Apex Learning Partners With Home State to Bring Washington Students Online.

Business/Education/High Tech Writers

BELLEVUE, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 5, 2000

Apex Learning Adds Washington Office of Superintendent of Public

Instruction to Fast-Growing List of Virtual School Partners

Apex Learning, Inc., a builder and operator of virtual schools, today announced its partnership with the Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction to provide the technology platform, teacher training, online courses, supplemental materials and support services needed to launch virtual advanced placement courses at 41 schools across Washington State.

"As a Washington-based company, we are eager to work with these schools to cost-effectively help students in our state gain an advantage in education through our virtual school services and products," said Keith Oelrich, president and CEO of Apex Learning.

Nearly 400 students attending the 41 schools across the state will have unlimited access to Apex Learning's accredited online courses and award winning Advanced Placement (AP) Exam Review. Students enrolled in these virtual schools will log on to a structured online class environment to take Advanced Placement courses such as physics, statistics, macro and microeconomics and U.S. government and politics from accredited teachers across the state, yet at their own pace and without interrupting their own class schedule.

"Some of these schools never had access to AP courses because the lack of available teachers and resources in some areas made it impossible," said Dr. Terry Bergeson, Washington's Superintendent of Public Instruction. "Now students, regardless of where they attend school, can benefit from the pooled resources that Apex Learning makes available."

The 41 schools that will have unlimited access to Apex Learning's accredited online curriculum and award winning Advanced Placement (AP) Exam Review are included in the following districts: Aberdeen, Anacortes, Auburn, Bellingham, Bethel, Burlington-Edison, Chewelah, Chimacum, Cle Elum, Crescent, Concrete, Darrington, Finley, Gig Harbor, Ilwaco, Kilckitat, La Conner, Lopez Island, Mary Walker, Meridian, Mt. Vernon, Mukilteo, Nasalle-Grays Valley, North Thurston, Northport, Olympia, Oroville, Port Angeles, Puyallup, Sequim, Skykomish, Snoqualmie Valley, Spokane, Sunnyside and Tekoa.

Washington joins Michigan, Kentucky and New Mexico as states partnering with Apex Learning to utilize the company's suite of technology, support services and online courses to build virtual school environments. Apex Learning has also signed a partnership to provide online learning services to Houston Independent School District, the fourth largest school district in the country.

About Apex Learning

Apex Learning, a builder and operator of virtual schools, partners with states and school districts to make education more accessible for their students and teachers. Apex Learning provides the online infrastructure, accredited courses, and support services to build and operate virtual high schools, professional development institutes, and assessment and review tools. Apex Learning's virtual schools address states' and school districts' need to cost-effectively bring quality instruction to more K-12 students and teachers. The company's AP Online Courses are fully accredited by the Northwest Association of Schools and Colleges. Founded by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, Apex Learning is a privately-held company, with investments from Vulcan Ventures, Warburg Pincus, Edison Schools, Maveron LLC, Kaplan Ventures and Michigan State University.