Homeschooling On The Rise In North Carolina Again After Post-Pandemic Fall

This article was originally published in Ed NC.

The North Carolina Division of Non-Public Education has released their annual report on homeschooling statistics, which covers the 2023-24 school year. The report breaks down homeschooling numbers by county, by type of school — religious or independent — and by age.

The statewide total registered home schools increased from 94,154 during the 2022-23 school year to 96,529 this year. That’s a roughly 2.5% increase, marking a rebound after two years of decline following the temporary surge in homeschooling during the pandemic. At its peak during the 2020-21 school year, the number of registered home schools was 112,614.

EdNC focuses its reporting on the number of registered home schools rather than homeschool enrollment since the number of students enrolled in home schools is an estimate . However, for reference, the estimated student homeschool population was 179,900 compared to the 1,358,003 students enrolled in NC traditional public schools at the start of the 2023-24 school year.

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Since the 2016-17 school year , the majority of North Carolina’s 100 counties have seen an increase in the number of registered home schools, with the largest percent increases in Tyrrell, Johnston, Stanly, and Moore counties.

Since the 2020-21 school year peak, however, only a few counties have seen an increase, including Tyrrell County with a 54.8% increase during a period when most of the state saw a decline. Across the Albemarle Sound, Pasquotank County had a decrease of 56.4% over the same time.

With 45,708 independent schools and 50,821 religious home schools registered in the 23-24 school year, the proportion of independent versus religious schools moved closer to an even split. Religious schools made up 52.6% of home schools during the 23-24 school year, down from 60.4% in 2016.

Federal data from the National Center for Education Statistics hasn’t been updated since 2019, when the number of homeschooled students nationwide had fallen for the first time. But regardless of attitudes across the country, it is clear homeschooling is still a popular alternative to public and private schools in North Carolina.

This article first appeared on EducationNC and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.