What Are Exempt Schools?

My Views Are My Own

By Lisa Schonhoff, Ed.S.

3/25/2025

When people think of the Nebraska Department of Education (NDE), they typically think of public schools.  Did you know that the NDE has jurisdiction over homeschools (also known as Exempt Schools) and private schools as well?  According to the NDE website, “home schools are referred to as Exempt Schools and are considered non-approved and non-accredited private schools.  Exempt Schools can also be outside the child’s home and have students from more than one family.”  Everything you need to know regarding Exempt Schools is explained in Rule 13.  The number of homeschool students have been consistently growing over time and there are many reasons for this.

While there was a significant increase in homeschool numbers during 2020, that number continues to grow even post pandemic.  “Homeschool numbers in Nebraska have historically increased around 1,500 to 2,000 every year, minus the 2020 outlier associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. In the 2020/2021 school year, 14,780 students were registered with exempt schools. That number went slightly down in 2021/2022 to 13,765.” According to the NDE website, this number continues to climb with 14,612 students in 2023/24, and 15,375 students in 2024/25. The top reason why parents homeschool their kids is due to a concern of the public school environment according to a national statistic.  A recent study shows that “long-term homeschoolers exhibited the highest levels of optimism, gratitude, and life satisfaction.”  Following are some quotes from Nebraskan parents on their reasons for homeschooling:

“Between raising and teaching special needs children and children with various learning disabilities, homeschooling has been a wonderful fit for our family.   Every child learns differently.  We can cater more to each child’s unique learning styles.  We have found that children thrive in an environment where play, outdoor activities, and learning outside the box is pursued rather than pushing desk work and testing.  Also, homeschooling allows for families to do life together and foster friendships for life with siblings.”

“Homeschooling allows my family the flexibility to meet our children’s individual needs with the methodology and in the timing that is most advantageous to each of them.”

“My daughter’s reading scores were going down in 7th grade so I chose to dual enroll her so that I could help her with literacy at home.  Her scores shot back up as a result of having her read high level literature.”

“Learning, like life, is not linear. When our daughter was born profoundly deaf on her left side, we knew learning would look different for her. Prior to her diagnosis, we had never considered homeschooling, but we learned really quickly that her biggest detriment to learning would be distractions and background noise. With large class sizes in both the public and private schools in our area, we took a closer look at homeschooling and found an amazing community with many opportunities for socialization and new experiences. Education is not “one size fits all” and we are thankful for the option to homeschool and tailor her learning specifically to her and her individual needs.”

“Our older child was socially transitioned at school without our knowledge or consent.  School teachers and staff went against our wishes after we objected.  Additionally, our younger child started falling behind in subjects that he previously excelled in.  We felt that schools were lacking in focus on teaching the basics.  We decided it was in the best interest of our family for our younger children to be homeschooled to ensure they were continuously challenged and not indoctrinated.”

"We have done the public school route in the past, but when a need for an individual child presented itself, homeschooling became the best choice for that child.  As a parent, I believe in treating my children like individuals, and homeschooling this year has provided a place to uncover ways to better help my child, and some unique opportunities that aren’t available in the public school.”

“When people hear about homeschooling, they always think about how it’s so different and what about socialization…but here’s the thing, my kids are so busy learning and growing and connecting with others that I forget what their questions were in the first place!”

“We homeschool to give our kids more opportunities to think critically about a variety of topics that may not be covered in a traditional school setting.  Our curriculum is tailored to our family values and the individual needs of our children.”

“We homeschool for numerous reasons, but mainly we want our kids to have a slower childhood, learning how to think and becoming lifelong learners.  I don’t miss that morning rush!  Homeschooling is not easy, but things worth doing rarely are.”

“I’m reclaiming the responsibility and mantle that I should have been carrying all along.”

“Homeschool provides flexibility in how my children learn.  We can do field trips weekly to support and solidify concepts they may be learning out of a textbook.  This gives them hands-on learning opportunities for the kinesthetic child.  I can modify the curriculum at any time if it isn’t working for them.  A benefit of choosing our curriculum is that I can ensure that it aligns with our family values.  Homeschooling also gives me more time with my children during their formative years and allows plenty of opportunities for character building.”

According to National Home Education Research Institute (NHERI) homeschooling success statistics, “78% of peer-reviewed studies on academic achievements show that homeschooled students perform significantly better than students in institutional schools.” It also costs significantly less to homeschool students at an average of $700-$1,800 per student, saving about $56 billion of taxpayer money annually.  While homeschooling isn’t for everyone, it is becoming more common and is proven to be successful for many families.