After two years of questions and distractions, the graduating students of Utah Virtual Academy (UTVA), an online public school serving K-12 students throughout the state, will celebrate their graduation this week with an in-person commencement ceremony—the school’s first since the pandemic.

“This is truly an exciting time for our Class of 2022, whose high school years were shadowed by a pandemic,” said UTVA Head of School Meghan Merideth. “We’re so excited to let them have this shining moment and to send them off set for success, in recognition of the challenges they overcame and in celebration of their bright futures.”

UTVA will celebrate its graduates at the Alta Performing Arts Center in Sandy, Utah on Thursday, May 26 beginning at 4 PM. The ceremony will be livestreamed via Utah Virtual Academy’s Facebook page.

This year, UTVA will graduate approximately 160 students from all over the state. Collectively, the Class of 2022 has been accepted to colleges and universities across Utah, including Brigham Young University, University of Utah, Weber State University, and Dixie State University. The ceremony’s keynote speaker will be Jefferson Moss, Utah State Representative and The Point’s Innovation District Project Director for the Utah System of Higher Education.

UTVA students access a robust online curriculum in the core subjects and a host of electives and attend live online classes taught by state-certified teachers. During the pandemic, Utah Virtual Academy students improved in the majority of ELA and Math proficiency where other schools in the state declined, and the school increased its graduation rate nearly 9% since 2019.

Students choose online learning for a number of reasons—some are looking to escape bullying, some may have fallen academically off track, and others are looking for an alternative to the traditional classroom setting.

UTVA is inviting all families and friends to join the celebration. Details of the graduation ceremonies are as follows:

WHAT: Utah Virtual Academy 2022 Graduation Ceremony

WHERE: Alta Performing Arts Center, 11033 S 1000 E, Sandy, Utah 84094

Livestream can be found here.

WHEN: Thursday, May 26, 2022, 4:00 PM

CONTACT: For any questions about the celebrations, please contact Meghan Merideth at mmerideth@k12.com. For media inquiries, please contact Ken Schwartz at kschwartz@k12.com.

About Utah Virtual Academy

Utah Virtual Academy (UTVA) is an accredited online public charter school that serves Utah students in kindergarten through 12^th grade. As part of the Utah public school system UTVA is tuition-free and gives parents and families the choice to access the curriculum provided by K12, a Stride company (NYSE: LRN). Stride offers learners of all ages a more effective way to learn and build their skills for the future. UTVA also offers individual course options for high school students enrolled in their resident district programs, an approved charter school, private school or home school as part of the Statewide Online Education Program (SOEP). For more information about UTVA, please utva.k12.com.

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