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private school satellite program serving homeschooling Catholic & Catholic-friendly families since 1994
Welcome, Jerome Institute Families!
I am excited to offer special service packages crafted specifically for home educating families whose student(s) is/are taking at least a single class with Jerome Institute, on campus or online. ​Parents may choose from two options:
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​1. Fully enroll with MMA as your school-of-record
or
2. Contract à la carte services, as needed
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Enrollment as School of Record
Families may fully enroll with MMA as your school of record. You are assured your cumulative files and transcripts are maintained as any private school and I also work with you to ensure you are in compliance with your state's homeschool laws.​​​​​​ Counseling services are offered in homeschooling, curriculum choice, high school course of study planning, and college counseling.
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Transcripts and diplomas are officially issued by a private school.​
Please ask your Jerome Prep director for password to access the information page.
A note on accreditation:
One of the most common questions from home educating parents is, "Do I need to use an accredited school or curriculum for my high school student?"
No. Based on my research and first-hand experience, I do not believe home educators need to use an accredited school or curriculum at any K-12 grade level. While many colleges and the NCAA used to require the use of accredited curriculum by home educated high school students for admission, that requirement no longer stands. In fact, many colleges now staff a homeschool admissions counselor to work closely with students and parents and the NCAA also now has an entire division dedicated to home educated students.
The first question to ask regarding accreditation is, what is it? High school accreditation is a voluntary process in which institutions are evaluated by an independent agency to determine whether they meet established standards for quality education.
Most of us have heard of the usual regional accrediting agencies (NEASC, WASC, etc.), but there are hundreds of others, each using their own set of standards and guidelines for accreditation. For independent and religious-based home educators, why would we believe it necessary to employ a curriculum that has been accredited by the same agencies accrediting public schools? We choose to home educate for many reasons but one, I'm sure, is that we do not subscribe to the standard of education offered by public schools. Why then, why would we believe that we must use a school or curriculum which meets those much lower standards?​​
In my twelve years as director of a 31-year-old private school satellite program, not a single one of our families' students has ever not been accepted at a college or institution due to not using accredited curriculum or not having an accredited transcript. This includes colleges in the UC and California State system; public and private colleges across the country; international colleges; all branches of the military; and seminaries and convents.
More important than accreditation is the course of study you plan in preparing your student for life during and after high school. This, above all, will best provide the foundation your student will need to move onto higher education, the workforce, and to live their lives to the fullest as a moral human being and productive member of society. I absolutely advise parents to always research the higher education institution of their child's choice to know well ahead of time what their particular requirements are of your home educated student. They will likely advise you as to what types of coursework they would like to see on your student's transcript, especially in the areas of the arts and sciences.
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Here are some other, well-respected voices in the homeschool industry who also agree an accredited curriculum is not necessary in today's world:
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I am very happy to partner with you on a variety of services and offer you my 40 years of experience as a:
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25-year Veteran Catholic Home Educator
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Veteran Director of Mantellum Matris Academy
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Speaker on legislative matters concerning parental, religious, and educational rights
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Former Academic Advisor, Kolbe Academy
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Former Director of Admissions, Magdalen College of the Liberal Arts
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Former Home & Private School Liaison and Proctor Coordinator, Classic Learning Test
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15-year veteran non-profit museum and arts executive
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Professional musician
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Read more about me, here.