By Tiffany Larrabee
When saying it’s “back to school time,” some people forget that not all children actually leave their homes to receive their education. Schools have been around in one form or another for as long as history has been recorded, but it was around the 1970s when the word “homeschooling” became quite popular.
More and more Parents are choosing to home school their children for varying reasons. Georgia alone has seen a 45% increase in home-schooled students in the last decade. Over 89,000 families are abstaining from the normal brick and mortar buildings¹.
Often it is assumed that most of the families choosing to home-school their children do so solely because of Covid and the pandemic effects, but that is not always the case. Some parents have said they feel more comfortable with being present for their children’s classes. Saying it allows them to be privy to everything their kids are taught.
Religion also plays a major role in the decision making process for many Monroe County parents. They enjoy having their religion be a part of their children’s studies. A select few commented that they felt the teacher’s political choices would not necessarily be in the lessons taught in classes, but still somehow found ways into the classroom.
There are several public, private, and self paced home study programs available to all Georgia residents.
Although many people say they would never home-school their kids because it is so “isolating.” Some of these home-school programs offer the same things as public schools. They have field trips, community days, proms, and even graduations.
The average home-school student’s experience can range anywhere from $500 to $3000 a year, averaging $1295 for grades 1 through 6 and $1636 for grades 7 through 12². Home study students often provide their own desk, laptops, and printers as well. In comparison, the general budget for Monroe County Schools this year equates to over $14,000 per student with almost 50% of that coming from local funding³.
A Senate Bill passed in 2021 called the Dexter Mosley Act, allows home study students from 6th to 12th grade to attend some in person or online classes in local public schools after meeting certain requirements. The people meeting these requirements can also participate in sports and clubs provided by the district. Dr. Jim Finch, superintendent of Monroe County schools, said that there hasn’t been a large number of people taking advantage of this Act but they do have 4 students registered this year.
Sher Epps, principal of Mary Persons High School, commented on the possibilities the Dexter Mosley Act provides for home study students to enjoy our local schools.
With Monroe County being ranked 11th by Niche, a website that uses algorithms and data analysis to rank schools, why be home-schooled? Superintendent Dr. Jim Finch said he has mentioned to board and cabinet members in Monroe County that as many as 700 students are registered for home or private schooling in the district. Dr. Finch commented that they “nervously laugh” about the possibility of all of those students suddenly showing up to attend our local schools, because with the overcrowding issues, there just isn’t space for them. Dr. Finch said they are working diligently to rectify this.
So it seems, home-school helps to provide a balance of sorts to the school system of Monroe County. With the Dexter Mosley Act allowing the crossover through extra classes, sports, and clubs home study students are offered a best of both worlds situation. Collectively everyone seems to agree that no matter if children are homeschooling, attending classes in person, or both, as long as they are being educated the differences in how they get there aren’t important.
Sources:
¹Martha Dalton. (May, 2025). More Georgia families are choosing to homeschool. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. https://www.ajc.com/education/more-georgia-families-are-choosing-to-homeschool/MOYOVVB3UZA7ZNJPYDAVGJG6YQ/#
²Steven Duvall, PhD. (Jan, 2025). The Cost of Homeschooling Today. HSLDA. https://hslda.org/post/the-costs-of-homeschooling-today
³Jasmine Stark. (Aug, 2025). Monroe Schools Tackle Growth Without Raising Millage Rates—For Now. Monroe Matters Magazine.
