Guidance

  • West Virginia State Law provides parents the right to provide home instruction to their child in lieu of public education.
  • Parents who wish to provide home instruction do not have a set instructional year and are not required to be certified teachers.
  • Parents may choose any curriculum they see fit in the education of their child.

Notice of Intent to Homeschool

Upon deciding to provide home instruction, the parent of the child receiving home instruction shall provide:

  • A one-time notice of intent to home school to the county superintendent or his/her designee that includes the name, address, and age of the child or children who will receive home instruction
  • Assurance the child shall receive instruction in reading, language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies.

If the child is enrolled in public school, the notice of intent shall be provided on or before the date home instruction is to begin. §18-8-1(A)

Downloads

Homeschool Letter of Intent

Required Credentials

The person or persons providing home instruction shall submit to the county superintendent or designee evidence of a:

  • High school diploma or equivalent,
  • Or a post-secondary degree or certificate from a regionally accredited institution or from an institution of higher education authorized to confer degrees or certificates by the West Virginia Council for Community and Technical College Education or by the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission. §18-8-1(B)

Assessment

Annually, the person providing home instruction shall obtain an academic assessment of the child for the previous school year in one of the following ways:

  • The child takes a nationally normed standardized achievement test published or normed within the previous ten years from the date of administration and administered under the conditions set forth by the published instructions and by a qualified person in accordance with published guidelines in the subjects of reading, language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies; §18-8-1(C)(i)
  • The parent/guardian may contact their local school district to arrange for his or her child to participate in the testing program currently in use in the states’ public schools. The test shall be administered at a public school in the county of residence; §18-8-1(C)(ii)
  • A portfolio of samples of the child’s work is reviewed by a certified teacher who determines whether the child’s academic progress for the year is in accordance with the child’s abilities. The teacher shall provide a written narrative about the child’s progress in the areas of reading, language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies and shall note any areas which, in their professional opinion, show need for remediation; §18-8-1(C)(iii)
  • The child completes an alternative academic assessment of proficiency that is mutually agreed upon by the parent or legal guardian and the county superintendent. §18-8-1(C)(iv)

The parent or legal guardian shall submit to the county superintendent the results of the academic assessment of the child at grade levels three, five, eight, and eleven, as applicable, by June 30 of the year in which the assessment was administered. §18-8-1(E)

Textbooks and Classes Offered by the County Board

  • The county superintendent or designee shall offer assistance by providing instructional resources, teaching material, and other additional available resources, all subject to availability, which may assist the person providing home instruction.
  • Any child receiving home instruction, upon approval of the county board, may exercise the option to attend any class offered by the county board to include career technical education (CTE) and Virtual School programs. §18-8-1(3)
  • Home school students who enroll into public school for half time or less of the instructional day are still considered home school students for purposes of assessment requirements.

Completion of Home Instruction and Diploma

  • Students receiving home instruction do not earn credits through the public school system, however, pursuant to W. Va. §18-8-1a.c, public schools are required to accept credit upon enrollment in a West Virginia public school.
  • A person who administers a program of secondary education in a home school setting may issue a diploma to a person who has completed the program of secondary education.
  • Such diploma is legally sufficient to demonstrate that the person meeting the definition of having a high school diploma or equivalent.
  • No state agency or institution of higher learning in this state may reject or otherwise treat a person differently solely on the grounds of the source of such a diploma. §18-8-12

Work Permit For A Fourteen or Fifteen Year Old Minor

W.Va. Code §21-6-3 authorizes homeschool parents to issue a work permit for students 14 or 15 years of age who receive home instruction.

The State Commissioner of Labor has prepared a work permit for authorized individuals to use.

Work Permit For A Fourteen (14) or Fifteen (15) Year Old Minor

Homeschool Driver’s Eligibility Statement

Current Information:

W.Va. Code §18-8-11(b) requires a signed statement to operate a motor vehicle in lieu of a driver’s eligibility certificate for students being educated pursuant to §18-8-1(c). 

The West Virginia Division of Motor Vehicles provides information for obtaining driver’s licenses. Please visit their website for a same homeschool eligibly statement.

Promise Scholarship Homeschool Requirements

Effective with the Class of 2019, homeschooled applicants must achieve a cumulative grade point average of at least a 3.0 on a 4.0 scale or whatever is considered a “B” average in both core courses AND overall coursework required for graduation.

  • Homeschooled applicants must submit a Homeschooled Grade Report Form and a transcript to qualify.
  • The Core grade point average is determined based on the grades in all core courses a student completes on the core class listing, not just those required for graduation.

Students must complete the minimum core class requirements.  Click here for a complete list of high school core course requirements.

  • English – 4 credits
  • Mathematics – 4 credits
  • Social Sciences – 4 credits
  • Lab-based Sciences – 3 credits

Home school applicants must provide documentation of home-schooled status from your county school board office. If your school enrollment status was not the same for grades 11 and 12 (either public or homeschool), an appeal must be made to HEPC.

Please visit the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission website for assistance with the Promise Scholarship or call (304) 558-4618.