Homeschoolers and the United States Military Academy are a perfect fit. Let me tell you about it.
First of all, numerous Army families stationed at West Point homeschool their own children. See also this. Many Graduates of the United States Military Academy homeschool their children.
Secondly, Mary and I are long-time Washington State homeschooling parents. We participated and contributed locally and nationally through the development and expansion stages of the movement. One of our homeschooled children is a Mountaineer and Diesel Technician and two are Cadets at the United States Military Academy (USMA, also known as West Point).
One of our homeschooled children graduated at USMA 2 June 2001 as a Second Lieutenant of Infantry, United States Army. He will be stationed at Fort Lewis after Officer Basic, Airborne and Ranger Schools. He wears Air Assault, German Combat Infantry and Special Forces Combat Diver Badges and has leadership training as a Cadet Officer in the United States Corps of Cadets and as an Acting-Second Lieutenant in a Military Intelligence unit.
Another of our homeschooled children is now (Fall 2001) in her second year as a member of the United States Corps of Cadets.
West Point is the world’s premier leadership development institution and is perennially ranked among our nation’s premier academic institutions. The Academy is our nation’s first and still preeminent undergraduate Engineering School and the world’s finest and most prestigious Military Academy. West Point has good experience with homeschoolers. Some homeschoolers are born called to the Profession of Arms. We are here to ensure that they learn about West Point.
Mary and I are members, and I served (Spring 2001 to Spring 2003) as State Coordinator, of the USMA Admissions Field Force for Washington State. Please, with your homeschoolers, visit our Washington State Admissions Website, which I produce.
To find your nearest USMA Admissions Representative, check here.
I especially want to invite homeschoolers who meet these standards:
in the top fifth of their high school-equivalent class;
pursuing a college preparatory curriculum;
PSAT (or SAT) scores of 62 verbal and 62 math;
demonstrated leadership potential by participation, election/selection to office and honors earned in extracurricular and organized athletic activities;
and their parents to attend an USMA Admissions Information Meeting ("AIM for USMA"), which we hold periodically. Keep posted on developments through our website.
Our general advice for homeschooling students who are preparing for USMA is:
- At age 16 enroll in a liberal arts program at a Community College, taking courses that can be transferred to a four-year school. Or, enroll in a Technical College, taking courses that will develop your strengths for the Engineering emphasis (Math, English, Science) that typifies West Point, America's first Engineering School.
- Earn a varsity letter in a high school athletics program.
- Explore for and use online primary and secondary education resources, such as the Internet Academy (K-12 Education) provided by the Federal Way School District of Washington State and the Evergreen Internet Academy (6-12 Education) provided by the Evergreen School District.
- The Washington Virtual Classroom Consortium may be of use if you live in a district that is a member.
- The Homeschool Curriculum and Advisor may be of use. It happens to be run by parents of a young man who entered West Point from the Army after being homeschooled.
The homeschooling laws of Washington State allow and encourage these methods of preparing for USMA. So, take advantage of your Washington State residency and use the education system of our state to advantage yourself for national education and service.
Project Running Start is also a option for Washington State homeschoolers. It allows a homeschooling student to enroll in a JROTC/ROTC program, among other benefits, and participation in JROTC/ROTC programs will look good to West Point Admissions.
A homeschooling student must be 16 to start Project Running Start. They also do not have to do strictly Project Running Start, which is a program that tracks for both High School Diploma and a Community College degree. At 16, a homeschooling student can do strictly Community College or mostly Community College and partly High School or mostly High School and partly Community College. The homeschooling student can tailor the mix to suit their wishes for building a USMA-friendly portfolio.
With regard to certification, please note that whatever is the highest degree a person holds, that only counts and all previous degrees are effectively moot. Also, please be aware of a major technicality: a candidate for West Point does not need either a High School Diploma or a Community College degree to enter USMA. They do not even need a GED!! This is a little known fact. So a homeschooling student should tailor their "Project Running Start" program to fit their needs, and as long as the High School is getting FTE (Full Time Equivalent = the High School's income for a homeschooling student from the state, by that student's going to a High School *AND/OR* to a Community College) they will be happy.
Be sure a homeschooling student's Community College transcripts get to their High School Registrar and that both the Community College and the High School and especially the High School use these to give them a High School class rank. West Point Admissions goes on SATs/ACTs and class rank, not GPA. The High School Registrar can factor the Community College credits/grades into a High School class rank.
Mary and I called this concept "shared schooling," wherein one simply goes to the sources one needs to get the education one desires. Project Running Start is a great blessing in this regard since it introduces, from age 16 to age 20 something, great flexibility/opportunity in the certification-bearing sources one can use.
