Rohn has her diploma, but not her driver's license

By Virginia Culp

The Rohns, from left, Hillarey, 15, Rebekah, 11, Joshua, 7, Emilee, 1, Zachary, 9, Seth, 5 and Mary, 3, are breaking new ground in education. They are part of the Jackson County Christian Home School organization, from which Hillarey graduated this spring.

In the fall, Hillarey will begin taking classes at Liberty University, but she won't be going to Lynchburg, Va., where the school is based. In fact, she won't be leaving Jackson County or even her own house. For this young woman, home schooling has been the link between her desire for education and her love for the rural life.

"I can't think of any disadvantages," Hillarey, daughter of Ricky and Cyndee Rohn, said. "I consider my years of home schooling as a privilege and an awesome adventure."

Hillarey's favorite subjects are Spanish, government and history; she loves music and wants to be an accountant. She plays the dulcimer, piano and lever harp, and she aspires to master both the piano and harp so she can give private music lessons.

At one point, she participated in the Cooperative Extension's 4-H program, showing sheep and goats from the family farm and winning an award for "4-Her of the Year." Her volunteer work in her church, dubbed MINOM for "Moms In Need Of Me," gives her an opportunity to help new mothers with child care and housekeeping.

Being home schooled has allowed Hillarey to expand her horizons in other ways, too. Last year, she and her family embarked on a two-week mission trip to Mexico, where she witnessed first-hand the gap between rich and poor.

Hillarey Rohn, left, has not set foot in a traditional classroom since second grade. Instead, she has pursued her education at home, taught by her mother, Cyndee Rohn (right), and other members of the Jackson County Christian Home schoolers.

"I got lost a lot," she remembered of the experience.

"My music is most important to me right now," Hillarey said. "I'm not totally sure what the future holds for me, but I have many desires. Most of all, I want whatever the Lord has for me."

Hillarey is the first home-schooled student to graduate from the Jackson County Christian Home Schoolers support group, which currently has a mailing list of 40 families.

For Cyndee Rohn, Hillarey's mother, the decision to home school her daughter was simple. "We feel it's our responsibility to teach our kids," said Cyndee, who named their school the Salt and Light Academy after verses in Matthew referring to the "salt of the earth" and "light of the world."

Of the seven children in the Rohn family, none attend public or private school. Hillarey left traditional education at Covenant Christian School in Fairview during Christmas break of her second-grade year, and since then her education has come from books, field trips the Internet and the JCCH's study groups.

"All kids won't like it," Hillarey cautioned. "Everyone has special circumstances that affect their outcome."

"Every home school experience is not the same, so don't expect the same results," Cyndee added. Home schooling requires extensive self-motivation, as a majority of learning is done on the student's own time. Cyndee makes this attitude a priority in her teaching, helping her children learn to educate themselves.

"I try to build independent learners by the fourth grade," she said.

In the Rohn household, days follow a specific schedule. The family gets up at 6:30 a.m., and breakfast is finished by 8. Then there are chores to be done around the house, and at 9 a.m. school begins. In accordance with her self-starting philosophy, Cyndee provides the older children with their lessons and leaves them to work, which gives her time to devote to the younger children's fundamentals like phonics and math.

Lessons are generally done by noon, leaving the rest of the day available for other activities and free time. Because she was on an accelerated schedule, Hillarey's work often did not end until 1 or 2 p.m., still long before public school students finished for the day.

Hillarey plans to major in accounting at Liberty University; she would like to become a certified public accountant by age 20. She plans to stay in Jackson County, where she has lived since she was an infant.

Rick and Cyndee moved to North Carolina from Orlando, Fla.; they joined Cyndee's parents, Gene and Jane Blankenship, who had taken up residence in Caney Fork when Cyndee was a teenager. While home schooling has worked well for the Rohn family, Cyndee emphasized that it must not be entered into without lots of thought.

"Don't yank them out (of public school) because you're mad at a teacher," she said.

Above all, Cyndee advised, be consistent. Pulling a child in and out of school on a whim is harmful to the child, the teachers and the parents, she said.

"Education is nothing to play around with," Hillarey said. "It impacts a life forever - no matter what school you're in."

To learn more about the JCCH and home schooling in Jackson County, contact Cyndee Rohn at 293-3832 or Anne-Marie Jones at 586-9050. Information is also available on the Web at www.nche.org and www.gov.state.nc.us/dnpe.

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