For years, homeschooling and public education have been separate and sometimes at odds. But changing attitudes and technology have meant a merging of sorts.
In 1998 Basehor-Linwood School District became the state's first to link homeschoolers and public schools through the Internet for online education.
At least five other school districts have followed suit, including Topeka, Wichita, Elkhart, Moundridge and Haven, and others are thinking about it.
"It definitely reflects a change of attitude by educators toward homeschooling," said Brenda DeGroot, director of Basehor's Virtual Charter School.
"Educators want what is best for children and so do parents, so we should be able to work together to accomplish this and not send them out to pasture," she added.
Topeka attorney Kent Vincent, who has homeschooled for more than two decades, sees another reason.
"It appears they have come to the point where they see that homeschooling is here to stay," he said. "They are trying to figure how to get them back into the public system in some way."
For parents, homeschooling can be daunting and at times help from professional educators can be useful. That's where the Basehor program comes in handy.
DeGroot said there are no plans to dismantle homeschooling with the program.
"The parent is the teacher in the home and we are providing a structure they can fall back on," she said.
On the Net:
Basehor Virtual Charter School: http://vcs.usd458.k12.ks.us/
Kansas Department of Education: http://www.ksbe.state.ks.us
DeGroot said Basehor's program with some 375 students statewide couldn't have existed a decade ago because the technology wasn't there.
The coursework is provided by teachers and homeschoolers get the use of a computer and textbooks when they register. A homeschooler enrolls for as many courses as they want and can earn a high school diploma from the school district.
After registering, each student gets an e-mail address and password to a site. At that site, there's a list of teachers and available courses along with the requirements and textbooks needed.
The school district benefits because it receives state pupil aid money it otherwise wouldn't get. DeGroot said that helps pay for the program's expenses, including teacher salaries and supplies.
Melanie Dearing, of Overland Park, is in her fourth year of homeschooling four children ages 16-6. Skeptical at first, Dearing now serves as the program's parent liaison.
"It's a safety net of ideas. I'm still clearly as much the teacher as I was the first year I did it," she said.
There's a philosophical debate among homeschoolers over blurring lines between them and public schools.
"We have our liberties in home education in Kansas because we haven't taken public support," he said. "Those who receive taxpayer money in any form are in a sense taking away that status of total independence that has protected homeschoolers up to this point."
But Dearing, a one-time public school teacher, disagrees.
"That's a misconception," she said. "I have all the freedom in the world to be a homeschool mom."