Mercer Area School Board is considering that and other rules in a policy draft for Cyber Service. The policy proposal received its first reading Monday and the board is expected to act on whether to adopt it at its March 18 meeting.

Cyber Service is a separate spin-off from the Cyber Charter School, both offered through Midwestern Intermediate Unit IV, said Dr. Lawrence R. Connelly Jr., school superintendent. The Cyber Charter School offers an entire school curriculum online for students who cannot learn in traditional classrooms. Cyber Service offers individual courses to interested students.

"We see this (Cyber Service) being used for remedial work or for summer school," the superintendent said.

According to the policy draft, students or their parents would pay the $9.50 monthly fee for each course. The school district pays tuition for students enrolled in the charter school.

Students would request to take a Cyber Service course not offered in a regular classroom through the school guidance office, according to the policy proposal.

Connelly said the school is entering the new technology cautiously. "We're going through these hoops one step at a time," he said.