Homeschool benefits: Athens and Trinity Valley Community College

Trinity Valley Community College (TVCC) waives tuition on the first two dual credit courses each semester, so two three-hour classes cost only the general fee: $294 in the tax-paying district or $360 outside it. Homeschooled high school students qualify by requesting the Home School Partnership Agreement and registration packet from the Dual Credit Office.

By Andrew Garber, founder of TheHomeschoolingCompany. Reviewed August 25, 2026.

Who qualifies

1. Is a homeschooled high schooler

   Any high school student with a parent's permission can take dual credit after meeting TVCC admission requirements and getting the school's recommendation. Your homeschool gives that recommendation through the partnership agreement.

2. Signs the partnership agreement

   Ask the Dual Credit Office for the Home School Partnership Agreement and the Registration Instructions Packet, which lists every required form.

3. Meets test requirements

   Your student may need TSIA2 (Texas Success Initiative Assessment) scores, and 9th and 10th graders face additional testing and a shorter course list.

What a semester costs

TVCC's dual credit tuition and fee schedule waives tuition for the first two classes and charges a general fee of $49 per hour in the tax-paying district and $60 per hour outside it.

One class (3 hours), tax district

$147

Two classes (6 hours), tax district

$294

One class (3 hours), outside the district

$180

Two classes (6 hours), outside the district

$360

Three classes (9 hours), outside the district

$852

Online courses add a $40 internet fee and lab courses a $35 lab fee, and some courses bill digital materials through Inclusive Access.

From applying to keeping it

1. Before you apply

   Request the packet

   Email or call the Dual Credit Office for the Home School Partnership Agreement and the registration packet.

2. Before the semester

   Apply and test

   Apply to TVCC, complete the forms in the packet, and schedule TSIA2 testing on a campus or remotely if your student needs scores. New applications close two weeks before enrollment ends.

3. Before classes start

   Finish orientation

   Complete the dual credit orientation, which prepares students for in-person and online college courses.

4. Each semester

   Submit the registration form

   Send a concurrent registration form each term. Dual credit students cannot add or drop classes themselves.

What it pays for

Covered

• Tuition on two courses each semester
• TVCC core courses
• Workforce education courses
• Foreign language courses

Not covered

• General fees
• Textbooks and access codes
• Internet and lab fees
• Tuition on a third course and beyond

Good to know

• Homeschoolers sign a partnership agreement

  Homeschooled students can take dual credit through TVCC's homeschool route. You sign the Home School Partnership Agreement and follow the registration packet, and the homeschool takes the role a high school counselor plays.

• Out-of-district students also get the waiver

  Students outside the tax-paying district can enroll and also get the tuition waiver on two courses, but the general fee is higher, $60 per hour instead of $49.

Who to contact

The Dual Credit Office sends homeschool families the partnership agreement and registration packet and helps with course plans.

dualcredit@tvcc.edu 903-675-6394 Dual Credit

Homeschool rules and statewide help in Texas

You do not have to file a homeschool notice to the state.

Texas sets these rules:

• Subjects: Instruction in Texas must include reading, spelling, grammar, math, and good citizenship.
• Testing: No routine annual homeschool standardized test is required. UIL participation and public-school transfer can have separate testing requirements.
• Records: Texas does not require homeschool records, but keeping them is recommended.
• Teachers: Texas does not require homeschool parents to hold a teaching certificate.

Texas also has an education savings account that home-educated students can use.

• The Texas Education Freedom Account (TEFA) awards $2,000 a year to selected home-education students for approved expenses. Applications for 2026-27 closed March 31, 2026; families who missed that cycle can join the 2027-28 interest list.

Read the Texas homeschooling guide See statewide programs in Texas

Find benefits for your ZIP code