Image Credit: Mikki Montfort Weddle / Facebook
The Tennessee Conservative [By Olivia Lupia] –
A Christian homeschool pod in Shelby County was granted a major legal victory last week after fighting for nearly a year in court as the county tried to classify it as a traditional school and close it down.
Anchor Academy is a homeschool cottage co-op located in Cordova, TN, which is “dedicated to equipping parents and students with the tools for Christ-centered education, maturing faith, building community, and serving others through meaningful give-back projects.”
Started by experienced homeschool mom Mikki Weddle after the loss of her son, Anchor “operates as a collaborative learning pod microschool- where parents remain the primary educators, and families voluntarily come together to support and enrich one another’s homeschooling journeys. This shared model allows for flexibility, community, and a deeply personal approach to learning and discipleship.”
But despite eight years of operation with a group of homeschool families gathering in the Weddle home twice per week with no issues, Shelby County decided to try and classify the pod as a traditional school and issued several citations, causing the legal battle to extend for nine months and culminate in a trial.
“We have been fighting this all year and have been in court multiple times because of citations issued by Shelby County. We are now in trial, defending the right of parents to choose the kind of education that is best for their children and families. We believe parents should have the freedom to educate their children in the way they see fit and to gather with other like-minded families to do so,” Mikki wrote in a Facebook update.
“On Tuesday, April 21, the prosecuting attorney presented his case, focusing on zoning issues related to daycare and school occupancy laws. Several county zoning officials testified that we had more than the allowed seven children on the property. One neighbor also testified that the sound of children singing was too much for him.”
Then on April 29, Mikki announced that the judge had ruled in favor of Anchor, partly due to the protections of a pro-homeschool bill passed last year.
“After nine long months of back and forth at 201 Poplar, countless prayers from our homeschool community and beyond, and unforgettable moments of support, the judge ruled in favor of Anchor. This ruling will now officially help protect our sweet homeschool community from this kind of overreach,” she celebrated.
“We are deeply thankful for the lobbyists who fought for us in Tennessee, Home School Legal Defense Association [HSLDA] and their support of this case, our attorney Edward Bearman, Senator Brent Taylor and every prayer that has been lifted on our behalf. God is good, and all praise belongs to Him!! We will continue standing for the rights of parents to have a choice in how they educate their children.”
In 2025, HSLDA worked with Tennessee lawmakers and other homeschool groups to pass the Learning Pod Protection Act which “provides significant protection to learning pods, microschools, tutorial programs, co-ops, and other programs that serve homeschooling families.”
The Act defines “learning pod” as “a voluntary association of parents who are choosing to group their children together at various times or places to participate in, or enhance, their child’s kindergarten through grade twelve (K-12) education, regardless of whether payment is made for any services provided to the children participating in the learning pod.”
It also specifically states that the purpose of the legislation is to allow parents to voluntarily participate in learning pods “without being subject to regulation”, including control by the state, a local government, or an LEA, and exempts them from state and local regulations pertaining to education or educational facilities in the state.
HSLDA Senior Counsel Will Estrada also hailed the Anchor legal victory, writing, “We at HSLDA are thrilled by the results of today’s victory for Daniel and Mikkie Weddle’s homeschool learning pod. HSLDA was pleased to work last year with Tennessee Senator Jack Johnson and Claiborne Thornton (President of Tennessee Home Education Association, THEA) to draft, introduce, and pass the Learning Pod Protection Act. This law, codified at T.C.A. § 49-6-7101, et seq., is what helped to protect the Weddle family’s learning pod in today’s decision, and what will continue to protect homeschool families and homeschool learning pods in Tennessee for years to come.”
Estrada further called on Gov. Lee to sign into law HB1729 to “advance more common-sense progress for Tennessee’s growing homeschool community.”
HB1729 by Rep. William Slater was in fact signed by the Governor on May 1, enacting legislation that revamps standardized testing requirements for homeschool students.
The new law will allow independent homeschool students to take either the TCAP test through their local LEA or a standardized test selected by the parent-teacher that provides “nationally normed analytics” proctored by an individual who is not related to the student. It also does away with remediation and consequences for low test scores by homeschoolers as not a single student has ever been forced back to public school under the regulations.
About the Author: Olivia Lupia is a political refugee from Colorado who now calls Tennessee home. A proud follower of Christ, she views all political happenings through a Biblical lens and aims to utilize her knowledge and experience to educate and equip others. Olivia is an outspoken conservative who has run for local office, managed campaigns, and been highly involved with state & local GOPs, state legislatures, and other grassroots organizations and movements. Olivia can be reached at olivia@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
