JAMES WOOD
Staff Writer
According to Bedford County Schools’ Director of Attendance, Data and Accountability Dr. Terise Rhodes, homeschoolers make up approximately 12.5% of the student population of the county.
After homeschooling was officially legalized in Tennessee in 1985, families who homeschool their children have been a vocal minority for over 40 years.
Up until 2020 and the COVID-19 pandemic, homeschooling had been a slowly growing percentage of the state but had remained under 6% of the population of Tennessee.
As many schools started to temporarily use distanced-learning during the peak of coronavirus cases, many families switched to homeschooling their children.
According to data from the US Census Bureau, approximately 5.4% of households homeschooled their children in April of 2020. This number later jumped to approximately 13.2% by the following October of that year.
The following years have shown a continuous averaging out of the percentage of students who are homeschooled, remaining significantly higher than pre-pandemic levels with some calculations hovering around 10% from each school year after 2020.
From the 2020–2021 school year through 2025–2026, the number of homeschooled students has grown from approximately 650 to 1,220.
Rhodes also spoke on the regulation that homeschooling is subject to in the State of Tennessee, stating: “Homeschooling in Tennessee is regulated under Independent Home School provisions outlined in Tennessee Code § 49-6-3050. Parents or guardians must submit annual notice to the local director of schools of their intent to homeschool, including student names, ages, grade levels, address, and the proposed curriculum.”
“The parent or guardian must possess a high school diploma or equivalent credential and maintain attendance records, which are subject to review by the local director of schools at the end of each school year. Additionally, students in grades 5, 7, and 9 are required to participate in an approved, secure standardized assessment.”
The impact of the increase of homeschooling in the county may have implications on the local public schooling system, however, as highlighted by Bedford County Schools Director Tammy Garrett at the Jan. 13, 2026 Board of Commissioners meeting.
Funding to the schools may be affected if the attendance of the schools drops in proportion to the student population of the county.
“School funding is based on Average Daily Membership (ADM), which reflects the number of students enrolled in Bedford County Schools,” Rhodes said, “Changes in ADM directly impact state, local, and federal funding allocations to the district.”
With the percentage of homeschoolers staying well above 10% in the county, the presence of the group has now become more influential within the social sphere.