As a parent who is homeschooling your child in North Carolina, you've taken on the challenges posed by the state's numerous homeschooling laws and regulations in exchange for the privilege of being able to provide your child with a personalized education. There are a number of notice, qualification, curriculum, testing, and reporting requirements that you need to follow in order to comply with North Carolina's Elementary and Secondary Education laws. This guide is intended to highlight some of the most critical of those requirements. If you have questions about your particular homeschool situation, contact the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team at 888.535.3686 or use our contact form to schedule a confidential consultation with one of our experienced attorneys to learn more about how we can help.
Who Can Homeschool in North Carolina?
North Carolina requires homeschoolers to register with the state as private schools. To be eligible to do so, the parent must have a high school diploma or an equivalent, such as a GED or HiSET certification. The parent must submit a Notice of Intent to Operate a Home School to North Carolina's Non-Public Education System (DNPE) and elect to operate as a religious or a non-religious school. The Notice of Intent (NOI) can only be submitted from July through April and normally won't be accepted by the DNPE in the months of May or June except where there are extenuating circumstances.
As part of submitting a NOI, you must also provide “diploma evidence” for each person who will be teaching any child who will be homeschooled. This can be in the form of a photo of your diploma or GED, a copy of your high school transcript, or a letter from the school confirming when you graduated and what degree you received. You must provide this information for your homeschool's “Chief Administrator” as well as for each person who will be teaching. You'll also need to identify the number of children you'll be teaching and their ages and gender. This information needs to be updated each year.
Teachers can include parents as well as others, such as outside tutors, certified teachers, and anyone else who meets the DNPE's diploma requirements and is knowledgeable about the subject or subjects that they'll be teaching. Parents can also enroll their children in a private online school (often referred to as a “distance learning” program), but they must still enroll as a home school with the DNPE, listing the parent as the school's owner, Chief Administrator, and instruction provider. They must also meet all other homeschooling laws, including testing and record-keeping requirements. This applies even if the homeschooled student is enrolled in one or more courses at the North Carolina Virtual Public School, because it does not grant degrees, but instead operates as a “supplemental service” to public schools in the state.
Homeschools registered with the DNPE may teach students from the household that submitted the NOI and a maximum of one additional household. If students from additional homes want to be instructed at the homeschool, it must register as a regular non-public school.
It's important to keep your contact information current. The DNPE can terminate a home school if it provides an invalid address, or if any mail sent to the homeschool is returned by the USPS as undeliverable.
If you fail to register your homeschool with the DNPE, you can be charged with a violation of North Carolina's compulsory attendance laws, a conviction of which can be a Class 1 misdemeanor, resulting in a fine and jail time.
The Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team can help you navigate North Carolina's homeschool registration process. If you have questions about how it works or what your rights are as a parent involved in providing your child with a home-based education, contact one of our experienced student defense attorneys today.
What Subjects Must Homeschoolers Teach in North Carolina?
North Carolina does not require homeschools to follow any particular curriculum. The North Carolina Department of Public Instruction publishes a Standard Course of Study that can be used as a guide but isn't required to be followed by homeschoolers.
Because homeschooled students must take at least one national standardized test each year; parents may elect to include instruction in the areas that will be tested. However, because North Carolina doesn't specify what has to be taught – not even at the subject level – the decision of what subjects to teach is left to the parents. That said, because the results of standardized tests may be used for other purposes, such as to apply for college or to confirm that the homeschool is meeting its requirements in terms of number of days of teaching per year, it is important to pay attention to what others may expect your child to have learned at various points in their schooling.
What Records Must Homeschoolers Keep in North Carolina?
The DNPE has the right to periodically review your homeschool records to make sure that you're meeting North Carolina's homeschool requirements. It will provide you with about two weeks advance notice of the place, dates, and times when the DNPE will be scheduling local meetings with homeschoolers to review the school's records. The record review meetings are voluntary, and invitations are sent to randomly selected homeschools. Alternatively, the DNPE has the right to conduct a home visit, or to require the Chief Administrator to attend a record review meeting at a local library or municipal building.
Homeschool attendance records should reflect each day when the student attended or missed school. They should also show that the school meets North Carolina's requirement that the school operates on a “regular schedule” for “at least nine calendar months of the year.” Immunization records for each homeschooled student must also be maintained.
The Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team can help you understand your legal obligations to maintain student records and can advise you if you have questions about the DNPE's record review meeting process.
Must my Homeschooled Child be Immunized?
Because homeschools in North Carolina are considered non-public schools, they must also comply with the state's student immunization requirements. Homeschool parents who have religious objections to their child being immunized must provide the DNPE with a written statement of their objection and the name of the student to which it applies. Separate written statements must be submitted for each child. North Carolina does not permit personal objections to immunization requirements that are not based on the parent's religious beliefs.
What Standardized Tests Are Homeschooled Students Required to Take in North Carolina?
Homeschooled students are required by North Carolina law to take a national standardized test each school year. The tests must cover English grammar, reading, spelling, and mathematics; they must measure student achievement and must provide “Nationally standardized reporting scores.” The DNPE maintains a list of sources for nationally standardized tests, though it notes that the list isn't an endorsement of any particular test.
Does North Carolina Require the Use of Certain Textbooks for Homeschooled Children?
Just as North Carolina does not have a specific curriculum requirement for homeschooled students, it does not require homeschoolers to use any particular textbooks. The state will not provide textbooks to homeschoolers. Each homeschool must find its own teaching materials, whether they're traditional textbooks, online materials, or other learning programs available from third parties.
Are Homeschooled Students Eligible for Special Education Benefits in North Carolina?
Students enrolled in a homeschool program do not receive special education resources such as Individualized Education Plans (IEP) from the DNPE or the state in cases where their local public school provides special education benefits required under federal and North Carolina law. Students with special needs may be eligible to receive a free comprehensive evaluation from the school district, which would provide information about the child's needs and educational challenges; it would then be up to the parent to decide whether or not to enroll the child in the public school so that the school could provide the various types of special education services designed to specifically address the child's individual educational needs (such as would be described in detail in an IEP).
In some situations, the special needs child may also be eligible for services (through a Service Plan written for the child) that the local school district provides to students who are not enrolled in the district but have special needs; these tend to be significantly less comprehensive than those available to enrolled students.
If you've removed your special needs child from the public school because the school failed to meet its obligations to provide your child with a “free appropriate public education” (FAPE), you may be eligible to be reimbursed for the costs of doing so. This would only happen in cases where a court or hearing officer decides that the school failed to make a FAPE available to your child.
Securing a reimbursement of your private enrollment costs isn't certain or easy. The Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team can help you navigate the standards that apply and can represent you in your discussions with school officials and with any complaints you may be eligible to file if your child's special education needs have not been properly met.
If you have questions about your special needs child's rights, whether enrolled in their local public school or attending a North Carolina homeschool, contact the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team. Our experienced student defense attorneys understand North Carolina's homeschool and special needs education laws and can protect your child's right to receive the education and special needs benefits they're entitled to.
Do Homeschooled Students Have a Right to Take Any Classes at the Public School?
Homeschooled students may be eligible to take classes part-time at a local public school or, for students aged 16 and above, at a local college. For students aged 7 through 15, enrolling at the local public school or college on a part-time basis depends on the policies of the local school or school district. These will vary from one school or district to another.
Can Homeschooled Students Participate in Interscholastic Athletics in North Carolina?
The North Carolina High School Athletic Association (NCHSAA) is the organization that governs interscholastic high school athletics in North Carolina. Under its rules and regulations, homeschooled students are permitted to participate in interscholastic sports at their local high schools. They must provide documentation that they are being educated in a state-registered home school and must “communicate athletic intent” at the high school in their district, as well as follow “enrollment and assignment procedures/policies” set by the school's local board of education.
To meet the NCHSAA's academic eligibility requirements, the homeschooled student's standardized test results must demonstrate that they are “on grade level,” and they must pass all of the courses in which they're enrolled at their local school. Their local school district must also agree that the student will be covered under the district's catastrophic insurance policy, or that an independent catastrophic insurance policy covers the student's participation in interscholastic athletics.
It can sometimes be difficult to navigate the NCHSAA's rules and regulations, some of which change from year to year, and local school officials don't always properly follow the latest requirements. If your local public school has refused your homeschooled child's request to try out for or compete on one of the school's athletic teams, contact the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team for help. We have advised students and their families across the US on high school athletics eligibility issues and are ready to help your homeschooled student protect their rights to compete at the high school level in North Carolina.
Can Homeschooled Students Participate in Other Extracurricular School Activities in North Carolina?
There is no legal requirement for local schools to allow homeschooled students to participate in extracurricular activities in North Carolina. Schools and school districts are free to decide on their own whether to allow local homeschooled students to participate in clubs and other extracurricular student activities.
If you have questions about your local district's policy on allowing homeschooled students to become involved in extracurricular activities, or believe the school or district is violating its own policies by refusing to allow your child to become involved in an extracurricular program, contact the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team for help. We are here to fight for your child's rights.
Are Homeschooled Students Eligible for Work Permits in North Carolina?
Children under the age of 18 must have a Youth Employment Certificate to work in North Carolina. The certificate is issued by the North Carolina Department of Labor, not by the child's local school. There are no special procedures that apply when a homeschooled child applies for a Youth Employment Certificate.
The Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team Can Help You With Your North Carolina Homeschool Questions
The Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team has helped students across the country, including in North Carolina, protect their right to receive a proper education. When it comes to homeschooling, our experienced attorneys understand North Carolina's detailed requirements for establishing and operating a home-based school. We are here to advise you when you have questions and to protect your rights and your child's rights when they are challenged by local schools, school districts, or the DNPE.
Call us to learn more about how we can help you protect your ability to give your child the benefits of homeschooling. The Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team can be reached at 888.535.3686 or by using our contact form to schedule a confidential consultation.
