Today we’d like to introduce you to Amanda Wares.
Hi Amanda, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
Twenty-one years ago, my oldest child was in 3rd grade and struggling. After a LOT of thought and discussion, my husband and I decided to pull her out to homeschool, to work on her areas of struggle in particular. We fully intended to put her back in school after one year. That first year was an adventure for sure, but by the end of the year, we were so pleased with her growth and progress, as well as positive changes for our entire family, that we decided to continue with homeschooling for another year. And here we are, 21 years later, having graduated 3, and still actively homeschooling our 17-year-old son.
North Carolinians for Home Education (NCHE) is the state homeschool support organization, which exists to protect the rights of families to homeschool, to equip them with information and encouragement, and connect them with other families and groups across the state. One of many ways NCHE does this is by hosting a huge conference each year. This conference, Thrive!, was instrumental in our success as a homeschool family, and I haven’t missed one year since we started all those years ago. One year, I attended a homeschool leader’s luncheon at the conference, and while there, I accepted an invitation to volunteer as a regional liaison. NCHE has the state divided up into geographical regions, and each one has a liaison to help connect families to resources and groups in the area, as well as to NCHE as an organization. I served in several different roles over the years, and am currently Homeschool Helps Director. We “help” people homeschool with confidence and joy, in particular those homeschooling in particular circumstances, such as special needs, military, single parents, working parents, preschool, and more. i am now leading a team, with support coordinators for each of the special populations. There is nothing that brings me more joy than to hear from a family that I mentored when they were just getting started with homeschooling, and now they are graduating that child. I am more excited every day to serve homeschool families in any way I can!
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
There definitely have been some struggles! Learning to manage my own volunteer time, while still homeschooling my own children, has been an ongoing process for sure! Also, as I have moved into leading a team, learning to lead all types of personalities, handle conflict in a productive way, and try to keep us all on task has been a LOT! But my team is absolutely THE best, and they are extremely patient with me as we all learn together.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
As Homeschool Helps Director on the board of North Carolinians for Home Education, I “help” people homeschool in particular circumstances. Everything from preschool to high school, special needs, single parents, working parents, military, dads, and multicultural homeschoolers are all populations that we serve. I also host NCHE’s podcast, The Homeschool Show, and feel like that is an extension of my role as Helps Director. I think my years of experience give me a perspective and the ability to relate to any type of homeschool family. One of my most proud moments was when I was serving at NCHE’s statewide graduation ceremony, and ran into a mom I had mentored when she was just getting started with homeschooling. Here she was at her son’s graduation, and she attributed that successful homeschool journey to the help I gave her at the very beginning. Those moments make every struggle and tough situation worth it.
Any big plans?
My son will be graduating in the next few years, so I am thinking about what life will look like when I am done homeschooling my own children! I plan to continue in my current role, reaching out to as many homeschool famlies as possible. I also love to speak to homeschool groups, so I plan to do more of that as opportunities become available.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://nche.com/
- Instagram: @nchehomeschool
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nche1984
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@NCHomeEdu
