FrogMom5 Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 I was telling a friend that it's like pulling teeth to get a response from one of my umbrella schools. She said she had heard at a recent presentation on transcripts that they're all like that. Is that true? Have any of you had difficulties w/your umbrella schools? I don't contact this school that often. But the 2 times I have, it takes several contacts and a few weeks to hear back. For the record, at one of the schools I use response is no problem. But, that one doesn't do transcripts or report cards so maybe the workload is lighter. What are your experiences w/these schools and response time? Denise Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3peasinapod Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 We use Homelife Academy, and we have really good responses. Excellent actually. I think you can use them in Florida. I have heard some slow response times with others, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Halcyon Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 We use Florida Unschoolers (even though we're not unschoolers) and Nance is GREAT. And the school is FREE. She's wonderful and responds usually within an hour, but definitely within a day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TN Mama Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 We use a local umbrella school in TN and have never had any problem with communication. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FrogMom5 Posted May 25, 2011 Author Share Posted May 25, 2011 Halcyon, The school I use for my younger ds is Florida Unschoolers. You're right, Nance is great about responding. But the other one I use, that costs a lot because they prepare transcripts, is the one I'm having trouble getting a response from. The ones mentioned at the presentation were big and national. I just wondered how many people have trouble and how many had no problems with these schools. Thanks for responding everyone. It's good to know that you all are having good experiences with your umbrella schools. Denise Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aelwydd Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 Pardon me for asking...but, what is an umbrella school? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FrogMom5 Posted May 25, 2011 Author Share Posted May 25, 2011 An umbrella school is a type of private school set up to allow you to educate your children at home, usually using your own curricula, but your dc are considered private school students under the law. The advantage to these schools are that they allow you to homeschool without all of the testing and yearly reporting requirements. Some of them will produce transcripts, report cards and diplomas for you. The disadvantage is that you have to report attendance and register as you would with any school - birth cert., health form, and so on. Here in FL, private schoolers can't participate in ps sports so, if you use an umbrella school, your dc can't be on ps sports teams. Not all states have this restriction though. Some of the schools charge a fee and some have their own testing requirements. Others do require certain subjects and/or curricula. Many of these schools, and the ones I use, have no such restrictions or requirements. For me, it's one less hoop I have to jump through. Denise Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aelwydd Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 Ooohhhh, ok! Thanks for explaining that! I think I know why I haven't heard of them before, and that's because I'm in Texas. In Texas, all homeschooling is equivalent to private schooling, so there aren't any standards really. There is a single court case the defined what subjects you must cover, but there is no attendance policy, or testing, or anything like that. What we do have in our area, are these part-time private schools. Maybe that is similar to an umbrella school? We are considering one near us that is a classical education private school, where ds would go to school Tuesdays and Thursdays, but all schooling is ultimately under the parents' auspice. It's kind of a joint effort between the home schooling parents and the teachers. Also, I think that home schoolers are allowed to participate in ps sports or things like band, but it's kind of frowned upon by the local school district. We don't need it anyway, since ds plays hockey for a house team at a local rink, and takes Tae Kwon Do. Plus, there's lots of options for community based sports around here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kirch Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 Also, I think that home schoolers are allowed to participate in ps sports or things like band, but it's kind of frowned upon by the local school district. We don't need it anyway, since ds plays hockey for a house team at a local rink, and takes Tae Kwon Do. Plus, there's lots of options for community based sports around here. From what I understand, homeschooler participation in sports and other extracurricular activities in TX can be tricky (if it's even allowed anywhere??) because of UIL restrictions/requirements. At least that's what I've heard. It could be that they can participate in some places but just not in UIL events?? My guys are still too little to even be looking into such things, but it seems like that's what I've heard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aelwydd Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 Yeah, that's what I meant by the school district frowning on it. I don't know the specifics, and it's pretty much irrelevant to our situation anyway. Ds is only 8, so you know, pretty much all sports are community based at that age anyway. But, I was told by another home schooling mom here, who happens to be a teacher, that it is "legal." Just don't ask me how they work that out, because I have no clue! :confused: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KidsHappen Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 We use Homelife Academy, and we have really good responses. Excellent actually. I think you can use them in Florida. I have heard some slow response times with others, though. We also use Homelife Academy and I have been extremely happy with them. I have enrolled four students with them, graduating two (and getting them into college) and transferring two into PS. I also had to go through them for D.L. paperwork. They have always been great. I highly recommend them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QueenCat Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 We use Homelife Academy, and we have really good responses. Excellent actually. I think you can use them in Florida. I have heard some slow response times with others, though. We use Homelife Academy too. We're in TN but they are also in Florida. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QueenCat Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 What we do have in our area, are these part-time private schools. Maybe that is similar to an umbrella school? We are considering one near us that is a classical education private school, where ds would go to school Tuesdays and Thursdays, but all schooling is ultimately under the parents' auspice. It's kind of a joint effort between the home schooling parents and the teachers. Our umbrella school (in TN) does not have classes but some do have them once or twice a week. We go to a tutorial that meets once a week. You pay for it, the teachers are paid. Parents drop their kids off (although some do teach there). Technically, the parents are still responsible for the education. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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