Tennessee homeschool nonprofit caters to growing numbers of families statewide, beyond

Tennessee mom Abby Merryman has a history of adapting to changes she didn’t anticipate. 

“We put our kids into public school, a great public school here in Murfreesboro. And it wasn’t a good fit,” she told Nextstar’s WKRN-TV. “Every year I knew the Lord was saying, homeschool your kids. Finally, I said, here’s my white flag. I’m waving it, but I need You to provide me with community.” 

After years of homeschooling, Merryman discovered she wanted to create something that didn’t yet exist – a self-described hybrid between homeschool “tutorials” and “co-ops.” 

“A typical tutorial is where parents will drop their students off for classes. They will come back at the end of the day and pick them up,” she explained. 

“A co-op is where a parent stays on site and helps lead classes with their students. We’ve tried both and my personal style is we didn’t love both so I thought, How can we make this work for all?” 

Enter Tennessee Homeschoolers, a Christian nonprofit Merryman founded about six years ago with just 50 people coming for Friday field trips. It’s grown to a Facebook group of 4,000 members, journalists noted. 

“We’re not just Christians on Sundays and Wednesday nights. It is within every part of our being,” Merryman observed. 

“We do have families that come that are more secular, that maybe wouldn’t identify with a certain religion or faith. But the biggest part is, they say they come and they feel welcome.” 

Rising numbers of homeschoolers nationwide 

As previously reported by The Lion, the number of U.S. homeschoolers has grown to an estimated 6% of the K-12 population – approaching the percentage of charter schools (7%) and private schools (9%). 

While Johns Hopkins University’s Homeschool Hub recorded a slight decline in Tennessee homeschooling numbers for the 2024-25 academic year, it noted this “may be temporary and subject to year-to-year fluctuation.” 

Meanwhile, area schools have recorded steady or growing numbers of homeschool students, WKRN-TV reports. 

“According to Rutherford County Schools, there were 7,029 students reported to the state using the ‘Non-public and home school’ reporting form for the 2024-2025 school year. … According to Metro Nashville Public Schools, there were 760 students registered as home schooled … which is up from 421 ten years prior.” 

Merryman credits the COVID-19 pandemic with contributing to the increased interest in homeschooling. 

“I think that when the schools sent children home, the parents said, I think I can do this. Not only that, but it kind of opened their eyes to what is going on in schools. What are they being taught? How is it being taught?” 

Although she works as a full-time real estate agent and owner of a property management company, Merryman expressed her commitment to keeping her nonprofit’s services as affordable as possible so the maximum number of families can benefit. 

“I don’t know everyone’s financial situation,” she said, noting some families travel from as far as Kentucky to participate in her programs. 

“I don’t know everyone’s educational background or the ability to comprehend and retain what they read. I don’t know. I think that if a family believes that this is what’s best for their family, you can do it. I mean, if there’s a will, there’s a way.”