North Dakota
In North Dakota, homeschooled students at ‘record numbers’
GRAND FORKS — From the 2007-2008 school year to 2025-2026, the number of homeschooled students in North Dakota has increased 756%, a trend some experts expect to continue.
According to Arlene Wolf, the North Dakota Department of Public Instruction director of school approval and opportunity, from 2007 to 2025, there were no significant changes in state policy regarding homeschooling. Despite that, homeschooling numbers have skyrocketed.
Liz Buck, the North Dakota Home School Association office administrator and editor, said factors outside of policy have contributed to the rise, including changes associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, the creation of new educational technology and short staffing in public schools. She said many parents have turned to homeschooling to teach their children their own values and to have more freedom in terms of scheduling and content.
“Parents that pulled their student out during COVID stuck with it. They didn’t actually re-enroll their students back into the public school after the pandemic was over. So what did these parents and others discover about homeschooling that made them continue?” Buck said. “Many of the things that they discovered is that you have a lot more freedom when you’re homeschooling. You’re not tied to the school schedule. You can tailor your students’ education to exactly what they need and what their strengths are and you can shore up their weaknesses a lot easier.”
According to data from the NDDPI, 694 North Dakota students were homeschooled in the fall of 2007. In the fall of 2025, the number was 5,943. The data over the 18 years shows a fairly steady increasing trend, with a large spike — one that has since been surpassed — during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
During the pandemic, according to Buck, some parents turned to homeschooling after disagreeing with teachers’ “worldviews” and others because they saw what they believed to be “wasted time” in the classroom.
“I think for the first time, parents were watching what their students were doing in the classroom. You know, it was right there on the laptop,” she said. “They were building some confidence as they were watching what the teacher was doing. They were thinking to themselves, I can surely do this.”
Buck also mentioned that multiple parents cited bullying concerns as the reason they decided to educate at home. Particularly for students in rural school districts, she said public schools often do not have the funding and staffing to properly address all student behavior.
“Parents are taking matters into their own hands, and they’re pulling their students out to keep them safe,” Buck said. “It’s not really something they ever really intended on doing, but when they see what’s happening, they realize this is probably the best option that they have.”
According to a study by the National Home Education Research Institute, homeschooled students typically score 15 to 25 percentile points above public school students on standardized tests, regardless of the parent’s level of education or the family’s household income.
In North Dakota, a parent does not need a high school diploma to home educate. According to Wolf, parents who haven’t graduated from high school can educate their children if they agree to be monitored by the district for up to two years.
“We believe that (parents) know their children best and can educate them in a way they feel is best for them,” she said.
Buck said she expects the rise of increasing home-schooled students to continue. The rise likely be fueled by the aforementioned factors but also, she believes, by an increase in popularity of home-schooling on social platforms.
“I really expect to see it continue. … The rise of social media has allowed a lot of information sharing,” she said. “These parents, they’re seeing social media influencers that home-school do day-in-the life kind of videos. All of that leads parents to look at it and go, ’You know what? I can do this. This seems like a really awesome lifestyle to choose.’ ”
Sophia is the K-12 education reporter for the Grand Forks Herald.
(Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor)
(North Dakota Monitor) – Two North Dakotans are semifinalists for the Bismarck State College president’s job as North Dakota State University narrows its presidential candidate list.
Valley City State University also is searching for a new president, with an application period closing this month..
Kevin Black, chair of the State Board of Higher Education and co-chair of the North Dakota State University Presidential Search Committee, said the committee reviewed over 60 applications. The committee is planning off-site interviews with candidates March 9-10 and campus visits with semifinal candidates March 23-27.
“We’re really excited about taking the next step and there’s some very quality people in there,” Black said.
FARGO — One season ago, a Cinderella run for the West Fargo United girls hockey team came up just short in the state championship game.
United, the No. 7 seed, fell to Legacy/Bismarck in the 2025 final.
This time around, the team had momentum swaying in its favor, riding nine consecutive wins into Saturday’s title game against Grand Forks at Scheels Arena.
Led by goals from a pair of senior captains, United capped its redemption season with a 10th straight victory, fending off the KnightRiders 2-1 to claim the North Dakota girls hockey state tournament championship.
“It just means everything,” said United’s Payton Stocker, whose goal at the 12:31 mark of the second period gave her team a 1-0 lead. “We’ve worked so hard and throughout the season, it’s just been such a battle. Winning and coming out on top is just such a great feeling.”
Eric Hylden / Grand Forks Herald
Stocker was followed up in scoring by United captain Rachel Spanier. The defenseman fired a slap shot from the left point that beat Grand Forks goaltender Kylie Schmaltz to make it 2-0 with 35 seconds remaining in the middle frame.
Reagan Wilson locked things down in net for United, finishing with 23 saves and picking up an all-tournament team nod.
“This is my first year of high school hockey,” the sophomore goaltender said. “I can’t believe coming in here and winning a state title with all of these girls. I just love them so much.”
While it was the senior duo of Stocker and Spanier finding the net for United on Saturday, contributions were seen across the board.
Sophomore Emma Hassler also put forth an all-tournament campaign with five goals and an assist for six points over the three-day stretch.
Eric Hylden / Grand Forks Herald
Freshman Kaylee Augdahl finished the tournament with four points — including
a double-overtime winner
over Fargo North/South in Friday’s semifinals — and junior Liana Williamson added three assists.
“It wasn’t just us (seniors),” said Stocker, who joined Hassler and Wilson on the all-tourney team. “It was everyone collectively. Being seniors, it feels a lot better. It was a great feeling.”
United, the No. 5 seed this year, capped its season with a record of 17-9-0.
“These girls are awesome,” first-year United head coach Kennedy Blair said. “They’ve worked super, super hard since last April. Wake up early in the mornings, go into off-ice training, on-ice training and all that.
“This group of girls is really special. They’re a really close-knit group, and they trusted our coaching staff coming in as a first-year group.”
Eric Hylden / Grand Forks Herald
Blair knows a thing or two about winning championships. She was a North Dakota state champion goaltender with the former Bismarck Blizzard co-op and also won an NCAA Division I national title with the Wisconsin women’s program in 2021.
Yet, she never imagined ending her first year as a high school varsity coach with a state championship.
“No, I didn’t,” said Blair, who also won North Dakota High School Coaches Association Coach of the Year honors. “But I had belief in these girls that we could get to the state championship again.”
It’s the United co-op’s first-ever state title — which consists of West Fargo, West Fargo Sheyenne and West Fargo Horace high schools.
Prior to Saturday, the last time a West Fargo girls program won the state title was in 2014 when it was still a standalone program competing as the Packers.
“It’s amazing considering United hockey has never won a championship game,” Wilson said.
Grand Forks, the tournament’s No. 2 seed, ended its campaign with a 21-5-0 record.
Ella Yahna’s fourth goal of the tournament — which came on a 2-on-1 rush with the assist from teammate Reese Meagher, put the KnightRiders within one shot with 8:17 remaining in the third.
Grand Forks, however, was unable to find the equalizer as its bid for a first state championship came up just short.
“I thought we came out in the first and we had a tough time,” Grand Forks head coach Kelly Kilgore said. “I felt we battled some nerves. I really liked our second period … We carried the play and tilted the ice a little bit back in our favor. The shots kind of started to really turn in our favor.”
Stocker said she wouldn’t have wanted to win a state title as a senior with any other group of teammates.
“(They mean) everything,” Stocker said. “We’re so tight and they’re all my friends. Leaving them is going to be hard. But they mean everything to me. We’re all so close and I love them a lot.”
FIRST PERIOD: No scoring.
SECOND PERIOD: 1, WFU, Stocker (Augdahl, Hassler), 12:31. 2, WFU, Spanier (Augdahl, Stocker), 16:25.
THIRD PERIOD: 3, GF, Yahna (R. Meagher), 8:43.
SAVES: WFU, Wilson 7-13-3—23. GF, Schmaltz 7-3-14—24.
Eric Hylden / Grand Forks Herald
GRAND FORKS — The Grand Forks Children’s Museum has revealed the anonymous donor of the $2 million in matching funds that prompted others to step forward and bring the fundraising campaign closer to its goal of $35 million.
“It is with deep gratitude that the Grand Forks Children’s Museum now shares the name behind that bold vision,” said Katie Mayer, executive director of the museum, in naming Pam Laffen of Grand Forks as the anonymous donor.
With this gift and other major contributions, the fundraising campaign “stands at just $1.75 million remaining, bringing the finish line clearly into view,” Mayer said.
The museum “reflects Pam’s passion for learning and her belief in creating meaningful opportunities for children which have guided her life’s work and are deeply reflected in this gift,” she said.
Laffen said, “I am honored to be part of a community that supports a project dedicated to encouraging growth in education and service for future generations.”
Recognizing the impact of Laffen’s gift, Mayer said, “Pam and her late husband, Lonnie, shared a deep appreciation for this community. Being raised in a rural area in North Dakota taught them to be actively engaged in their immediate and surrounding communities across the state.”
Contributed / Grand Forks Children’s Museum
At the start of the “Unlocking Tomorrow, Together Challenge,” the $2 million would be released, or “unlocked,” with the receipt of each of eight $250,000 donations. The challenge actually resulted in “securing nearly 10 leadership-level commitments and accelerating the campaign even further,” Mayer said.
A leadership gift of $250,000 from the Pancratz Family Foundation, based with the Fargo-Moorhead Area Foundation, has helped to “unlock one of the final keys in the challenge,” according to an announcement from the museum. The gift has added “meaningful momentum at a pivotal time in the campaign.”
The foundation’s commitment to the museum “reflects a strong belief in expanding opportunity for children and families, and helped carry the challenge to completion.”
The final keys to the $2 million matching grant were “propelled by an extraordinary wave of generosity from families and businesses across our community,” Mayer said.
A vertical climber, to be named for Pam Laffen, is designed to physically and symbolically connect the land and sky levels of the museum, Mayer said. It will span two stories and include a slide. Designed to face 42nd Street, it will be visible from the road, serving as a signature feature of the building.
The climber will reflect the guiding phrase “In land, we root. Through sky, we rise. Together, we grow.”
“The words echo both the spirit of the community and the belief that learning, curiosity, exploration and opportunity are built step-by-step, grounded in place and lifted by possibility,” Mayer said.
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