Homeschool education and public school extra-curricular activities: Isaac and Caleb Trotter’s story

By FRED KRONER
fred@mahometnews.com

Brothers Isaac and Caleb Trotter spent much of their childhood in Mahomet.

They had many of the same goals and aspirations as others in their peer group.

“We went to the homecoming parades,” Isaac Trotter said.

When they watched the local high school games, they imagined themselves being on the field or on the court while waiting for their time to wear the Bulldogs’ jerseys.

Their turn never came. Not in Mahomet.

The Trotters were home-schooled. Their mother, Kate, twice petitioned the Mahomet-Seymour school district for permission for her children to be involved in the sports programs.

The requests were denied. Twice.

“As a mother, I sat through the meeting and it was like I was being called into question about whether or not I could do the job teaching, to let my sons play on sports teams,” Kate Chattic said.

Her sons had an idea of how they would fit in. They played in the summer for the Mahomet-based Diamond Dogs baseball program and were also members of a local travel basketball team, the Mahomet Magic.

“Growing up in Mahomet was awesome,” Isaac Trotter said. “When I got into sixth-grade, I really wanted to be on the (junior high) team.

“The guys I grew up with were playing. It was hard for me.”

School districts that don’t permit home-schooled children to participate in their extra-curricular programs can cite a multitude of reasons.

There is no uniform curriculum that parents who home-school are required to follow.

The IHSA requires that students be eligible on a weekly basis. How does a district monitor that if the students are never in the school’s classrooms? Who will handle the necessary paperwork that is a part of allowing home-schoolers to participate?

How will the home-schoolers be treated by the other squad members and how will they, in turn, react to the rules, regulations and requirements that are part of being on a team?

The parents in turn point out that they are community residents whose taxes help pay for the public school, regardless of whether their children are enrolled.

The questions are tough ones with no easy answers.

For Kate Chattic personally, it didn’t matter what the school district said.

She had no desire to live vicariously through her children’s endeavors.

And yet, she understood it wasn’t about her. Chattic wanted what was best for her children.

“Both boys are sports-minded and competitive-minded,” she said. “There definitely would have been some heartache and big regrets.

“They loved (sports) and if that piece were missing, it would have been a large missing piece for them.”

Isaac and Caleb Trotter envisioned three possible solutions.

Kate Chattic saw just two.

They all agreed that they could remain in Mahomet and forego the chance to play school sports by completing their home-schooling.

Or, they could move to a residence in another community which permitted home-schoolers to participate.

The boys saw a third option. They could stop home-schooling and enroll at Mahomet-Seymour.

“Mom and I had that conversation,” Isaac Trotter recalled. “I wanted that.  Sports was a big part of my life.”

On more than one occasion, he attempted to provide a persuasive argument.

“I tried for a couple of years,” he said. “I learned it was probably not going to happen, but in sixth- and seventh-grade, I might have thought it was closer than the reality was.”

The truth, Kate Chattic said, was “no. It was not even on the table. That was an easy one.”

Much tougher was to maintain family harmony throughout the discussions.

“I tried to handle it gently,” she said, “because I didn’t want it to turn into something. I didn’t want to make a family controversy.”

She was open, however, to leaving the home the children had known for nearly a decade so that they could pursue their dreams elsewhere.

“We know our boys’ hearts and said we will find a way for them to participate,” Kate Chattic said.

After Isaac Trotter sat out of sports throughout junior high and his freshman year, the family moved to Farmer City. The Blue Ridge district permits home-schooled children to be involved with its extra-curriculars.

“When we looked for a house, that (home-schoolers participation) affected the decision of where we would move,” Kate Chattic said.

**

There are some questions that only time can answer.

How well were Chattic’s children educated?

How would they adapt to the structure of being on sports teams as the newcomers?

Well …

Isaac Trotter was a three-year varsity starter in baseball and a two-year regular in basketball at Blue Ridge.

Caleb Trotter, a year younger, was able to play sports and be involved with the Scholastic Bowl team for four years.

Isaac Trotter scored a 30 on his ACT. He enrolled at the University of Illinois and will graduate in December, completing his schooling in 3 ½ years.

Caleb Trotter scored a 34 on his ACT. He too, enrolled at the UI. He is currently a junior majoring in mechanical engineering. In three of his first four semesters, the Dean’s List student maintained a perfect 4.0 grade-point average.

In his spare time, he serves as a tutor to other UI students.

“I love learning,” Caleb Trotter said, “and continue to learn as much as I can.”

Both boys attribute their success to the environment in which they were raised and what was emphasized at home.

“Mom taught us different things at a young age and got us wanting to learn at a young age,” Caleb Trotter said. “The way she set it up, we had to be independent, get our assignments done and get our schedule figured out.

“That has shown up as the main factor in our success in college.”

Kate Chattic was a product of public education and had no previous experience in home-schooling before undertaking the education of her two oldest children.

“Getting into the college of their choice and excelling is a blessing to me and a joy to see,” Kate Chattic said.

Doubts were a natural part of the experience for her in the beginning.

“I was a single mother at the time, wondering how am I going to do this and provide financially,” she said. “It was pretty typical to compare to what they would get in public school and hope what I was doing wouldn’t leave gaps.”

Even before the brothers took their ACT exams, the family had a good idea of what to expect.

“We took standardized testing starting in fourth- or fifth-grade,” Caleb Trotter said, “and every year, we’d see how we stacked up (nationally).”

Each year, the results were pleasing.

“We were usually in the upper 90-percentile,” Isaac Trotter said. “Caleb was in the 99th percentile and I’d be around 96.

“We didn’t have concerns about falling behind academically.”

The transition to college provided some eye-opening moments.

“I walked into class my first day and there were 300 kids in my lecture hall,” Caleb Trotter said.

He was able to cope.

“I’d been socialized well,” he said. “Mom got us involved in activities and meeting people.”

**

The topic of allowing home-schooled children to participate in extra-curricular activities is one that the M-S school board may look into.

At a recent M-S Board of Education Policy Committee meeting, board member Colleen Schultz brought forth a policy proposal that would permit home-schooled students to participate in extra-curricular activities, with several conditions.

“It’s really a low-risk, high-reward move,” Isaac Trotter said. “They can be a positive influence on the kids they are around.

“If they are not good enough, they are not going to play, but if they are (good enough), you’re looking at adding an interesting piece to the team.”

There are no hard feelings because he won’t be able to benefit, if approval is ultimately granted.

“I’m super happy,” Isaac Trotter said. “Maybe disappointed (personally), but not frustrated.”

His brother takes a philosophical approach.

“You think about the past, possibilities that could have been, things that might have changed,” Caleb Trotter said, “But it would be a different path and I wouldn’t be where I am today.

“I’m happy they are looking into it. Someone shouldn’t be held back because they are home-schooled.”

Kate Chattic invites anyone who wants to see an accurate picture of home-schooling to investigate it thoroughly.

“In general, the families I know who home-school, their kids have a rigorous education and they excel at so many things,” Kate Chattic said. “They are committed to educating them in all areas of life.

“We are not atypical. It’s a pretty common theme. I wish they could come and see what home-schooled families are like. Ninety-nine percent are committed to seeing our kids succeed.”

In Illinois, the minimum number of credits needed to graduate from high school is 24.

The Trotters each had at least 27 credits.

“Mom made it hard for us,” Isaac Trotter said, “but it prepared us for college.”

The usage of the word ‘hard’ is not an overstatement, according to Kate Chattic, recalling comments she heard from her sons during their first year at the UI.

“They told me their high school was harder than their college,” she said.

Now in his 20s – and recently engaged – Isaac Trotter is not the same person who begged his mother to attend a public school as he approached his teen-aged years.

“I’m thankful Farmer City let us play,” he said, “but Mom made the right choice.

“The test scores speak for themselves.”

Caleb Trotter said he will never take for granted the commitment his mother made.

“I look back with a lot of wonder,” he said. “She worked several jobs and home-schooled her boys. She put a lot of effort in and did a great job.”

Kate Chattic, and her husband Nate, have four other children to home-school. The more things change, she said, the more they take on the look of the past.

“I’ve learned a lot,” she said, “but some things are still the same.

“Some of the books I saved from Isaac and Caleb, I still use. There’s great information in them and that information doesn’t change over a decade.”

The question facing the Mahomet-Seymour school district is whether its attitude on home-schooling and participation will change a decade later.