The Rise of Microschools and Alternative Educational Models

 

The American educational landscape is undergoing a quiet revolution that is fundamentally reshaping how families approach schooling. About 1.5 million children attend one of the country's roughly 95,000 microschools, roughly equivalent to the number studying at Catholic schools nationwide. This dramatic growth represents one of the most significant shifts in educational choice since the charter school movement began in the 1990s, offering families a compelling alternative between traditional schooling and homeschooling.

Defining the Microschool Movement

Microschools are typically small, tuition-based schools (serving around 15 students) that are designed to offer a more personalized and flexible learning experience compared with traditional schools. The median microschool serves 16 students and has been described as a modern reinvention of the one-room schoolhouse, where children of varying ages receive personalized instruction in the same space.

Microschools typically are small, have multi-age classrooms, and focus on self-paced learning. But they vary tremendously in setting, size, and focus. Some operate out of converted storefronts next to coffee shops, community centers, church basements, or even homes, while others function within formal educational networks with structured support systems. The diversity in physical settings reflects the movement's emphasis on flexibility and responsiveness to local community needs.

Unprecedented Growth Since the Pandemic

The microschool movement has experienced unprecedented expansion since 2020. These microschools, many now monetized for profit, have grown exponentially, serving over 1.5 million K-12 students, mostly unregulated and taught by noncertified, noncertificated "teachers." The numbers are particularly striking in individual states: while California doesn't specifically track homeschools or microschools, the number of private schools with fewer than five students has more than doubled to nearly 30,000 from prepandemic 2018-19 to 2023-24.

A 2024 survey found that 37% of parents are more interested in microschools or hybrid options than they were before the pandemic. This surge reflects growing parental dissatisfaction with traditional educational models and a desire for more personalized, flexible learning environments that can adapt to individual student needs and family circumstances.

Leading Models and Educational Approaches

Several organizations have emerged as leaders in the microschool space, each with distinct pedagogical approaches. Acton Academy was launched in Austin, Texas in 2010 by Jeff and Laura Sandefer. Since then, it has expanded to over 270 affiliated academies across 42 states in the United States and 26 countries worldwide. Acton Academy's teaching methods emphasize adaptive game-based programs, Socratic discussions, real-world projects, and life-changing apprenticeships. Their approach is learner-driven, focusing on helping students become self-sufficient, resilient, and prepared for the future.

Kelly Smith started Prenda in 2018 and has expanded rapidly across the United States. While it began in Arizona, it now supports microschools in multiple states, to make its model accessible nationwide. Prenda has helped more than 1,000 microschool founders and 10,000 K-8 students across the US. According to a recent article in Politico, startup companies backed by investors like Sam Altman, chief executive of OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, act as the support system for teachers running microschools by handling issues like leasing classrooms, getting state approval and recruiting students.

MYSA School, located in Washington DC and Vermont, is distinguished as a leading microschool in the U.S. due to its unique blend of individualized, mastery-based, and experiential learning. It combines hands-on, project-based, interdisciplinary cooperative learning with customized online academic resources.

Serving Specialized Student Populations

Microschools often excel at serving students who struggle in traditional settings. At Sphinx Academy, a micro-school based in Lexington, Ky., almost all 24 students are "twice exceptional," meaning they are gifted in one academic area but have one or more learning disabilities like ADHD or dyslexia, according to the school's director Jennifer Lincoln. "There's gifted education and there's special education, but there are not a lot of resources for students with an overlap in those two," said Lincoln.

The tiny classroom size and personal instruction at Sphinx allows students with different levels of mastery in different subjects to receive the attention they need, something that would be nearly impossible in larger traditional classrooms. Microschools can offer some kids dealing with physical or mental health issues an easier way to study than traditional schools.

For students like sixteen-year-old Layla Robertson, microschools provide essential relief. "I got to the point where I wanted to go back to school but I thought big schools would overwhelm me," Robertson told The Hill. "It wasn't an environment that I felt like I could be calm and get my work done in."

Financial Infrastructure and Funding Models

The microschool sector is developing increasingly sophisticated financial infrastructure to support its growth. In 2024, 32 percent of microschools reported receiving state-provided school choice funds as a source of revenue, even though 60 percent of microschooling families are either at or above the average income for their areas, suggesting they may not need vouchers to cover private tuition.

Increasingly sophisticated financial instruments can be expected to help bolster and stabilize microschooling growth as it has for decades in more developed charter school communities. I expect that we will see access to startup capital through community revolving loan funds, structured fiscal sponsorship programs, and industry-wide insurance underwriting practices will likely come online in 2025.

Regulatory Vacuum and Accountability Concerns

The rapid growth of microschools has significantly outpaced regulatory frameworks. There is no single regulatory body monitoring microschools, which experts fear means there are no quality backstops to ensure kids are receiving an adequate education. Most microschools are also not accredited. In a survey of 400 microschools across the country shared with The Hill from the National Microschooling Center, only 16 percent said they were accredited in their state.

This is because many microschools operate as learning centers for homeschooled students and therefore do not need any accreditation. Others function as private schools, which do not need to be accredited nor have certified teachers in most states. Microschools may not be beholden to antidiscrimination laws such as Title IX and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, meaning they pose increased risks of discrimination for students.

Geographic Expansion and Future Growth

Clear patterns of regional expansion are emerging across the United States. Growth in Texas, Alabama and Arkansas should join the states with surging microschooling expansion, fueled by school choice programs which allow families to choose microschools. Georgia, already emerging as a hotbed for diversified microschool models, and North Carolina seem well positioned to follow closely behind in microschool growth.

Can the nation's nontraditional microschooling movement keep up the steady growth that has characterized its past four years in 2025? Yes. From the broad-lens view afforded by the National Microschooling Center's work daily with microschools across the country, indications that 2025 will represent another strong growth year, in nearly every state, are abundantly visible.

Impact on Traditional Education Systems

The growing popularity of microschools represents a significant threat to the traditional public school system. As more families opt for microschools, public schools may find themselves facing declining enrollment, which could lead to reduced funding and resources. However, the threat posed by microschools is not just a challenge to the public education system, but also an opportunity for redesign and reform.

And as many traditional public school districts have demonstrated limited abilities to respond to outside innovation by adapting, more nimble districts, and also charter schools, will introduce new initiatives emulating aspects of microschooling, with varying degrees of autonomy as permitted by their governance systems.

The rise of microschools represents more than just an educational trend—it signals a fundamental shift toward personalized, flexible learning models that respond directly to individual student needs and family preferences. As this movement continues to evolve, truly microschool-friendly accreditation programs should begin to offer their services in sometime in 2025, potentially addressing some accountability concerns while maintaining the flexibility that makes these schools attractive to families seeking alternatives to traditional education.

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