Texas microschools collective launches to boost faith-based education

Texas could soon have more microschools in black communities and beyond with the launch of the Texas Microschools Collective.

Leaders say the faith-based initiative is rooted in a long tradition of community-driven education reform dating back to Booker T. Washington and philanthropist Julius Rosenwald, who between 1912 and 1937 helped build more than 5,000 schools for black students across the South, The Dallas Express reported.

“Just as Washington and Rosenwald gave parents direct say over their children’s education, microschools are returning control to families and communities,” Pastor Kyev Tatum of New Mount Rose Missionary Baptist Church in Fort Worth wrote on his blog.

The collective will hold its first meeting next week at the Fort Worth church.

The collective was formed late last month as a collaboration between New Mount Rose church, the Black Mothers Forum of Arizona and the Ministers Justice Coalition of Texas.

The Arizona group has implemented a successful microschool model that targets black and Latino students, helping close the achievement gap they face in traditional schools.

Arizona is a leading school-choice state, and Texas will inaugurate its school choice program next year, making this an opportune time to expand schooling options.

The collective plans to work across Texas to “plan, plant, and promote” microschools, which will be located in churches and community spaces through what the group calls the Circle of Churches Collective.

Microschools, which typically serve fewer than 15 students, emphasize personalized instruction, strong parental involvement and freedom from school district bureaucracy. Supporters see them as a modern revival of grassroots schooling efforts, offering families more control over how and where their children are taught.

Collective leaders say the project taps into a strong tradition of educational self-determination within the black community.

A recent survey by Rice University, the University of Houston and Texas Southern University found nearly 70% of black Texans support universal school choice – a level of support advocates say underscores the enduring appeal of locally driven education alternatives. It also affirms a long-standing tradition of educational self-determination, Tatum says.

The number of microschools has exploded nationally over the last five years, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic forced the closure of many public schools, sending parents searching for options.

There are planting movements in states such as Florida and Indiana.

SchoolBox, a free program of the Herzog Foundation, publisher of The Heartlander, also helps people start Christian schools of all sizes, including microschools and homeschools. 

To learn more about SchoolBox and HF Homeschool, visit hfschoolbox.com.