I am a second-generation homeschooler married to a traditional Ivy League focused private school teacher. We never planned on homeschooling, but our minds reversed upon realizing    the options available all lacked critical character and/or academic development components. No one seemed able to educate the whole child – mind, body, and soul. We hit the brakes hard and have never turned back. While my better half and I have not agreed 100% on 100%, it has been an amazing and balancing adventure – lumps, bumps, and all. Not perfect. Not always ideal. But always better than the alternative. We are convinced that by having our focus on building behavior and relationships alongside building GPAs, our children thrived in their preparations for their future lives.

For me, being at home full-time allowed me to help start the first co-op in Fort Mill (possibly the first in SC), the first CC in Rock Hill, take on leadership roles in our local support group, FMAH, create Monday’s Artists, Writer’s Circle co ops, and launch Faithful Scholars which is in its 17th year.

Hopefully we will run into one another along the journey. I would love to know what books are inspiring you and what adventures you recommend

My husband and I have been married for 22 years, and we have four amazing children. I was first introduced to homeschooling when my oldest was five years old. My daughter was excited about the idea, but I felt intimidated. It wasn’t about not wanting to teach her—it was about my fears and doubts about teaching! So, I held off on fully diving into homeschooling until she started high school.

As time went by, I began to notice how much stress she was facing, and I realized I had the chance to offer her a more supportive environment. Was it easy? Definitely not! But it’s been worth every challenge.

We’ve been on this homeschooling journey for six years now, filled with plenty of ups and downs, learning and growing alongside our kids every step of the way. I’m very excited to be part of your homeschooling journey and hope to help you and your child grow in both knowledge and confidence!

“Homeschooling is not about bringing school home; it’s about creating a nurturing environment where children can learn at their own pace and follow their interests.” – Unknown

I came to homeschooling as a complete newbie, only planning to homeschool until my precocious oldest had made it through the early years of foundational education. Fast forward several years, and I have two homeschool graduates and two who transferred to traditional school in grades 10 and 9, respectively. Somewhere along the way, I became friends with this amazing lady we all call “Katie,” and a few years and several jokes about how fun (dangerous?) it would be if we ever teamed up, she welcomed me aboard her Faithful Scholars staff. After so many years of Katie encouraging me in my homeschool endeavors, it is a privilege and joy to encourage and guide homeschool parents a few steps behind me on this road.

Mary & her husband, Michael, are raising four children to love the Lord and see His hand in all parts of creation. While helping to lead a Classical Conversations class, Mary befriended Katie and her children at their shared community, and the rest is history! After starting a CC community to help others join, Mary now helps lead, equip, and encourage many local CC communities in the Upper Midlands of South Carolina. With a passion for seeing mothers turn their hearts toward their children, Mary is excited to share classical Christian education with families and help them discover that they can homeschool through high school.

My background was fully entrenched in public school as a student and then a teacher of public school for 18 years. I came into the homeschool world when we moved to Tennessee and my youngest son was immediately singled out as way below grade level by their standards. We struggled through the third grade with him, offering full support and outside tutoring only to be told at the end of a full year that he would be mandatorily retained. The one thing I knew after all my years in teaching was that retention does not work and the only thing that does is intervention! Intervene I would and my homeschool journey began.

Moving to South Carolina introduced me to Katie, Faithful Scholars and Writer’s Circle. Through her we were able to help my oldest son graduate from high school with a diploma and a solid start at life. I joined the team teaching for Writer’s Circle for the 2020-2021 school year and shortly thereafter became her assistant as well working for Faithful Scholars. I have been a team member ever since.