U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum said last night that he and his wife, Karen, are withdrawing their five school-age children from the Western Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School.

Santorum has come under criticism from officials in Penn Hills, where he owns a house, who say the school district should not have to foot the $38,000 annual bill to educate his children.

The Santorums do not live in the district full time and spend most of their time in Leesburg, Va., outside Washington, D.C.

"The school district has just informed us that after reviewing our situation, only children who live in a community on a full-time basis are eligible to be educated in a public cyber charter school program," Santorum said.

Santorum said he and his wife believe it is important for the family to be together while he is working in Washington and that they would home-school the children from now on.

The cyber school is based in Midland and serves some 3,100 pupils from nearly 400 school districts statewide who attend via computer.