Jacob Berry, a 22-year-old homeschool graduate from Morgantown, West
Virginia, recently encountered a sudden jolt in his career plans.
Homeschooled by his father, Dr. Nathan Berry, and his mother, Mrs.
Cynthia Berry, who holds a lifetime teacher’s license in Missouri, Jacob
graduated from high school in 2012. Upon graduation, Jacob worked in
retail and construction before deciding that information technology was
the career for him. He applied to and was accepted at West Virginia’s
Bridgeport Junior College this past fall.
It was the perfect choice for him: he could continue working and take classes.
“Bridgeport is a great junior college,” Jacob said. “The schedules
are amazing and the teachers really helpful. I definitely enjoyed the
atmosphere there.”
Diploma Issues
During the application process the family met with admissions staff
and informed them that Jacob had been homeschooled. Jacob’s enrollment
agreement, signed by the college president, Ms. Sharron Stephens, even
acknowledged his homeschooling background.
His enrollment completed, Jacob eagerly began his studies and
finished his first two courses, psychology and Introduction to
Computers, in January, receiving A’s in both.
As a requirement for Student Success Strategies, one of his next
courses, Jacob met with President Stephens. In the course of the
interview, Ms. Stephens rediscovered that Jacob was homeschooled and
took issue with his education.