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Church-related schools charts
Add your school or submit
corrections via
this form
.
As of 4/26/05 I've deleted many schools from
these charts that have failed to respond to repeated requests for
additional information. If your school was deleted you are welcome to
fill in the form at
http://TnHomeEd.com/CRSForm.html
to have it listed.
CRS comments.
Subscribers to the TnHomeEd Yahoo e-list can access the
CRS comments file. This is a place where our members can post their
comments regarding church-related schools they've used. Members of
our list can access the file at:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TnHomeEd/files/CRS%20recommendations/
To subscribe to the list start at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TnHomeEd
A CRS is a
Church Related School as
defined by
TCA 49-50-801 . These
act as cover schools or umbrella school giving folks alternatives not
offered by registering with the
local education agency.
The following chart of CRS's is based on the
list supplied by the State of Tennessee, Department of Education
list of private schools (non-publics) which register homeschoolers. From that list
I've added to the CRS Chart some schools that choose not to be on the DOE list
as well as
additional contact information and more specific information about the services
these schools provide. The list is alphabetical.
The DOE list contains all non-public schools they
know of. For your convenience I've pulled only the schools that register
homeschoolers and are listed with the Department of Education and
created the Excel files below. Remember, there is no requirement to
register with the Dept. of Education and so several very popular
church-related schools aren't on the list. Despite not being on this
list they are still legal covers for homeschoolers.
2006-07
Church Related School registered with the Tn Department of
Education.
2005-06 Church
Related Schools registered with the Tn Department of Education.
IMPORTANT:
The DOE list is kept as a convenience to the DOE, school
superintendent's, school personnel and the general public. It isn't
mandated by Tennessee Code. The list isn't a list of "approved"
schools as the DOE doesn't have to approve the school. These
schools are given permission to register homeschoolers via the
Tennessee Code at
TCA 49-50-801 and
not necessarily by the DOE. The DOE can approve a school but that's
an option, not a requirement. A school may not be on the DOE list and still be an
entirely legal church-related school.
Also: there is
a nasty rumor that won't die that a CRS must have a physical brick and
mortar campus and hold classes. Such is NOT mandated by
TCA 49-50-801. Yes,
some judge could opine that the term school = brick and mortar with
certified teachers holding classes daily. A judge could also opine that
the sky is falling.
The Chart: Tennessee has well over 100 Church
Related Schools listed by the Department of Education. They're not all
listed at TnHomeEd for various reasons to include they're exclusive to
their church membership, haven't been helpful about keeping their
information current or there hasn't been time to call and verify
their information. You will find all the biggies and most well thought
of listed here. If your CRS isn't included and you'd like it to be
fill in the form here.
Start by clicking below on Page 1 or the letter of
the CRS school you'd like more information about.
Category number definition see:
http://www.state.tn.us/sos/rules/0520/0520-07/0520-07-02.pdf
The Jeter Memorandum can be read
here
. It essentially says that a CRS can consider the parent to be a teacher
with that school and your home a satellite campus of their school.
According to Attorney Kaye Jeter who wrote the opinion that makes your
children 'private schoolers' and not technically 'homeschoolers'. This
is a fine legal distinction that, while the opinion of a Department of
Education attorney, approved by the then Commissioner of Education and
Governor, does not have the force of law.
Cost:
example--$40, $30, $30, Max $110 would mean the first child is $40, the
second $30, the third and remaining $30 each to a maximum of $110 per
family.
Associations:
A dash in
a block means the answer is unknown.
Statements of Faith:
For those of you who cannot sign the Christian
statement of faith most CRS's require, these schools do not require a
statement or the use of specific curriculum:
Picking
a CRS
Too frequently school districts tell parents that they must use specific
schools. This is only partly true. No matter where in the state you live you are
free to use whatever church-related school that meets the criteria of the
law and, of course, your family's needs. The State Department of Education
does produce a list of "Non-public
schools" but versions of this list have not always included some of the most
popular church-related schools used by homeschoolers.
There are also some homeschool organizations that
prefer or refer folks to specific schools. Certainly the
recommendations of satisfied customers is valuable but, again, there
is no legal requirement to use any particular school beyond it
meeting the accreditation
required in the law.
Things to consider when choosing a CRS is what they
require of you (fees, testing, curriculum, attendance, your
participation in on campus activities, agreement with codes of
conduct or statements of faith, etc.) and what you require of them
(record keeping, tutorials or extra-curricular activities, privacy,
freedom to choose curriculum, or not to test, or immunize).
Some church related schools are quite strict and
will require personal information over and above the legal
requirement, weekly meetings with parents, specific curriculum,
specific church attendance or membership, testing, adherence to a
dress code and other things. Many will not. If you feel
uncomfortable with any of the requirement of the school there are a
lot to choose from just move on to one that does fit you. And if you
don't discover that ill fit until after you've registered it is
quite legal to transfer your child to another church related school
at any time during the year. You might also want to
check
the recommendations from our e-list members.
To recap: There are three (3) "homeschooling" paths
in Tennessee.
1. Register with the local school district as an
"Independent Homeschooler"
2. Register with a CRS as a
"Homeschooler"
3. Register with a CRS as a
satellite of their school.
Only the last two options require registering with a
church-related school. See the links for more indepth information on
each option.
Kay Brooks
Founder
TnHomeEd.com
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