A few school administrators in Clovis, California, began a quest to introduce online high school courses in their school district, believing it might cost less to teach classes online than it would to teach students face to face in a classroom. They figured instead of having one teacher fielding a load of 150 students per course, an online course could be bumped up to 200 students per teacher. In operating on that belief about comparative cost advantages, the administrators were holding to one of the biggest myths about online, or virtual, school programs. What they overlooked is this: Various costs must be factored into the development, implementation and maintenance of a strategically planned online school or virtual program for it to become financially sustainable. After attending the first virtual high school symposium in Louisville, Kentucky, in fall 2000, the administrators learned that developing a financially sustainable online program takes many years. As a result, they opted to initiate a part-time online program in their school district. In this article, the author details the fiscal realities of starting and sustaining virtual education programs.