Rhode Island home instruction operates under approval by the local school committee. Specific requirements vary by district within the framework set by the state statute.
Legal framework
Home instruction is governed by Rhode Island General Laws §16-19-1 and §16-19-2. The Rhode Island Department of Education publishes general guidance, with approval handled at the local school committee level.
Notification & registration
Parents file a written request for approval with the local school committee before starting and annually thereafter. The local committee approves the program based on the state-statute criteria.
Recordkeeping
The statute requires attendance records substantially equal to the public schools and instruction in the required subject areas. Specific evaluation and recordkeeping requirements vary by school committee. Families maintain their own work samples and high school transcript.
Graduation requirements
Rhode Island does not prescribe specific high school graduation requirements for home-instructed students. The parent determines completion. Aligning the transcript with the Rhode Island public high school graduation requirements is a useful reference.
Who issues the diploma
The parent operating the home instruction program issues the diploma in the name of the family's program.
College & military recognition
URI, Rhode Island College, and the Community College of Rhode Island admit home-instructed graduates routinely. Homeschool graduates qualify for Tier 1 military enlistment under current DoD policy.
Official source
For current statutory text, forms, and procedural updates, the authoritative source is the Rhode Island Department of Education. Homeschool laws change, so confirm specific requirements directly with the state before relying on them.