Should I Name My Homeschool?

For over 30 years, THSC has been the primary resource for Texas homeschooling families. One of the most common questions that we field is: Should I name my homeschool?

Here’s the quick answer: There’s no legal requirement to name your homeschool. You may choose to do so, but first, consider the pros and cons of that choice.

Even as homeschools are considered private schools under Texas state law, no one can require homeschools to invent a name for themselves.

In the past, homeschool families faced an uphill battle and deep-seated bias whenever they had to explain what homeschooling was and how it worked.

Thus, having an official name for the homeschool helped to overcome some of this bias.

Pros and Cons of Naming Your Homeschool

Pros of Naming Your Homeschool

Because Texas homeschools are a type of private school, many families choose to name their homeschools in order to project a more official image.
Thirty years ago, homeschooling was rare. In those circumstances, naming the homeschool would help families receive more social acceptance.

Cons of Naming Your Homeschool

Naming your homeschool might confuse future college admissions offices or employers, sending up a red flag that your homeschool might really be a “diploma mill.”
In order to make your diploma and transcripts the most legally sound, THSC does not recommend naming your homeschool.
More specifically, THSC has worked with the Texas Attorney General’s office for several years to shut down “diploma mills,” which attempt to defraud unsuspecting families by taking advantage of homeschooling laws.
One of those diploma mills, Marque Learning Center, defrauded as many as 100,000 students, charging each of them between $99 and $1,000 for a bogus high school diploma.

What is a Diploma Mill?

Diploma mills are individuals or entities that offer fraudulent high school diplomas to people who have not graduated from high school.

They usually market their product to students who dropped out of high school, were expelled from high school, or to adults who never graduated and are looking for a second chance.

It is very common for these illegitimate operations to market themselves as legal, alternative homeschools.

How Do Diploma Mills Work?

To be issued a high school “diploma” from a diploma mill, students often have to do nothing more than just pay a fee.

The required fees are often several hundreds of dollars.

After paying your fees, the diploma mill will sometimes just print out a diploma and give it to the student immediately.

THSC received a call from one victim who received his diploma by visiting the personal residence of a woman he spoke with on the phone, giving her $300 and waiting until she printed out his diploma on her home computer.

Other diploma mills require students to take a test that has little or no academic value. After “passing” the test, the student receives the diploma.

Lincoln Academy, another diploma mill exposed by the Texas attorney general with help from THSC, was shut down and ordered to pay $1.4 million in compensation to defrauded customers.

They were discovered after a basset hound was put through Lincoln Academy’s required test and given an “official” diploma.

Still other diploma mills sell a “curriculum” that, once again, has little or no academic value and only separates students from their money.

If the curriculum does have academic value, it will often contain no threshold of comprehension that must be reached before the student receives a diploma.

After a set period of study time has elapsed, students will sometimes take an assessment test.

Some diploma mills simply pass every student who takes the test.

Others may give students an unlimited number of attempts to pass the test and will even provide the students with the test answers.

The student completes the program if they pass this test on the first try.

There is often another waiting period before the graduation ceremony takes place and the diploma is issued.

To be clear, there are many legitimate accelerated high school programs.

The key difference between a legal program and a fraudulent diploma mill is whether any education actually takes place.

If the student is merely paying a fee and receiving a diploma, the program is certainly a fake.

It gets more complicated when the program sets up phony tests or provides a bogus curriculum that doesn’t actually teach anything.

The bottom line is that you must not use a program which doesn’t require actual academic work and doesn’t measure academic achievement.

A diploma from such a program will not get a student into college or even an entry-level job.

How do diploma mills affect homeschools?

Although the rise of diploma mills originally led some to suggest new regulations on homeschools, THSC pointed to the homeschool requirements outlined in the Texas Family Code and the Leeper decision to show that diploma mills are already breaking the law and can be prosecuted.

THSC would adamantly oppose increased regulation on homeschooling.

Because many diploma mills have been shut down or are being investigated by the Attorney General of Texas, many trade schools, colleges and universities in Texas now have a list of diploma mills in their admissions departments and will flag or reject any applications that come in under those names.

Naming your homeschool could lead to your homeschool being flagged as a diploma mill

As one homeschool student found out, even names similar to the listed diploma mill names can result in rejection.

Additionally, businesses and other institutions are increasingly skeptical of any official-sounding high schools that have no web presence or other verifiable credentials.

Universities must be even more cautious—they can be held liable if they don’t exercise due diligence to prevent the fraudulent use of federal student aid by students who didn’t actually qualify.

So, should I name my homeschool?

For the reasons listed above, THSC does not recommend that homeschool families name their homeschools.

If you do, we recommend only including your last name before the word “Homeschool.” For example, “Smith Homeschool” or “Turner Homeschool” are both simple names.

Simple names like this do not alert employers or higher education institutions that your student might be trying to use a diploma mill to gain a job or entrance to a school for which they are not qualified.

When creating homeschool diplomas and transcripts or filling out applications for college and financial aid, we recommend that you simply list “Homeschool” in the name field.

As with the SAT and the ACT, colleges have specific codes for homeschools; you should avoid confusing their system or getting flagged for possible fraud.

Should you choose to name your homeschool, we highly recommend not putting this name on any homeschool transcripts, homeschool diplomas, higher education applications, FAFSA financial aid applications or other official documents.

These are the places where a name is likely to draw extra scrutiny.

Homeschool names don’t give credibility to your homeschool… and the truth is, you don’t need extra credibility!

Over the past 30 years, the laws and environment for homeschool graduates have changed dramatically in Texas.

Our state now has laws which require homeschool students to be treated fairly in college applications or job applications.

THSC has long worked with state and federal agencies to quickly clear up misunderstandings that relate to homeschooling.

We have assisted with issues regarding social security benefits, child support payments, drivers license applications and many others.

Even daytime curfew laws, Child Protective Services problems and conflicts with school districts are more easily resolved today than in prior years.

That does not mean that conflicts never happen or that your family will never experience one.

On the contrary, THSC intervenes on behalf of its members hundreds of times each year to solve conflicts regarding homeschooling.

The difference today is that the law is clearly on our side on every front. Families who homeschool in compliance with Texas law are legally protected.

There is no longer a need to create an official name for your homeschool to gain extra credibility.

In fact, you may find that such a name will invite extra scrutiny by people concerned about fraudulent diploma mills.

What do I do if I have been scammed by a diploma mill?

If you encountered a diploma mill and paid a fee only to receive a fraudulent certificate, we urge you not to stay silent!

Please reach out to the Texas Attorney General’s Office and file a consumer fraud complaint with them today.

You will help them investigate these fraudulent organizations and protect future families.

Things to consider when naming a homeschool

Today, the cultural bias against homeschooling is not what it once was.

Without question, there are still people and institutions who harbor an extreme distaste for the idea of parents raising and educating their own children.

Many more are simply unfamiliar with current homeschooling laws.

THSC has thus dedicated itself to assisting hundreds of members every year in settling disputes and misunderstandings over homeschooling.

However, the increasing cultural acceptance of homeschooling has brought new challenges, impacting even seemingly simple decisions such as naming your homeschool.

Any more questions about naming your homeschool?

In short, though it might sound like a fun and creative thing to designate an official-sounding name for your homeschool, THSC does not recommend it.

We believe homeschooling is one of the best models for educating children, which is why we support parents choosing to homeschool with encouragement and practical resources.

We have homeschool mentors standing by to help you any step of the way. For greater access to expert homeschool coaches, become a THSC member today.

Become a THSC Member

Jessica Lovett

Jessica Lovett is passionate about homeschooling her own kids, sci-fi books, quirky coffee shops, and her scruffy black dog, Bofur. In her spare time, she loves playing the piano and also singing on her church’s worship team. Her writing can be seen on ChristianAnswers.net and her novel Transplanting Hope is available wherever books are sold.

Stephen Howsley, THSC Assistant Manager of Public Policy

Currently the Assistant Manager of Public Policy for the Texas Home School Coalition, Stephen has been working with THSC since 2014. A homeschool graduate himself, he passionately believes in fighting for families’ rights to homeschool. Stephen joined the THSC team as an intern during the second legislative session that THSC had Watchmen in Austin. In addition to having had campaign and mock legislature experience before this, the 2015 Texas Legislature is where Stephen really found his passion for public policy and lobbying. Stephen and his beautiful wife Emma live in Austin, Texas, with their children. In their free time, they love spending time in their community, discovering new restaurants and coffee shops, and exploring the outdoors with their children. Stephen and his family worship and serve at The Austin Stone Community Church in downtown Austin.