Homeschoolers who want to take advanced courses not offered in their homeschool setting have always been able to enroll in their local public school.
To make more families aware of that opportunity, Guilford County Schools is launching a new marketing strategy in an effort to also boost falling student enrollment. Starting this year, the district’s newly named “GCS Flex” program streamlines the process for homeschoolers to enroll part-time in high school classes at Guilford County Schools.
The school district produced a video to promote the program.
“What we’ve learned post-pandemic is that families want choice,” said Guilford County Schools’ Superintendent Whitney Oakley. “We realize we’re part of that choice continuum, and the more flexible and available we can make these options, the better it off is for all parties, right?”
Homeschoolers who enroll at least part-time in a public school can join sports and clubs, take career and technical classes and free community college courses alongside high school peers, and use the school district’s services like any other student.
“Really, the goal is to just raise awareness of the options that are available for all students in Guilford County,” Oakley said.
Oakley said about 50 students have enrolled in GCS Flex for the upcoming school year, and the district is continuing to take registrations.
The marketing strategy could help raise overall enrollment at the school district, which has fallen since the pandemic. This comes as homeschooling has increased statewide. The number of new registered home schools in North Carolina reached a highwater mark during the 2020-2021 school year, and while that number has come down, it remains higher than before the pandemic. There are nearly 5,000 students homeschooled in Guilford County, according to the latest report from the state’s division of Non-Public Education.
“We don’t know exactly how many of those are high school students, but we know that the older students become, the more they want to explore what they might want to do in their career, and the more specialized courses that they might want to access,” Oakley said.
Homeschoolers who enroll in at least half of a full-time course load will also count toward the public school’s enrollment. That benefits the school, since state funding for public schools is based primarily on a school’s total students in attendance.
“We think of it as a win-win for all parties,” Oakley said.
