Handbook

School Overview

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Sunshine Online Academy is a fully online private school program operated through Sunshine State Academy K–12, a Florida registered private school accredited by the National Association for the Legal Support of Alternative Schools (NALSAS).

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Students enrolled in Sunshine Online Academy complete their coursework through EdOptions Academy. Sunshine State Academy K–12 maintains the student’s official private school enrollment, academic records, transcript oversight, graduation review, and diploma issuance for eligible students. The online course provider supplies the courses, learning platform, teacher support, and course-based academic requirements for this program.

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Enrollment & Admissions

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Enrollment is available to qualifying students seeking a structured, fully online private school option. Admission decisions are based on academic fit, program capacity, transcript review when applicable, placement needs, documentation provided by the family, and the academy’s ability to appropriately support the student within the fully online program. Enrollment requirements may include academic records, prior school transcripts, withdrawal records, placement information, course selection materials, and completion of all admissions forms. Placement decisions, course assignments, grade level placement, and transfer credit determinations are made at the school’s discretion.

 

Tuition, fees, payment schedules, and program terms are established at the time of enrollment. All payments are non-refundable. Students must remain financially current to maintain active enrollment. Late payments may result in suspension of course access until the account is brought current.

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Failure to meet financial obligations, academic expectations, participation requirements, communication requirements, or school policies may result in suspension, administrative withdrawal, or termination of enrollment. Sunshine Online Academy reserves the right to deny admission, delay enrollment, require additional documentation, or determine that the fully online program is not an appropriate fit for a student.

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Academic Program

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Students participate in structured online coursework through the online course platform. Courses may include core academics, electives, world languages, college and career readiness courses, health and wellness instruction, career exploration, credit recovery, and advanced coursework. Online courses may include assigned teachers, required teacher communication, graded assignments, assessments, discussions, projects, labs, exams, and proctored assessments where applicable. High school students receive transcript oversight, graduation monitoring, and academic planning support to help ensure appropriate course progression. Course placement may be based on prior academic records, completed credits, grade level, placement assessments, student readiness, graduation goals, and course availability.

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Course Pacing and Completion

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Students are expected to work consistently and remain on pace in all assigned online courses. Semester-based courses are generally designed to be completed within a semester. Summer or accelerated courses may have shorter completion windows and may require more frequent daily work. Students may be permitted to work ahead when allowed by the course platform, teacher, or school. Falling behind pace may result in academic intervention, probation, suspension, course failure, or administrative withdrawal. High school credit is awarded only when the student has completed the required course components, earned a passing final grade, met participation expectations, and satisfied any required exam, attendance, time, or proctoring requirements.

 

Coursework Requirements

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Online courses may include tutorials, instructional videos, written assignments, mastery tests, quizzes, unit activities, discussions, projects, labs, exams, teacher-graded assignments, offline activities, and final assessments. Students are responsible for completing all required components of each course. Some assignments may be automatically graded by the platform, while others may require teacher review, feedback, or resubmission. Failure to complete required assignments, exams, discussions, labs, projects, or final assessments may result in a reduced grade, course failure, loss of credit, or removal from the course.

 

Attendance & Academic Engagement

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Attendance in the online program is based on academic engagement. Students are expected to log in regularly, complete lessons, submit assignments, communicate with teachers, participate in required activities, complete assessments, and make satisfactory progress. Attendance and participation may be monitored through login activity, course engagement, assignment completion, teacher communication, assessment completion, and academic progress reviews. Students who do not log in regularly, fall significantly behind pace, fail to submit work, ignore communication, or demonstrate a pattern of nonparticipation may be placed on academic probation or withdrawn from the course or program.

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Final Exams and Proctoring

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Some online courses require a final exam or end-of-semester assessment. Final exams may be locked and may require approval, unlocking, or proctoring by Sunshine Online Academy, the online teacher, the course provider, or an approved virtual proctoring service. Students must follow all exam security rules. Unauthorized help, outside materials, online answer sources, artificial intelligence tools, notes, phones, messaging systems, or other unapproved assistance may not be used during exams  unless specifically permitted by the teacher, provider, or approved accommodation plan. Failure to complete a required final exam, refusal to follow proctoring procedures, violation of exam security rules, or evidence of academic dishonesty may result in a failing exam grade, loss of course credit, disciplinary action, removal from the program, or dismissal.

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Grading & Academic Support

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Grades are maintained through the online course platform and become part of the student’s official academic record. Final course grades may include assignments, quizzes, mastery tests, discussions, unit tests, projects, labs, teacher-graded work, and final exams. In some courses, the final exam or end-of-semester test may represent a required weighted portion of the final grade. Resubmissions, retakes, remediation, and grade improvement opportunities are not guaranteed and may be limited by course deadlines, teacher discretion, platform rules, or academic integrity concerns. Academic support may include parent notification, pacing reminders, teacher contact, required meetings, academic probation, modified pacing plans, or other school-approved interventions.

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Grading Scale

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Unless otherwise stated in a specific course or program policy, Sunshine Online Academy uses the following grading scale:

A: 90–100
B: 80–89
C: 70–79
D: 60–69
F: Below 60

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Additional transcript notations may be used when applicable, including honors, Advanced Placement, dual enrollment, transfer credit, withdrawal, incomplete, no grade, or course recovery designations.

Student Expectations

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Students are expected to complete their own work, communicate respectfully, follow course instructions, check messages regularly, maintain satisfactory progress, and ask for help when needed. Students are responsible for checking their course platform, school email, teacher messages, pacing guides, assignment feedback, and school communication. Academic dishonesty, misuse of educational resources, plagiarism, falsification of records, disruptive conduct, refusal to communicate, inappropriate online behavior, or failure to follow school expectations may result in disciplinary action, probation, removal from a course, administrative withdrawal, or dismissal.

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Parent Partnership

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Parents or guardians are expected to support student engagement, maintain updated contact information, review academic progress, and communicate with the school regarding concerns affecting student performance or participation.

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Younger students may require daily parent support with structure, supervision, reminders, technology, and coursework. High school students are expected to demonstrate more independence, but parents remain responsible for monitoring progress and ensuring that the student remains engaged. Parents are responsible for ensuring that students have reliable technology, internet service, a suitable learning environment, and enough time to complete coursework.

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Communication Policies

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Official school communication is conducted through approved school channels. Students and families should allow standard response times for administrative and academic inquiries. Communication must remain respectful, professional, and focused on educational matters. Students and parents/guardians are expected to respond promptly to school or teacher communication regarding academic progress, missing work, attendance, pacing, behavior, technology concerns, financial matters, or course completion.

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Excessive, disruptive, disrespectful, threatening, or inappropriate communication may result in adjusted support procedures, communication limits, administrative action, suspension, or dismissal.

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Academic Integrity

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Students must complete their own work and follow all academic integrity rules. Academic dishonesty includes cheating, plagiarism, copying work, allowing another student to copy work, submitting work completed by another person, using unauthorized materials during assessments, sharing exam questions or answers, falsifying information, fabricating work, misrepresenting academic progress, or using outside assistance in a way that violates course expectations. Use of artificial intelligence tools, online answer sites, translation tools, tutoring services, parent assistance, or other outside resources must follow course and teacher expectations. Work submitted for credit must reflect the student’s own understanding unless the teacher has specifically approved outside support or collaboration. Violations may result in a warning, parent notification, required redo, reduced credit, a zero, loss of exam or course access, course failure, removal from the program, dismissal, or notation in the student’s academic record.

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Technology and Acceptable Use

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Students are responsible for maintaining reliable internet access, compatible technology, and the ability to use required digital learning platforms. Technical issues caused by personal equipment, connectivity, or user error do not excuse ongoing academic expectations unless otherwise approved. Students may not share login credentials, access another user’s account, bypass platform security, interfere with course systems, upload harmful files, misuse communication tools, post inappropriate content, harass others, reveal private information, or use school platforms for non-educational purposes. All student activity within school-approved platforms may be monitored. Misuse of technology may result in loss of access, disciplinary action, course removal, administrative withdrawal, or dismissal.

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Bullying, Harassment, and Online Conduct

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Students must communicate respectfully with teachers, staff, classmates, and other members of the school community. Bullying, cyberbullying, harassment, threats, intimidation, obscene or abusive language, discriminatory conduct, or repeated disruptive behavior is prohibited. This policy applies to school platforms, course communication tools, video meetings, messages, emails, discussion boards, group activities, school events, and school-related communication. Serious or repeated violations may result in immediate removal from a course or program.

 

Accommodations & Learning Support

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Reasonable accommodations and instructional supports may be available for qualifying students based on documented educational needs and program appropriateness. Families requesting accommodations must provide appropriate documentation for review. Documentation may include an IEP, 504 Plan, psychoeducational evaluation, medical documentation, accommodation plan, or other relevant educational records. Accommodation requests are reviewed individually to determine whether the online program can reasonably support the student’s documented needs. Because online learning requires independence, consistent engagement, reading comprehension, technology use, and self-paced progress, Sunshine Online Academy may determine that the fully online program is not appropriate for every student. Some accommodations may depend on the course provider, online teacher, curriculum platform, or assessment requirements.

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English Language Requirement

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Online courses are delivered primarily in English. Students must have sufficient English reading, writing, and communication skills to understand course content, complete assignments, communicate with teachers, and participate in required assessments. Students who do not yet have a working knowledge of English may require additional support outside the program or may not be appropriately placed in Sunshine Online Academy.

 

Graduation & Academic Records

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Sunshine State Academy K–12 maintains the official academic records for enrolled students, including transcripts, transfer credit evaluations, graduation reviews, and diploma issuance for eligible graduates. Graduation eligibility is based on successful completion of required coursework, approved transfer credit, academic integrity, financial standing, and fulfillment of institutional graduation standards. High school students must complete all required credits and satisfy Sunshine State Academy K–12 graduation requirements before a diploma or final transcript will be issued. Transfer credits are reviewed at the discretion of Sunshine State Academy K–12. Families may be required to provide official transcripts, course descriptions, grade reports, attendance records, curriculum documentation, work samples, assessment records, or other academic documentation before transfer credit is accepted. Completion of online coursework does not automatically guarantee diploma eligibility unless the coursework satisfies Sunshine State Academy K–12 graduation requirements and has been approved for transcript credit. Diplomas, official transcripts, and other academic records may be withheld until all academic, financial, documentation, and administrative requirements are satisfied.

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College & Career Readiness

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High school students may receive support related to graduation planning, transcript progression, postsecondary readiness, college awareness, and career exploration. Participation in outside opportunities such as college admissions, scholarships, military enlistment, athletics, certification programs, dual enrollment, Bright Futures, NCAA, FHSAA, or employment remains subject to the independent eligibility requirements of those organizations. Sunshine Online Academy and Sunshine State Academy K–12 do not control outside organization eligibility decisions. Families are responsible for reviewing and meeting the requirements of outside programs or organizations.

 

Online Course and Platform Policies

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Students enrolled in Sunshine Online Academy must follow all applicable online course and platform rules, including rules related to pacing, teacher communication, grading, academic integrity, proctoring, technology use, course access, and course completion. If an online course or platform policy is more detailed than the general Sunshine Online Academy policy, the course or platform policy may also apply. If there is a conflict between course platform policy and Sunshine State Academy K–12 policies regarding enrollment, tuition, records, transcripts, or graduation, Sunshine State Academy K–12 policy controls unless otherwise required by law or contract.

 

Tuition, Fees & Program Policies

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All payments are non-refundable. Students must remain financially current to maintain active enrollment. Late payments may result in suspension of course access until the account is brought current. Failure to remain financially current or comply with school policies may result in suspension, administrative withdrawal, termination of enrollment, withholding of records, or denial of continued access to coursework. Program fees, tuition rates, payment schedules, course access, and included services are established at the time of enrollment.

 

Withdrawal & Dismissal

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The academy reserves the right to withdraw or dismiss students for academic nonparticipation, policy violations, academic dishonesty, nonpayment, disruptive conduct, falsification of records, failure to communicate, misuse of technology, harassment, inappropriate conduct, or situations in which the online program is determined to no longer be appropriate.

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Families who wish to withdraw a student must notify Sunshine Online Academy in writing. Withdrawal does not release the family from financial obligations already incurred. Course access may end upon withdrawal, dismissal, nonpayment, or termination of enrollment. Students who withdraw may not be guaranteed re-entry into the same course, teacher, placement, or tuition arrangement. Re-enrollment may require a new application, updated documentation, administrative approval, payment of outstanding balances, and review of academic progress.

 

Privacy and Student Records

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Sunshine State Academy K–12 maintains student records in accordance with applicable school policies and privacy expectations. Student information is released only to authorized individuals, approved educational partners, or outside parties when permitted by law, required for educational services, or authorized by the parent/legal guardian or eligible student.

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Parents and eligible students may request academic records according to school procedures. Records may be withheld when accounts are not financially current or when required documentation, academic review, or administrative steps remain incomplete.

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Handbook Updates

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Sunshine Online Academy may update this handbook as needed to reflect changes in school policies, curriculum providers, technology platforms, legal requirements, accreditation standards, operational procedures, or program offerings.

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Families are responsible for reviewing handbook updates and complying with the current policies in effect during the student’s enrollment. Continued enrollment indicates acceptance of updated policies.

 

Handbook Acknowledgment

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Enrollment in Sunshine Online Academy indicates acknowledgment that students and families are responsible for reviewing and complying with the policies, expectations, and procedures outlined in the Student & Family Handbook.

By enrolling, the parent/legal guardian and student acknowledge that they are responsible for following Sunshine Online Academy policies, Sunshine State Academy K–12 policies, and applicable online course and platform policies.

Failure to read the handbook does not excuse noncompliance with school or platform policies.