Associated Press - November 1, 2009 1:04 PM ET

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) - Budget cuts could force Missouri's online school to unplug halfway through the academic year. That could leave some students scrambling to complete their education.

Gov. Jay Nixon announced last week that he is halting state funding for the Missouri Virtual Instruction Program's second semester as part of $204 million in budget cuts. He said students could continue their courses if parents or local school districts picked up the cost.

But that may be unlikely, because many families and public schools also are financially strapped.

Monica Beglau is executive director of the eMINTS National Center, a nonprofit business unit of the University of Missouri that runs the online school. She says some of the online students are taking classes at home because they have cancer. Others are just a few credits short of graduation.

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