“Homeschooling can pave fast track to college” plus 2 more |
- Homeschooling can pave fast track to college
- Religious exemption criticized
- School expenses may be tax deduction
| Homeschooling can pave fast track to college Posted: 12 Aug 2010 01:20 PM PDT Published: Thursday, August 12, 2010, 4:01 PM Updated: Thursday, August 12, 2010, 4:10 PMSouthwest Michigan teens use college courses to create customized curriculumPORTAGE — Portage resident Brooke Rowland made headlines this June after being named Miss Michigan Teen USA 2009. But what many people may not know: Rowland will begin her senior year at Western Michigan University this fall — at age 17. Rowland, who is majoring in public law and minoring in economics at WMU, is among a small national cohort of homeschooled students who enter their college years before they turn 18. In Rowland's case, she was carrying a full-time courseload at Kalamazoo Valley Community College — and a 4.0 grade point average – by age 14, and transferred into WMU at 16. For Rowland and her siblings, learning at home was not only effective — it was efficient, she said. "It allowed us to learn at our own pace, with a customized curriculum, a lot of individualized attention and no wasted time — no bus rides or breaks between classes," Rowland said. Local university officials say the unique educational experiences of homeschool students frequently produce high-achieving collegians. Still, they caution, because so few enter college at 14 or 15 years old, it's hard to know whether most children who do so are likely to succeed. No national organization tracks college admissions for homeschooled minors. Admissions officers at WMU and Kalamazoo College say the numbers are small — less than half a dozen have been accepted annually at each school in recent years. However, "five years ago, we probably wouldn't have had any," said Penny Bundy, admissions director at WMU. In Michigan, 1,266 students attended 757 reporting home schools during the 2008-09 school year, and numbers have steadily declined since reaching a high of 2,980 students in 1995-96, according to the latest data published by the Michigan Department of Education. But those numbers likely understate the true number of homeschoolers since family aren't required to register with the state Education Department. The National Home Education Research Institute statistics count about two million children in grades K-12 as homeschooled in the United States today, and estimate this population to have grown between 5 and 12 percent annually over the past several years. Studies show that homeschool students tend to score above average on standardized tests like the SAT and ACT — both of which figure prominently in college admissions decisions — but they attend college at roughly the same rate as their public school peers. Bundy said homeschooled students are often skilled at working independently to achieve goals, since many come from academic environments where several siblings are learning at different paces. Too, students schooled in the home often exhibit "a keen sense of inquiry," Bundy said. Zaide Pixley, K-College's dean of advising and dean for first-year students, said that homeschooled students are generally "good critical thinkers" and "highly motivated." But Pixley also said that minors from any academic background often have trouble transitioning into university life. At K-College, first-year students are required to live on campus; at WMU, they are not. While Pixley cautioned that she could not speak specifically about young homeschooled students, as K-College sees few of them, she advised young students from all backgrounds–public or non-public–to take "a gap year" to work or explore other interests before enrolling in college in order to acquire more life experience. Bundy suggested taking advantage of dual-enrollment programs, which allow students to take college courses counting toward both high school — or homeschool — and college transcripts, as a way to ease the transition from a homeschool to a college environment. Dual enrollment programs are offered at WMU, K-College and KVCC. Erin Brown-Conroy, a former Kalamazoo resident who now lives in Brighton, has homeschooled ten of the family's 12 children. Brown-Conroy's adult daughter Kelly, now serving a medical fellowship at the University of Rochester Medical Center in Rochester, N.Y., entered KVCC as a full-time college student at age 13, transferred to WMU at 16, and graduated with a pre-med major days before her 19th birthday. Brown-Conroy said used to encounter skepticism while Kelly was growing up. "It's all anybody asked: 'Are you sure her social skills are going to be OK?'" Brown-Conroy said. Brown-Conroy pointed out that the Kalamazoo Area Home School Association — and similar groups across the country — organize sports, theater productions and other activities that provide homeschool students with social outlets. And just because homeschool students may be progressing toward early college, it doesn't follow that all will want to pursue it, she said. Brown-Conroy's son James chose to spend his junior and senior years at Heritage Christian High School. Daughter Caitlin decided to intern for former Michigan representative Jack Hoogendyk before entering KVCC. "It's a decision that parents and students should make together," Brown-Conroy said. This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
| Religious exemption criticized Posted: 13 Aug 2010 03:12 AM PDT Homeschooling group objects to modified policy, lack of sayBy M.K. Luther - mkluther@nvdaily.com FRONT ROYAL -- Homeschooling advocates on Thursday appealed to the Warren County School Board to void an amended religious exemption policy approved in July. The School Board voted 4-1 in July to approve a modified regulation and policy to excuse pupils from mandatory school attendance based on a draft consensus policy. In June, the School Board held a first reading of a regulation requiring a sworn release form from parents to receive a religious exemption. The draft regulation also included the option of submitting a letter describing religious beliefs. At the July 8 meeting, Board member Joanne Cherefko asked for the draft religious exemption regulation to be amended, including a requirement for parents to submit a letter to the School Board describing their religious beliefs. The board approved the modified regulation and procedure 4-1, with member Kimberly Athey voting against. During Thursday's public comment period, Mary Kay Clark, of Seton Home Study School in Front Royal, read into the record a joint statement signed by five Warren County homeschooling groups. The statement objected to the board's decision to vote on the religious exemption regulation without allowing the public the opportunity to comment on the amendments. Describing the required letter amendment as "a substantial change," Clark asked the board to "reconsider the amendment for the sake of justice" and place the item on the next meeting agenda for first and second readings. Vice Chair Joanne Cherefko addressed the public concerns and explained that school boards do not usually hold first or second readings on a regulation or a procedure because they are " the detailed manner of the implementation of the policy delegated by the board to the superintendent." However, because the topic of religious exemption ignited a debate in the community, the School Board chose to open the process to the public and solicit input from parents and homeschoolers, Cherefko said. "In the spirit of cooperation and community, however, we did include many of the elements suggested by the homeschooling parents' representatives and the community," Cherefko said. Cherefko said she believed the approved regulation was "fair and reasonable." She went on to note that the regulation could be revisited. "Let's see how this regulation works for our board and our community," Cherefko said. Board member Kimberly Athey was absent from Thursday's meeting. The Warren County School Board next meets at 7 p.m Sept. 9. This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
| School expenses may be tax deduction Posted: 13 Aug 2010 06:41 AM PDT BATON ROUGE – Louisiana families are reminded to retain receipts as documentation for back-to-school items that might be eligible for the Louisiana School Tuition and Expense Tax Deduction. The deduction applies to 50 percent of the cost of eligible items, up to $5,000 per student. Eligible expenses include: • Elementary and secondary school tuition• Purchases of school uniforms required by the school for general day-to-day use. • Purchases of textbooks, curricula, or other instructional materials required by the school. • Purchases of school supplies required by the school. • Homeschooling expenses are eligible as well. In order to claim the deduction, you must be able to claim the student as a dependent on your Louisiana Individual Income Tax Return. Deductions for eligible expenses paid during 2010 can be claimed on state tax returns due by May 16, 2011. More information is available at www.revenue.louisiana.gov/schooldeduction. This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
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