<p>“My 8th grade dd wants to be homeschooled for 9th grade and maybe all 4 years of high school. My ds, who is a h.s. senior, is receiving $2500 per year for college through the KEES program, which gives students money for every “A” they earn in high school, no matter which subject. It will be hard to give up KEES money if I homeschool my dd. Can anyone here give me a pep talk to go ahead with it?”</p>
<p>Hi, sorry to be coming in late. I assume you are talking about the Kentucky KEES program, correct? If so, I believe you may have some misinformation. There are two components to the KEES program. One part is based on GPA. It is correct there is no way for homeschooled students to qualify for the GPA portion of the scholarship. However this award does not “pay for every A”. Rather, the part of the award is based on overall GPA. If your school attending child earns a 4.0, straight As, in high school they will receive $500 per year for college for a total of $2,000. [Kentucky</a> Educational Excellence Scholarship :: Kentucky Higher Education Assistance Authority](<a href=“KHEAA”>KHEAA)</p>
<p>The other half of the award is based on ACT or SAT scores. The top award is for students who earn a 28 or above composite on the ACT. That award is worth $500 a year per college for a total of $2,000. Homeschoolers are eligible for this part of the award.</p>
<p>So, the absolute maximum amount your student will lose out on for college is the GPA portion of the KEES money and that adds up to at most $500 a year or $2,000 for all of college. Sure, that sounds like real money, but sadly in the scheme of what college actually costs it is nothing!</p>
<p>I would not hesitate to give that up if homeschooling is a better fit for your child. Ultimately, as a homeschooler, your child may have a better ability to develop his or her talents and have more possibilities of qualifying for scholarships. If you are primarily looking in state in Kentucky you might want to start now and take a look at the scholarship sections on the websites of the schools your child may consider. If your child tests well National Merit is currently the ticket to major scholarships at UK and U of L. If your student is strong academically or in the arts, it may also be worthwhile to look at the Governor’s School and the Governor’s School of the Arts as these programs are free and provide guaranteed large scholarships to in state schools including a full tuition scholarship at UK. Homeschoolers are eligible for these programs.</p>