HERALD 5 Membership Policy and Organizational Goals

Home Educators of Richland and Lexington School District 5 (HERALD 5) was founded in 1986 as a support group for home schooling families in the St. Andrews/Irmo/Chapin area. Any home schooling family may join HERALD 5 throughout the year whether or not they live in Lexington School District 5. We are a volunteer organization of approximately 130 families, all of whom educate one or more of their children at home. Our group meets as a whole twice a year to share information, to organize and evaluate our efforts, and to encourage one another in our common endeavor. We are also subdivided into several smaller support groups which meet more frequently for field trips, fellowship and educational activities. Membership in HERALD 5 is a requirement for participation in one of the small groups. We believe it is our dedication of honoring Jesus Christ and the maintaining of a mandatory participation policy that has allowed our group to thrive since its inception.

The HERALD 5 active membership policy is defined as: 1.) Attending at least one of the two large group meetings each year, either in the spring or fall; 2.) Participating in at least three small group activities per year, and 3.) Completion of at least one job, approved by the leader of your chosen small group, at either the large or small group level of HERALD 5. It is recommended that you consider taking a large group job - administrative or small group leadership or committee membership - every two to three years that you are a member of HERALD 5. Special circumstances withstanding, those members who fail to meet this active membership requirement will be declined membership for the following school year.

The goals of HERALD 5 as an organization are as follows:

1.) We support home schooling families through:

a. Large group services and activities (organizational meetings, member roster, newsletter, home school workshops and orientation, Field Day, Spelling and Geography Bees)

b. Small group services and activities (parents' meetings, field trips, book clubs, testing, etc.)

c. Networking: meeting other home educators and sharing ideas, successes and disappointments.

2.) We represent the home education movement to our community.

3.) We share information about political or legal issues affecting home education in our community, state, and nation.

4.) We provide support for (and are supported by) the home school community statewide through our affiliation with the South Carolina Home Educators Association.

5.) We provide "Option 3" legal supervisory services through our-sister organization, SAFE in HERALD 5, for those who choose this option.

6.) We hope to glorify Jesus Christ through prayer, our testimonies to His goodness in our home education and through the use of His Word for mutual encouragement and instruction.