Secretary of Defense orders review of department’s support for homeschooling military families

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has ordered his department to review its support for homeschooling military families in order to ensure equal educational opportunities, according to a memorandum published May 27. 

The Department of Defense is already reviewing educational support for military families in cooperation with Executive Order 14191, “Expanding Educational Freedom and Opportunity for Families,” but the recent memorandum Hegseth penned asserted that further review is necessary “to assess homeschooling support available to military-connected families across the world.” 

“Homeschooling offers an individualized approach for students and highlights the significant role parents play in the educational process,” he added. 

He requested that the department also determine whether it is able to provide homeschooling families access to facilities and other resources. 

“Through these efforts, the Department will uphold the directive to improve the education, well-being, and future success of military-connected students, supporting parents in choosing the best educational options for their children,” Hegseth continued. “Ensuring that military-connected families receive strong educational support maintains morale and readiness, reinforcing the overall stability and effectiveness of our military communities. This is vital to the Department and the quality of life of our Service members, who deserve no less.” 

According to Military.com, John Hopkins Institute for Education Policy found that in the 2023–2024 school year, the homeschooling rate was twice as high for active-duty military families – 12% – when compared to the 6% of homeschooling civilian families in the United States.

Military families are often moved to different bases around the country every couple of years, and facing deployments can amplify the importance of having available family time. John Hopkins senior research fellow Angela Watson explained that homeschooling can help serve their unique needs especially amid these shifting environments. 

“There are a variety of reasons that maybe the traditional school system isn’t working super great for those families,” she said, “because somebody is deployed and, when the parent is home, they value their family time together, or they want to homeschool because it’s more flexible. Or they don’t want to move their kids in and out of schools … and it’s just more stabilizing for them to homeschool.”

Military.com also cited Military Homeschoolers Association’s survey of about 750 homeschooling military families that indicated that faith and concerns about school violence were two of the biggest factors in military families’ decisions to homeschool.

Three in five respondents cited religion as a factor in why they were homeschooling. The same portion cited school violence, and about half cited concerns about public school settings, especially for children with special needs. 

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