Homeschool benefits: Columbia Heights Public School District
Columbia Heights Public Schools loans textbooks, standardized tests, and individualized instructional materials to homeschooled students who live in the district, and can include them in district health services and secondary guidance and counseling. Request them in writing by September 15 each year; the state funds the materials at $138.43 per student for 2026-27.
Who qualifies
Homeschools inside the district
Your home school must be within Columbia Heights Public Schools boundaries. The district keeps track of home and nonpublic school registrations and reports them to the state.
Requests by September 15
Parents submit requests for materials and services by September 15 of each year. The state does not fund requests made after that date.
Wants secular materials
Loaned materials must be secular and designed for your child's individual use in a secular course.
Secondary grades for counseling
Guidance and counseling is the district's secondary program, reported for students in grades 7-12.
What the district provides
The services come from the Columbia Heights home and nonpublic schools page, and the per-pupil amounts come from the Minnesota Department of Education's 2026-27 nonpublic pupil aid rate memo.
- Textbooks, tests, and individualized materials
- On loan, $138.43 per pupil
- District health services
- $89.75 per pupil
- Guidance and counseling, grades 7-12
- $376.69 per pupil
- Request deadline
- Sept. 15
The page does not say whether the district reimburses receipts or buys the items for you, so ask Student Services how it fills a request and when materials must be returned.
How to request materials
- When you start
Register with the district
Columbia Heights keeps track of home school registrations and reports your child's enrollment to the state.
- By September 15
Send your requests
Submit written requests for materials, health services, or guidance and counseling to the Student Services Office.
- After review
Pick up materials
The Student Services Office at the District Center, 1440 49th Avenue NE, handles requests and distributes the materials.
- Each year
Request again
Requests cover one school year, so send new ones by September 15 every year.
What it includes
Included
- Loaned textbooks
- Standardized tests
- Individualized instructional materials
- District health services
- Secondary guidance and counseling
Not included
- Religious materials
- Requests made after September 15
Who to contact about materials and services
Student Services handles home and nonpublic school registrations and requests for materials and services.
KruseK@colheights.k12.mn.us 763-528-4414 Home and nonpublic schools
Homeschool rules and statewide help in Minnesota
You must file the initial report by October 1 of the first instructional year after the child turns seven, or after establishing a new resident district. You must file within 15 days of withdrawing a child seven or older from public school, or of moving out of a district. You must file annual continuation letters by October 1 for the required ages.
Minnesota sets these rules:
- Subjects: Teach reading, writing, literature, fine arts, math, science, history, geography, economics, government, citizenship, health, and PE. Instruction and materials are in English unless the statutory language-program exception applies.
- Testing: Annual nationally normed achievement test for ages 7–16, plus certain 16–17-year-olds first reported after age 16. Agree on the test, administration, and location with the superintendent. State-recognized accredited instruction is exempt.
- Records: Unless the accreditation exemption applies, keep schedules, materials, assessment methods, and proof of testing. Keep immunization or exemption records for five years after adulthood. File immunization statements by October 1 of the first homeschool year and grade 7.
- Teachers: A parent may teach without a degree if the assessment requirements are met. Other instructors need a qualifying license, licensed supervision, bachelor’s degree, or recognized accredited-school route.
Read the Minnesota homeschooling guide See statewide programs in Minnesota
Questions parents ask
- Do we keep Columbia Heights' loaned materials?
- Probably not. The district describes them as loaned to your child, so ask Student Services whether and when they must be returned.
- We missed Columbia Heights' September 15 deadline. What now?
- State rules do not fund requests made after September 15, so call Student Services about the current year and plan to request by September 15 next year.
- What do health services include?
- The district does not list them. Your child is included in the district's student health services program, so ask Student Services which screenings or nursing services it offers homeschool students.
- Can a younger child get counseling?
- No.
Turn support into your child’s next lesson
Put eligible education funds toward a curriculum that teaches the courses and grades the work. Check the program’s purchasing rules before paying.
$149/month per child after the trial.
Find benefits for your ZIP code