FAQ

We understand that every family has unique needs, values, and goals when it comes to their children’s education. While we strive to create a welcoming and supportive environment, our co-op may not be the best fit for everyone. Here may be a few reasons why:

• Faith-Based Focus: Our community and classes are taught and guided by our shared Christian beliefs and values. Families who prefer a secular or differently focused educational experience may find another program better suited to their goals.

• Co-op Structure, Expectations, & Parent Participation: Our co-op is a parent-led, volunteer-run community—not a private school, a daycare, or service-based program. While we do offer paid structured classes, these classes are meant to be supplemental to homeschooling, and our goal is to create a Christ-centered environment where families work together to support one another and have the opportunity to connect. Board members and those who run the co-op are all member volunteers. The success and continuation of our co-op depends heavily on active parent involvement and investment. If you’re looking for a more traditional school structure or a setting where parents drop-off and leave, and are not expected to participate or invest back into the community, our co-op may not be the best fit. Families unable to commit to required participation or fulfill their agreed upon responsibilities (Service roles and times) may find it challenging to meet these expectations. But if you're seeking a collaborative, Bible-believing community that values shared effort with shared success and strength, we'd love for you to consider joining us.

• Doctrinal Alignment: While we welcome families from various Christian backgrounds, we do follow a specific statement of faith. Families who hold different beliefs or prefer not to participate in faith-based activities may wish to explore other options.

• Behavior Expectations: To maintain a positive and safe learning environment for everyone, we have clear behavior and child protective policies in place that all members must agree to and abide by. Students are expected to listen, follow instructions, and treat others and property with respect and care. Depending on the severity or frequency of the delinquent behavior, families may lose the opportunity to participate (Please see our "Formal Discipline Policy" found in our "Guidelines" document for more thorough information). Families or students who may struggle with our guidelines and expectations should carefully consider whether our co-op is the right fit.

• Structured Environment: Our co-op operates on a set schedule and gives consistent structure for students and teachers for the whole academic year (Sept -May). Those seeking a more flexible, informal, and/or less academic homeschooling style may prefer a different model. We do also have members that coordinate events, activities, field trips, and casual park hangouts outside of our structured co-op times.

• Community Expectations: We prioritize creating a respectful atmosphere and learning environment centered around our shared Christian values. If a family’s educational or social goals differ significantly from our community culture, it may lead to frustration for both parties.

• Special Needs Support: Our co-op is not a specialized program and in most cases our teachers do not have formal training or resources for all learning or developmental needs. However, many of our teachers are happy to collaborate with parents to make reasonable accommodations if possible.

• Our goal is to work together in a spirit of partnership to help each child thrive within the structure of our co-op, but this requires coordination with you, the parent and primary educator. Please contact our teachers directly about any special educational needs your child may have. Open communication allows both parties to determine whether our co-op can provide a positive and beneficial experience for your family, so we encourage you to speak directly with your teachers about how we can best support your child.

We encourage families to reach out with any questions or concerns. Understanding whether our co-op aligns with your family’s values and needs is an important step in making the best choice for your homeschooling journey!

To learn more about The Journey Co-Op please read through the information found on our website, especially the "All Printable Documents" section as these documents hold nearly ALL of the information about our Co-Op, our policies and guidelines, how we run, classes, teachers, statement of faith, your responsibilities as a member, your service team, and much more.

You can also read through the FAQs, as well as check out our Facebook page.

Short Answer: No, we are not a private school.

Long Answer: While homeschool co-ops and private schools both offer educational alternatives to traditional public schooling, we operate in different ways and are not legally a school, accredited program or affiliated with state-sponsored oversight.

We are nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization that is a parent-led(and operated) Christian homeschool group that subcontracts with individual teachers that are knowledgable and passionate in a certain subject. We have a volunteer board that functions as a liaison and intermediary between teachers and families, who recruit and contract with teachers to provide weekly educational classes for students/families from Sept - May. The board serves as a partnership catalyst between these two parties, working together for a common purpose, providing the space, structure, and organization needed to facilitate the common goal of alternative educational opportunities for our children. Families are the ones who ultimately hire and pay the teachers whom they choose to take classes from. Class size is typically smaller than public school class size.

For the 2025-2026 School Year The Journey Homeschool Group will meet at:

First Covenant Church 1374 N Main St. River Falls, WI 54022

We meet most Mondays Sept. 9th - May 5th.

24 weeks for Elementary.

30 weeks for Upper Levels.

School Calendar ​

There are two different costs involved in becoming a member of The Journey Inc and taking classes:

1) The Family Fee for the 2025-2026 Academic year:

This fee is paid to the co-op to cover building rental, insurance, website, PO Box, Background Checks and other costs involved with running the co-op. Note: If you choose the “opt-out” option there is an additional fee involved in order to cover the cost to pay volunteers that cover your required volunteer hours for the year.

VOLUNTEER OPTION IS: $205 ($120 of this is refunded at the end of the year if volunteer hours have been fulfilled by a qualified member)

OPT-OUT OPTION IS: $285 (No money is refunded at the end of the year)

2) Tuition: Tuition is determined by each teacher and is paid directly to each teacher. Families hire and pay each teacher, Journey doesn't 'hire' and pay the teachers. See the Registration Forms and/or Class Description pages for all pricing information.

Monday September 8th is the first day of Journey Classes.

Monday May 4th is the last day for all Journey Classes.

We are a Christian homeschool co-op with the purpose of supporting homeschool families. Our policies and values are based on biblical principles, ex. behavior expectations, discipline, reconciliation, etc. You can expect the teachers to teach from a biblical worldview. While we do require board members and all teachers to agree to and abide by our statement of faith, families are not required to do so.

Each of our teachers are independent contractors. Therefore, it is each individual teacher's discretion to allow a child with learning differences to register for their class. You will need to reach out to each teacher and speak with them about your student/situation.

Please know that our teacher's are not necessarily trained professionals in working with different types of learning abilities, so it is understood that we do not have the resources nor paid staff with this type of experience to work along side your child. However, in general, it is our teacher's desire to welcome students with different learning abilities into their classrooms and want to see them succeed in the classroom with their peers. In general, most teachers are willing to work with the parents of the student(s) to help achieve their goals of education for that student.

In the past, families have worked with the teacher(s) to have an agreed plan to best serve the child in the classroom setting. A past example/solution to this: The parent of the student sits in or with their child in the classroom, to help if/when needed.

Please report all absences to your child's teachers directly via email as soon as you know they will be absent. Teachers do not keep formal attendance but do appreciate knowing who to expect in their classes each week. If you know in advance that your child will be absent for a family vacation or other special event, please give your teachers as much prior notice as possible. Some high school teachers would like at least a month's notice, if possible. Please note, refunds will not be given for missed classes.

Your child is considered SICK and should not be brought to class if they exhibit any of the following symptoms:

• A fever within the last 24 hours

• Vomiting or diarrhea within the last 24 hours

• Pink eye

• Any undiagnosed rash or lesions

• Runny nose with yellow or green discharge

• Persistent cough

• Nits or lice found on anyone in your family

• A positive sickness diagnosis or suspected symptoms

Short Answer: No.

Can you? Yes.

A parent or guardian is required to be at co-op whenever your student is not in Class or a Study Hall(for 3rd -12th grade).

Note on Lunch Hour:

If your child has another class after the lunch hour, you do not need to be with your child during lunch, they would be considered in Study Hall and need to be able to get to their next class on their own.

However, IF your child does NOT have a class after lunch, but still wishes to stay for lunch - they are welcome to do that but we ask that a parent be in the lunchroom to supervise your student(s), and not wait until after lunch is finished to come get them. This helps the ease the burden of supervision of our Hall/Lunch Room monitors and keep the church's child/adult ratios better accounted for when students are not in class.

If we feel this is being abused, or students are getting too out of hand at lunch, we will ask all parents to be present during the lunch hour their student is participating in.

1) You can post homeschool related events, jobs, resources, buy/sell on our Facebook page.

2) You could also print a flyer of information, give it to a board member to be pre-approved, and then if approved we will post it on the Journey bulletin board. We will have this bulletin board near the main entrance of First Covenant Church on any Monday that we meet for Journey Classes, so families can see it as they come to drop off or pick up their student.

3) You can also print off a flyer and put it in each Journey Member's "mailbox" folder. This "mail" box of folders will be located near the entrance of First Covenant Church on any Monday that we meet for Journey classes.

4) Once in a while we will also post bigger events in the weekly emails that go out to Journey members. (We keep this to a minimum in order to keep those emails short for members).

School Photos will be taken on the 2nd or 3rd week of school on a Monday in September during the school day. Exact date for 2025-2026: September 15th

You will need to pay and book a time slot with our photographer(Cori Pierson) for EACH student PRIOR to picture day.

No, we operate separately and only rent the building space.

We do NOT have childcare available for children who are not enrolled in a class. (example: little ones under 4). We also do not have childcare available for when you serve your volunteer time slot. You will need to arrange for your own childcare.

*If your children or student(s) are not in class or in a study hall it is REQUIRED that parents be with your child(ren), and it is not the responsibility of the board or anyone else to give supervision to your child/student.

Some families choose to stay and hang out in the lobby/study hall area with their children who do not have classes, while they wait for students to finish class.

• Drop-off is permitted no earlier than 8:50 AM, except attending classes that start at 8:00am, unless pre-approved or volunteering.

• PreK through Grade 6 students must be accompanied by a parent, and enter the building as they escort them TO their first class.

• Prek through Grade 6 must be under direct supervision when not in class. This includes lunch period, and study hall for ages 1/2.

• If your elementary student has a period in the day in which they are not enrolled in a class, it is your responsibility to supervise your child during that time. Study Hall is only available for Grade 3/4 and Grade 5/6.

YES - PLEASE READ!

These are the Journey's policy, procedures, and practices around keeping students safe while at the Journey Co-Op.

It is important for every member to read, understand, and agree to these for the safety of our children. Violations of this policy have serious outcomes.

The Wisconsin Homeschooling Parent Association is a robust website that can help answer all your questions related to the Laws of Homeschooling in Wisconsin, as well as the specifics of when and how to file your PI-1206 with the state.