N.C. reports record number of home schools

More students are opting to attend home schools, according to a state report released Wednesday.

Statewide, a total of 36,068 home schools operated in 2006-07 - an increase of about 7.1 percent over the previous year and the highest number on record - according to the N.C. Division of Non-Public Education.

Home schools are located in all 100 counties in the state, and 67.3 percent of the home schools classify themselves as religious schools, according to the report.

The counties with the highest number of home schools included Wake (3,250), Mecklenburg (2,776) and Buncombe (1,506). Counties with the least number of home schools were Hyde (31), Alleghany (29) and Tyrrell (18).

For more detailed statistical information, visit the N.C. Division of Non-Public Education Web site at www.ncdnpe.org and click on Home School Statistics. Home school statistics are available back to the 1985-86 school year and trace the rate of new school growth as well as the operational longevity of home schools.

North Carolina officially legalized the concept of home instruction, in modern times, starting with the 1985-86 school year. Home school enrollment now constitutes about 4 percent of the state's compulsory attendance age students (ages 7 through 16).