Stanford University Online High School

Stanford Online High School (OHS or SOHS), formerly known as EPGY Online High School, is a private independent school located at Stanford University for academically talented students worldwide. It operates as a six-year school, serving students in grades 7–12. The current Head of the School is Tomohiro Hoshi. Stanford OHS used to be part of the wider offerings of the Education Program for Gifted Youth (EPGY). With the restructuring of EPGY into Stanford Pre-Collegiate Studies, Stanford OHS became fully separate in its administration from the other components of the program. Stanford OHS is accredited through the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. In April 2005, EPGY Executive Director, Raymond Ravaglia, proposed the idea of expanding its online course offerings into a full-fledged online school. This informal proposal, made to the Malone Family Foundation of Englewood, Colorado, was well received and the Foundation requested a full proposal. Over Summer 2005, Ravaglia fleshed out his ideas into a full-blown design for an online school for gifted students. In January 2006, EPGY received a substantial gift from the Foundation to develop the school. Formally called "The Education Program for Gifted Youth Online High School at Stanford University," it was typically referred to as the EPGY OHS or Stanford EPGY Online High School, often just "OHS." The school officially commenced on September 7, 2006, with students in grades 10–12. The school accepted thirty students for the inaugural year and projected an eventual enrollment of up to 600 full-time equivalent students. In 2006 Stanford Online High School received official accreditation from the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC). The school was approved as an online provider by the University of California in 2008. Ninth grade was added for the 2008–09 academic year, and with the 2009–10 school year, supported by an additional gift from the Malone Family Foundation, it was able to add a middle-school component for students in grades seven and eight.