as a vehicle for their charitable giving. Today the foundation is managed by the Manton’s descendants and functions as a family endeavor. The Manton Foundation focuses its giving on New England, and funded projects fall largely into a range of fields encompassing education, arts and culture, medical research, and community preservation.
About VHS Learning
VHS Learning is a nonprofit organization with 25 years of experience providing world-class online programs to students and schools everywhere. Offering more than 250 unique online courses, including 24 AP® courses, credit recovery and enrichment courses, and a selection of dual-credit options, VHS Learning is accredited by Middle States Association Commission on Elementary and Secondary Schools (MSA-CESS), Accrediting Commission for Schools, Western Association of Schools and Colleges (ACS WASC), and Cognia. Courses are approved for initial eligibility by NCAA. For more information about VHS Learning please visit https://www.vhslearning.org/ and follow on Twitter at @VHSLearning.
