I was invited onto the HomeschoolYoKids Podcast, hosted by Jae Carter, and was asked to give her audience three takeaways. My immediate response was, “You can do this; you are not alone; and your kids will be all right.” As I unpacked my response, I realized that it addressed the three most common fears facing anyone venturing into the unconventional learning space, whether as a parent or as a founder: the fear that they are unqualified, the fear that they’ll be all alone, and the fear that their kids won’t get “enough” or will be missing something. My answer touched on something that both educational founders and parents need to be regularly reminded of. As I spoke to her audience, I found myself once again speaking to myself.
“Can I really do this?” Encased in our own humanity is a thread of frailty where we question ourselves and our abilities. Even after homeschooling for 22 years, speaking on local and national platforms, authoring an e-book encouraging homeschooling through high school, and running eXtend Homeschool Tutorial since 2017, I still have those days. I still have those moments in the midst of overwhelming evidence to the contrary, where I wonder whether I can do this. If you’re experiencing this, know that you’re not alone and that it is perfectly normal.
Ask any entrepreneur, and they will tell you that Imposter Syndrome is real. Whatever label you put on it, at its root is doubt, the fertile soil where discouragement grows. We all face it, and we all need to be reminded that whatever endeavor we’ve undertaken, whether moving our child into an unconventional program or building and growing a new kind of learning environment, is one that we are capable of. Wherever you are on that continuum, know that these feelings will come. The goal isn’t to pretend they don’t exist; it’s to refuse to let them have the final word.
One of the greatest antidotes to doubt is community. With a simple online search, there are endless sources of support and encouragement available to you: Facebook groups for unconventional learners and founders alike; national organizations such as Home School Legal Defense Association and the National Microschooling Center, which connect families with local support and communities; and podcasts such as the LiberatED Podcast, which inspire families and founders alike to keep going. On an even larger scale, there are local, regional, and national conventions for both parents and founders. Websites such as TheHomeSchoolMom list local parent events by state, and organizations like VELA, the largest network of “indie educators,” exist specifically to connect, empower, fund, and equip educational entrepreneurs in part through such events. Together, these communities and organizations send a consistent message: You can do this.
“Am I all alone?” For parents, the prevailing media image of homeschooling is a lone parent at a kitchen table with their student. What that image fails to capture is the reality that so many families in the world of unconventional education are teaching their children in community, from simple elective-driven co-ops to full academic microschools, and everything in between.
According to a 2025 report by Dr. Angela Watson, Director of the Johns Hopkins Homeschool Research Lab, homeschooling grew nearly 5% in the 2024–25 school year, with more than a third of reporting states reflecting record enrollment numbers. Research from the National Microschooling Center found that microschools grow an average of 73% within their first six months, climbing to 130% by the end of their first year, and 251% between their first and second year. This growth of parents entering homeschooling and, by extension, unconventional education is undeniable, and according to Dr. Watson, “shows no sign of slowing down.” These numbers represent “a fundamental shift in how American families are thinking about education.” As more states embrace school choice and give parents access to state dollars, unconventional programs are expanding, learning communities are multiplying, and more parents than ever are choosing to educate in community rather than isolation.
Yet, even in these settings, parents will still experience moments where they feel alone, where whatever struggle they’re facing with their student feels unique to them, as if no one else could understand. However, if a parent is willing to step out and be vulnerable enough to share that struggle, especially in the context of a supportive community, they will find that they are not alone at all. Parents in these groups often connect over shared experiences, shared victories, and shared struggles. Families never need to feel like they are on their own, because the truth is, they aren’t.
Founders can face a similar version of this fear. The old adage, “It is lonely at the top,” doesn’t have to be an ongoing reality. The rise in microschools and other unconventional settings has brought a rise in local and national groups and conferences designed to bring founders together. Over the years, as I have attended these conferences, a common thread emerges: founders discover that they are not alone. They discover a community of educational entrepreneurs willing to share their victories as well as setbacks, and in those spaces, collective knowledge combined with camaraderie replaces loneliness with community. In virtually every instance, they leave supported and reminded that they are not alone.
The inevitable feelings of aloneness and isolation are exactly why I always encourage homeschoolers and founders alike to “find your people.” In the right community, the belief that we’re better living in partnership than in competition is the prevailing spirit, and when those moments of feeling alone arise, there is an open, available lifeline of support. We simply need each other. Rather than spiraling into loneliness and isolation, the remedy is to seek out community, where there is support, encouragement, and life alongside others walking a similar road.
“Will my kids be okay?” Almost every parent wrestles internally with whether they are doing “enough,” and whether their kids will somehow miss out on instruction, activities, or opportunity. I’ve already written on the fact that your students won’t miss out socially. In a recent LiberatED Podcast conversation with Catina Sweedy of Embark Center for Self-Directed Education, I tackled this question head-on. The answer was a resounding yes.
Catina shared the story of her son, who graduated in 2025. He was completely unschooled, and their program’s philosophy of student-directed learning looks nothing like more traditionally structured programs, mine included. When he realized he wanted to go to a particular type of school and needed math, he studied math, but not on a timeline most expected, as he combined and collapsed math into his final two years of school. When he graduated, he received a number of generous merit scholarships. At the end of his first year, he called home and asked his parents what the Dean’s List was, because one of his classmates reached out to congratulate him on making it! A completely unschooled kid made the Dean’s List and had no idea what an accomplishment that was.
All that is to say, your kids will be all right. They are going to get exactly what they need because they have parents invested in their future and founders of unconventional programs who, contrary to what it looks like from the outside, are fully equipping kids for success in life after 12th grade.
If you are a parent considering or already in an unconventional setting, know that you are fully able to meet your child’s needs. If you are a founder, know that you can build and run a program that meets your community’s needs. If and when feelings of being alone come, know that you are never truly alone; there is a vibrant community ready to support and encourage you. Whether you are a parent or a founder, know that your kids will be okay; they will get what they need because of your commitment and investment in them.
Find your community. Find your people. Lean into the life-giving support that they can provide. This is a message that never gets old, and one you’ll need during every step of your journey.
