West Coast exodus driving surge in homeschooling in deep red state called 'freest' in nation

Idaho is experiencing huge growth due to West Coast transplants fleeing their liberal bastions, and along with it, more parents choosing to homeschool.

"A lot of people from California, Oregon, even from Washington, [where] the political climate is driven by more liberal enclaves, conservatives have begun to feel like their voices aren't being heard in those states and in those communities and have opted to move out into a more conservative state," Audra Talley, a board member for the nonprofit advocacy organization Homeschool Idaho, told Fox News Digital.

The Gem State is consistently listed as one of the fastest-growing states in the country, largely thanks to migration. The Post-Register newspaper reported Idaho was the nation’s fourth-fastest growing state, percentage-wise, in population growth between 2022 and 2023, according to U.S. Census Bureau data.

Homeschooling also appears to have surged in the Gem State. Idaho doesn't have reporting requirements for homeschoolers, but public school data indicates there's been an uptick in parents choosing to homeschool.

WEST COAST EXODUS DRIVES SURPRISING POLITICAL EFFECT IN RED STATE, AND IT'S NOT A LIBERAL SHIFT

Idaho is experiencing a homeschooling surge as conservatives flood into the Gem State. (Courtesy: Bryndle Photography)

According to research from the Homeschool Hub at Johns Hopkins University, more students left public school to homeschool in the 2022-23 school year (nearly 4,000) than they did before the coronavirus pandemic (less than 3,000). The research, using data from the Idaho Department of Education, also found more homeschooling students are accessing public school services than before the pandemic.

While the pandemic pushed more parents to homeschool, Talley believes it continues to be a popular option in her state because parents are drawn to the freedoms the red state offers parents with minimal government involvement. 

"Idaho is the freest, out of three or four states in the country that offer homeschooling as an option with very minimal regulation and [little] direct oversight," Talley said.

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Homeschooling families enjoy less regulation and government oversight, Homeschool Idaho says.

"Idaho law does not require any notification in order to begin or continue homeschooling. No test scores or work samples need to be filed," according to Homeschool Idaho. "You are not required to provide any information about what curriculum you intend to use, your education level or teaching experience, or anything else about your home or homeschool."

The freedoms Idahoans enjoy are also why Talley's group is wary of the school choice movement or any other movement that would give the government greater control over homeschoolers. She said it took decades of legal battles for Idaho families to earn the educational freedoms they now enjoy. 

US DATA SHOWS 50,000 STUDENTS MISSING FROM EDUCATION SYSTEM SINCE PANDEMIC

U.S. Census Bureau 2022 American Community Survey (Ramiro Vargas/Fox News Digital)

"We've spent 30, 40 years of fighting for the autonomy of homeschool parents to educate their children as they see fit, with little intrusion on the part of the state. Right now, we've shifted from the mentality of the state needing to control, by threat of force, that education, to now the state going, 'Well, here's some money to do what you already do.' And our concern with that is, as soon as you offer money to do something that you're already doing as a homeschooler — money always comes with strings attached," she continued.

The red state's pro-parent approach has made it a particularly appealing place to move for conservative families, advocates say.

A 2023 analysis of voters who moved in from other states depicts a red wave crashing down on Idaho. Californians led the pack, with 75% registering as Republicans and a mere 10% registering as Democrats. More than 60% of Washington and Oregon transplants who registered to vote in Idaho did so as Republicans.

"Idaho is a very conservative state politically and socially. And we've had a large movement of people moving out of higher tax states, less conservative states coming into Idaho," Talley said. "So we've had, with that, more people interested and exercising their ability and their right to homeschool, and Idaho is a great place to do that."

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Fox News' Hannah Ray Lambert contributed to this report.