Where are large homeschooling communities in the US?

[lincap]

If you had the ability to move somewhere and really look anywhere to move, and wanted to find a state or town that had a nice healthy homeschool population where would you move?

 

We are contemplating a move and before hubby starts the job search I want to think about where would be a good place for a homeschooling family.

 

We live in Maine now, and to be honest there are PLENTY of homeschooling families here and it is readily accepted. I would love to have that attitude of "homeschooling is normal" where ever we move.

 

Thoughts?

 

Or the other end... what states would you cross off of your list?

 

Thanks

Linda

[regentrude]

I would very carefully compare my reasons for homeschooling to the reasons of the large group. I am in rural Missouri, homeschooling is very popular - but that does not help me in the least. The majority homeschools for religious reasons (several hundred families in our county), and almost all the rest are unschoolers. So despite the fact that I am surrounded by homeschoolers, we feel isolated because we homeschool for academic reasons, so neither the Christian group nor the unschoolers are a good fit.

 

So, if i could choose solely on these criteria, I would cross of the list all rural areas, the entire Bible belt, and pick a large city with a diversity of opportunities for higher learning which hopefully may attract academically inclined homeschoolers.

[mommymilkies]

I agree, it very much so depends on your "kind" of homeschooling. I've lived places where only unschoolers were really welcome, and here only religious homeschoolers are really welcome. Especially in regards to groups. If you are a Fundamentalist Christian, groups will be easier to find most places. I will assume since you are from Maine, that you will want a larger metropolitan area because rural Midwest or South will be completely NOT what you are looking for. Around Chicago has a lot of opportunities, and IL has almost no hs regulations. NC was fairly easy to hs in and there were a lot more variety in groups in Eastern NC where we lived.

[Butter]

If I had to pick where I want to live, having a lot of homeschoolers wouldn't actually be high on the list precisely for the reasons pp's have given. Instead, as far as homeschooling goes, the state's laws would be more important to me.

[chepyl]

Oklahoma has a huge hs community. Homeschooling is accepted as somewhat normal and is easy, no reporting or regulations.

 

There is a large Christian homeschoolers presence, but there are a couple of large secular groups as well. I am a Christian, but my reasons for homeschooling are academic and family schedule. I have found a large group of the Christian homeschoolers who are seeking a more rigorous education for their kids. I feel there is a good balance.

[Dmmetler]

The Memphis area-between schools that range down to Jonathan Kozol level (several of the schools profiled in his books are in Memphis) to "Ok for average kids, but dream on if you have a kid who is far outside of the range in either direction", and a large Conservative Christian population, there are a lot of homeschoolers, and it's very accepted.

[violamama]

Oregon's easy, very little required by the state and there are multiple-reasoned groups. I wouldn't say homeschooling is "huge" but all the big local kids things (zoo, museums, audubon society, air museums) have hs days. It seems to be growing like crazy, just like most places.

 

I just got home from a conference of hs women from all over the country. Some have super strict states, some loose and easy, but all spoke a lot about their micro-community within their towns as being central to their hs experiences. I think you might look for a specific, easily entered hs community that goes with your philosophy. Better yet, find a town with several groups so you have flexibility.

[Scrub Jay]

I live in the Los Angeles area and there's a huge community here. So much to do, many groups, etc...

[musicianmom]

I live in a small town in middle TN. If all the homeschoolers here went on strike and put their kids in public school, the schools would have an overcrowding crisis. No one even blinks when my dd says she's homeschooled. We have a huge support group for parties and field trips, several co-ops and tutorials, both religious and secular, and a FB group with several hundred members. At least in my experience, people are respectful on religious differences and educational philosophy differences. I will say that political conservatism is greatly prevalent, but political discussion is not encouraged in these groups.

[elegantlion]

Homeschoolers wouldn't be high on my list of reasons to move, for many of the reasons stated above. I would look for rich cultural areas with community outreach, a diverse natural area with outdoor activities, tolerable state homeschooling requirements, and proximity to a decent university. I would use the university for dual enrollment, community classes, or a college option.

 

I'd rather have a community that invests into educational outlets for children and teens than one with simply a lot of homeschoolers.

[briansmama]

I'd move to CA, specifically the Bay Area. Lots of diverse culture, museums, aquarium, focus on academics, and tons of homeschoolers. We are from So. CA and had a great group, but the Bay Area has always been on my radar.

 

And I agree about looking first to the state's requirements- coming from CA where homeschoolers are only required to file a notice of intent to homeschool to a low-regulated state but one that requires standardized testing every few years (OR) really felt like a loss to us. We homeschool for academic reasons as well, specifically so our dc are not forced to learn using a standardized curriculum, so the testing requirement really feels like an intrusion to us.

[Tullia]

New Mexico is an easy state with regard to regulations and you'd find a wide variety of hs philosophies represented here. It's also socially acceptable to homeschool especially in larger communities. If you're too far outside of Albuquerque, Santa Fe, or Los Alamos, access to good internet service and small town perceptions that homeschoolers deprive the local schools can make life difficult. (I'm not as familiar with the southern part of the state.) However, now that notifications are sent directly to the state rather than being funneled through the local district it's a lot easier to avoid ruffling the feathers of local teachers, principals, and staff than when we pulled ds out of the local elementary school.

 

My adopted home state isn't perfect, but one of the things I like most is that non-traditional education at all levels is more accepted here than in other parts of the country, and there are opportunities for historical and cultural studies and lots of outdoor activities. There's not much water, though; we took several field trips on the west coast which ds enjoyed.

[Shellydon]

Texas is supposed to be the largest in the nation.

[UrbanSue]

New Jersey is one of the best states in the nation for homeschool laws--we don't have any! And there are large communities in North Jersey which also gives you close proximity to NYC as well as just to the opportunities that any population-dense area offers. I couldn't even begin to do all the stuff that is advertised on my local groups. The groups up my way seem mostly secular and all over the map philosophically.

 

In South Jersey/Princeton area there are also lots of homeschool things. They tend to get more pulled toward Philly as their "go-to" city so I'm not involved with them.

 

The big drawback to living here is the high cost of living but South Jersey is pretty rural and I think the state is so beautiful. I've only lived here four years and thought I would hate it. But Jersey gets an unfairly bad rap. It's a great place to live--it really has the best of almost everything.

[snowbeltmom]

If I had a child that was thinking about playing Div I or Div II sports in college, I would not want to live in the state of New York. The NCAA requires homeschoolers from the state of NY to get the GED in order to play college sports.

[MrsBasil]

I would love to live in Denver or Colorado Springs. A lot more resources then up here, culturally, educationally, and homeschooling wise. The Springs might be pretty religious though....not sure.

[knittingmama]

Texas is a great place to homeschool. There are tons of homeschoolers in just about any metropolitan area, and it's very accepted. There are also no regulations.

[persephone43]

Oklahoma!! Homeschooling is a protected right in our state constitution...think it may be the only state. Tons of support and resources. Tulsa and OKC are really nice, very affordable and the job market is better when compared to almost every other state. I'm in Tulsa but I grew up in OKC. I would never go somewhere else.

[Shellydon]

I would cross off any state that had regulations or testing. I would be okay with submitting my name to the local district, but that is about it.

[Crimson Wife]

I'd move to CA, specifically the Bay Area. Lots of diverse culture, museums, aquarium, focus on academics, and tons of homeschoolers. We are from So. CA and had a great group, but the Bay Area has always been on my radar.

 

 

The Bay Area is great in terms of homeschooling *IF* you can afford the staggeringly high cost of living. Housing is insanely expensive, income and sales taxes are high, gas is high, groceries are high, and on and on. On the flip side, there are a number of charter school programs that provide hundreds of dollars per child each semester for the (secular) curriculum and classes of your choice.

[Wabi Sabi]

I'm in Indiana just a few miles from a large state university and think that we have it great! No reporting or testing, no real requirements other being obligated to school 180 days/year, plenty of other homeschoolers of all persuasions, access to the arts and culture of the university, lots of diversity. Only downside to my particular town, IMO, is an over saturated job market but I think that's largely true of any college town.

[MistyMountain]

Alaska has a lot of homeschool families, oversight groups you can join and get $2000 in state funds for curriculum and activities, and favorable laws. Although the cost of living is high up here and can be a little isolating since it isn't connected to the rest of the country.

[KarenNC]

I agree, it very much so depends on your "kind" of homeschooling. I've lived places where only unschoolers were really welcome, and here only religious homeschoolers are really welcome. Especially in regards to groups. If you are a Fundamentalist Christian, groups will be easier to find most places. I will assume since you are from Maine, that you will want a larger metropolitan area because rural Midwest or South will be completely NOT what you are looking for. Around Chicago has a lot of opportunities, and IL has almost no hs regulations. NC was fairly easy to hs in and there were a lot more variety in groups in Eastern NC where we lived.

 

 

There's variety in some areas NC, IMO, but specifically around large metropolitan areas. We see the diversity fall off extremely sharply with distance from large areas (ie in the adjacent county even). Even with that, not everything is equally diverse. Here, I would say that most folks will assume that if you homeschool, you are doing so for conservative evangelical Christian religious reasons. We are on the fringes of the largest metropolitan area in the state and it is extremely hard to find science classes for homeschoolers (esp at the upper levels) that are not based on Apologia, for example. I don't know of any outside of dual enrollment.This may be different around Raleigh or Asheville, not sure.

 

Other factors to consider:

• availability of dual enrollment in a local university or community college, and is it available for ages/programs you might want?

• access to resources/materials/classes/extracurriculars from the public school system

• access to virtual charter (some folks equate this with homeschooling, so it might be important to you)

• how widely dispersed are the things you may want to do----how much will drive time affect your participation in the activities that look so good on paper?

• are there adequate activities/opportunities for all ages, not just elementary for instance?

 

[mumto2]

A good friend lived in the Grand Rapids Michigan area. Her opportunities for activities, classes etc were huge. They had a Homeschool Building as a resource. I do think it was easier to be Christian but she seemed to find plenty of other activities. Michigan Home ed laws are good.

[briansmama]

 

 

The Bay Area is great in terms of homeschooling *IF* you can afford the staggeringly high cost of living. Housing is insanely expensive, income and sales taxes are high, gas is high, groceries are high, and on and on. On the flip side, there are a number of charter school programs that provide hundreds of dollars per child each semester for the (secular) curriculum and classes of your choice.

 

 

Very true! I probably should have mentioned that in my original post.

[kirstenhill]

The Twin Cities metro area (Minneapolis, St Paul, plus lots of suburbs) in Minnesota has a big homeschooling community of all types: religious, secular, unschoolers, etc. I think people can find a group of pretty much any kind, and at least where I'm at in Minneapolis it seems pretty accepted. The possible downside is that Minnesota is a state that requires testing...but you don't have to submit the results (you just agree to seek additional testing of your own choice if the student is below the 30th percentile), and any nationally normed test is accepted so it is pretty easy to meet the testing requirements. Oh, and it's cold here. :laugh:

[Um_2_4]

I'm in a valley in Southern CA, and I would look more at resources and state "laws". The state stays out of my business here, but I have little resources within 30-45 minutes drive. So I would like to stay in CA, but move nearer some resources (museums, classes, etc.). The cost of living in those areas is too high though, We couldn't afford to buy a house in those areas.

So I would look for a balance of reasonable COL, state laws, and resources. An area with lots of resources for HSers will most likely have lots of groups to pick from.

[rdj2027]

We currently live just north of Los Angeles and homeschooling is very accepted here. People homeschool for any and all reasons so it was easy for us to find a group. There is a lot to do, the rec department and other groups/institutions offer a wide variety of activities for all ages.

 

We will be moving to the Norfolk,VA area in the summer so if anybody knows of a secular, academically oriented group, here is the opportunity to shine with you knowledge :hurray:

[Mom22ns]

I'm near a larger city in MO and it is a great place to homeschool. We have lots of co-ops, although mostly religious, not all. There are homeschool bands, orchestras, choirs, sports and more. The schools are homeschool friendly although I have had a hard time finding a place to take APs. There is a large enough homeschooling population here that no one blinks when you say you homeschool. There is also enough variety to the homeschoolers that no one assumes you are a religious fanatic, although they may wonder :).

[SebastianCat]

Florida has pretty easy homeschooling laws to follow, and the bigger cities (Tampa, Miami, Orlando, Jax) have large homeschooling populations. I live in Tampa and could name close to 20 different homeschooling groups around town. Most are conservative Evangelical groups, but there are plenty of secular homeschoolers here too.

 

The upside to FL is that the weather is nice all year long and you have access to theme parks, beaches, and activities all over. I am an hour away from Disney, Sea World, Universal, etc. and about 20 minutes away from Busch Gardens or the beach. The housing market is still somewhat depressed, just recovering, so you can buy a house pretty easily.

[lincap]

I just got home! I cannot wait to read through all of these replies!

 

THANK YOU!!!!

[shawthorne44]

Plano, TX is very nice. Enough that there are multiple groups, so you can find one that fits your philosophy. Plus, being in the DFW area there are choices for 4-year college dual enrollment in addition to the community colleges. Maybe because I work for a company of smart people (I am a Mensan and I am of average IQ to my workers), but 3 of the 30 employees have home-schooled kids. Weather is nice (just stay indoors for two months). Housing is cheap. Library is amazing! The competition between Dallas and Fort Worth means that a LOT of money and effort has been spent on cultural mega-projects in both cities, e.g. Fort Worth built Bass Hall, so Dallas built an Opera House.

[happypamama]

There seem to be plenty of homeschoolers (generally on the more conservative side, if that matters to you) in Pennsylvania, and it seems to be well-accepted, with plenty for them to do. Nobody even blinks at us being out and about in the middle of the day. Also, we're allowed to participate in sports and extra-curricular activities at the local schools if we so choose, and I think (but don't quote me on that, because I haven't asked for them) we can get special needs services through the schools too. Yeah, we have to test in a few grades, and yeah, we have to do portfolios every year after age 8, but it's so not a big deal. You just need to look at the school district you're in first, as they can vary about how much grief they give the local homeschoolers. (Mine is very friendly.)

 

Also, PA allows philosophical and religious exemptions to medical checkups and vaccinations, if that matters to you.

[Aspasia]

I live in Northern Virginia and I think this is a great place to homeschool. There are TONS of homeschoolers here, tons of groups, and between VA and DC, arguably some of the best resources as far as museums, historic sites, farms, marine biology, etc. The homeschool grouos seem pretty diverse to me, a non-religious homeschooler. Most of the groups I affiliate with have either a specific or unstated policy banning religious or political talk. Regulations aren't bad--your kids just have to take a test every year (any standardized test you choose). The only downside is the cost of living. Yowza!

 

ETA: I forgot the other downside, and it's kind of a biggie: we're still battling for sports access. Our bill just died in committee...again. But our state organization is fantastic and keeps fighting for it every year. I really believe that by the time it matters for our family, it won't be an issue any longer.

[Parrothead]

I think anywhere you'd pick as long as the area was of some size and reasonably close to civilization would have a decent population of homeschoolers. What specifically are you looking for in a large population? Just more homeschoolers? More opportunity for group participation? Or a large metropolitan area with many opportunities in general?

[sassenach]

Orlando is chock full of homeschoolers. Lots of opportunities.

[HS Mom in NC]

20,000 kids in AZ are homeschooled.

10,000 live in Maricopa County (the greater PHX area.) Me too.

AZ doesn't count people using ps/charter school options online as homeschoolers, so by some people's count, the numbers are higher.

 

There are large Christian groups and large secular groups available.

 

You simply notify them once that your child is hsed and do as you please although the law technically requires you to cover reading, writing, math, science and social studies. When and how you do is up to you-no one checks on you.

 

It's a buyer's market here.

[Dahliarw]

I'm near Seattle and hsing seems to be very accepted here. The laws are pretty easy (they do require testing or evaluation each year, but you don't actually show the results to anyone and no one checks unless you get taken to court for educational neglect). I wish I were closer to the city itself, because there are a lot of hs opportunities available there, but it's a 45 minute drive for me so just not possible. A lot of the area districts have varying homeschool parent co-ops or hs classes. I live in a slightly more rural area (close to suburbia though) and even out here, within a 20 minute drive, I have a really good writing program I could send ds to (but it's too much $$$), an art class, homeschool playgroup at the Y for free, homeschool gymnastics, and 2 districts with homeschool co-op programs. I'm sure there are more I haven't discovered, and I know there are more options within Seattle itself.

[laughing lioness]

Have you looked at Richard Florida's book, What's Your City? He has some amazing charts and graphs that might help you determine what you are looking for. Instead of the world being flat (Friedman) he is saying that the world is "spiky"- the more spiky the more diversity. I fits with this discussion from the stand point of what Regentrude mentioned.

[Nscribe]

I would want:

1) A state with friendly/reasonable homeschool laws

2) Colleges within a distance, reasonable to visit (without driving longer in the day than actually being there)

3) Climate that encourages people to be out and about

4) Good broadband

5) High levels of civic/charitable/organization involvment

6) Decent libraries

7) Comfortable home and yard

 

While the sheer number of homeschoolers might show up eventually on the list, the resources that I use and living where I am happy is really more important to me than a pool of possibles.

[marbel]

My experience in PA is a bit different than the pp above. I live in the Philadelphia area and homeschooling doesn't seem to be very well-known or popular here. My kids are high school age and we know very few kids their ages who are not in cyber/charter schools or in co-ops. Most of the co-ops I've checked out either have a religious focus, or an almost anti-religious focus. We really haven't found much in the way of homeschool community once my kids outgrew park days.

 

The state regulations are pretty intrusive but they can be managed.

 

There are lots cultural opportunities here, but if you are looking for community, I'm not sure this is a great place for it.

[JumpedIntoTheDeepEndFirst]

I would want:

1) A state with friendly/reasonable homeschool laws

2) Colleges within a distance, reasonable to visit (without driving longer in the day than actually being there)

3) Climate that encourages people to be out and about

4) Good broadband

5) High levels of civic/charitable/organization involvment

6) Decent libraries

7) Comfortable home and yard

 

While the sheer number of homeschoolers might show up eventually on the list, the resources that I use and living where I am happy is really more important to me than a pool of possibles.

 

 

I would add:

8) access to sports via schools or clubs or community centers, etc.

9) access to outside activities that interest you, ie Scouts, 4-H, robotics leagues, astronomy clubs, etc.

10) ability to practice your faith comfortably

 

(And I love a good used book store in the area-but it's not a deal breaker :001_smile: oh and museums and theaters are plus too)

[Sebastian (a lady)]

I live in Northern Virginia and I think this is a great place to homeschool. There are TONS of homeschoolers here, tons of groups, and between VA and DC, arguably some of the best resources as far as museums, historic sites, farms, marine biology, etc. The homeschool grouos seem pretty diverse to me, a non-religious homeschooler. Most of the groups I affiliate with have either a specific or unstated policy banning religious or political talk. Regulations aren't bad--your kids just have to take a test every year (any standardized test you choose). The only downside is the cost of living. Yowza!

 

ETA: I forgot the other downside, and it's kind of a biggie: we're still battling for sports access. Our bill just died in committee...again. But our state organization is fantastic and keeps fighting for it every year. I really believe that by the time it matters for our family, it won't be an issue any longer.

 

 

No Va there are enough folks to field homeschool teams and there are many club based sports teams (swimming gymnastics shooting archery orienteering etc. and crew may well go back to being club based since VHSL just dropped it as a high school sport. ). So no high school sport access but ok availability in other venues.

[Sebastian (a lady)]

If you had the ability to move somewhere and really look anywhere to move, and wanted to find a state or town that had a nice healthy homeschool population where would you move?

 

We are contemplating a move and before hubby starts the job search I want to think about where would be a good place for a homeschooling family.

 

We live in Maine now, and to be honest there are PLENTY of homeschooling families here and it is readily accepted. I would love to have that attitude of "homeschooling is normal" where ever we move.

 

Thoughts?

 

Or the other end... what states would you cross off of your list?

 

Thanks

Linda

 

I don't like that NY homeschoolers seem forced to get a GED. I don't like PA laws which strike me as over paternalistic and favoring families who pay umbrella schools - in effect creating three tiers of public/private school diploma, "certified" homeschool diploma and (what, regular? Uncertified? Independent?) homeschooler.

 

We chose VA over MD because of issues like taxes, governance and governmental restriction in general.

 

I like areas with other homeschoolers but would rather be a solitary homeschooler in an area with solid libraries, museums and other families who value education than be in a high homeschooler area with poor schools and infrastructure (museums and libraries) where education is not valued and supported.

 

And as others have mentioned a quantity of homeschoolers with very different goals aren't much help and may actually hinder.

 

I might not move to the No Va/DC area right now as the possibility of sequester is making jobs rather scarce.

[Guest othranch]

Thanks for all the input!

[G5052]

Diversity was nice for awhile, but as mine became teens I found that we had to be more thoughtful about local involvment. We are aiming for competitive college admission and need merit aid to do that, and frankly the local clases and groups just aren't oriented that way. We're pretty much forging our own way now, and mine prefer more mixed activities over homeschool activities. We have a good local community college with transfer agreements, and that would be a must as a backup if we don't get merit aid.

 

So there would be many options if I moved now. I don't plan to move though!

[AngelBee]

We live in MN and find it very easy to homeschool here. :) There is a TON of options and groups.

 

 

The Twin Cities metro area (Minneapolis, St Paul, plus lots of suburbs) in Minnesota has a big homeschooling community of all types: religious, secular, unschoolers, etc. I think people can find a group of pretty much any kind, and at least where I'm at in Minneapolis it seems pretty accepted. The possible downside is that Minnesota is a state that requires testing...but you don't have to submit the results (you just agree to seek additional testing of your own choice if the student is below the 30th percentile), and any nationally normed test is accepted so it is pretty easy to meet the testing requirements. Oh, and it's cold here. :laugh:

[Scuff]

Detroit has a pretty diverse homeschooling community. And lots of opportunities for activities. Not so many opportunities for jobs.