Homeschooling is a popular method of education for families in almost every part of Lancaster County, and there are many different groups that offer homeschoolers an opportunity to connect with their peers in a classroom setting. These co-ops often combine the experience of their members to incorporate a diverse selection of courses that are difficult to obtain at home, such as physical education activities and other forms of enrichment. Despite the wide variety of co-ops that are available to local homeschoolers, residents of Solanco and other parts of the county that are more remote have often needed to travel to other communities to connect with the nearest group. To provide a closer alternative for students in the Southern End, Jen Hershey and three of her fellow homeschooling parents created Christian Homeschoolers of Oxford and Solanco (CHOS).

Hershey and the other co-founders of CHOS are all members of Mount Vernon Christian Church in Kirkwood, and they began discussing the idea of a new co-op last fall. For the last six years, Hershey and her children have been members of a co-op in Lampeter, but she said she has entertained the idea of creating a more local group for many years. Multiple other members of Mount Vernon's congregation, which includes several other families that homeschool their children, vocalized a similar desire to have a more convenient alternative. In March, Hershey and the other parents organized a trial run for the new co-op at the church to determine how it would be structured, and the response from participants was overwhelmingly positive.

"We finally felt this was the time," Hershey said. "We live in Kirkwood, and there's another co-op near Wrightsdale, but there's always been a kind of hole here in the southeastern part of the county, so we're hoping to fill that gap and provide an option for families in the area."

CHOS will kick off its first official semester on Friday, Sept. 27, and the group will meet every other Friday for six weeks. Each day of classes will take place from 9 to 11:30 a.m. Classes will be available to students from preschool to 12th grade in subjects relating to music, physical education, science, art, history, language studies and personal finance. Nursery care will also be offered to parents with young children. CHOS does not currently offer academic classes, but rather focuses on elective courses to enrich students' homeschooling curricula.

"I first started going to a co-op because we needed to get out of the house, and I wanted my kids to be able to interact with other students and teachers other than me," Hershey said. "The longer I was there, the more I saw the value not just for myself in the suggestions and advice from other moms, but in the way my kids were making friends and enjoying it. I'm hoping to build that same kind of community here."

Registration for the 2024-25 school year must be completed before Thursday, Aug. 1. To register for classes or to learn more, visit http://www.homeschool-life.com/pa/chos or email Alicia Hardy at choshomeschool@gmail.com.