We’re getting lots of questions about the membership fees. Especially if you’ve been a member with us for a number of years or are looking for an association that’s low-cost and “hands-off”. When you compare and contrast the associations, we understand that SC TOP is not the cheapest one out there. But, we’ve created a formula to calculate the annual fees in order to provide our members with a great value for what’s included in our services.
The total fee includes the parent rate PLUS the student rate. It’s a great value for the peace of mind to have the support and encouragement to help keep you on track with your record-keeping and attendance requirements.
- SC TOP is “hands-off” because we don’t micromanage your course of study or ask for you to do unnecessary busywork.
- But, our admin strives to be available if you get stuck along the way. You don’t know what you don’t know! The weight of responsibility can feel heavy, sometimes.
Parent rate. We calculate the work that it takes to process your membership file. Note: Prices may vary, after late registration or change from year-to-year. So they are listed here as examples.
The rates include handling the email inquiries that help clarify the procedures and policies. And processing the membership files, sending out welcome email, getting on the roster for continuing membership emails. There’s lots of little details that have to be checked and verified. We consider it a flat rate for each family, regardless how many students you have.
- New homeschoolers, new residents in SC and new members switching from another association have a flat rate (ie: $35).
- Lapsed/returning members coming back from another school or association (ie: $30).
- Renewing-continuing members are set at lower flat rate, since you are already familiar with the policies and procedures. But, still there’s lots of questions and clarifications about the documents and payment status. (ie:$20).
Student rate: We calculate the work that is takes to be available to help answer your questions/emails and to provide resources to help keep you on track thru the year. Virtual workshops that you can attend in real-time to ask questions or available to watch as replay.
The more students you have, the more questions you are likely to have. If you need something, I don’t want you to have to pay an added fee just to get help. I was not even aware of the amount of invisible labor that I was offering for free–till I started to hire some assistants to help manage the various tasks.
- Elementary/Middle school: no-high school credits. (ie: $20/student). We provide lots of tutorials to help you plan out your course of study and keep track of your records. There’s lots of articles to also help answer your questions about homeschooling in general–as well as the SC TOP policies and procedures.
- Special Education Track: If your high schooler is not on a diploma track and you don’t need the transcript assistance, then you can opt to pay for the K-8th fees. Be sure to list the correct grade level where the student belongs agewise and include a note that you’re not on a diploma track (ie: student is non-verbal).
- High School/Transcript Assistance: We calculate an added fee for the increased questions you will likely have about planning your high school course of study and formatting the transcript. If your middle school student is starting high school courses, you may want to choose this added fee. Specific policies and procedures that are non-negotiable for the services to assist with formatting your transcript.
Added optional fees: If you want to speak to the director, you can schedule a personal consulatation appointment. We do not have the staff to be able to answer your phone calls for free. It’s one way that we have limited the services to try to keep the fees as affordable as possible.
If you need more help in getting started, planning your course of study, figuring what materials to use, modifying for special needs/learning differences, more transcript assistance for college admissions and common app services–SC TOP director can assist you.
Discounts: We don’t want the membership to be a hardship. You can request a hardship discount/fee waiver or active duty military discount.
Early Bird Discounts: We no longer offer early bird discount rates. The fee is discounted for renewing/continuing members for as a thanks for registering on time–by August 1. This saves our staff the time to chase you down with reminders for missing paperwork. But, the discount does not have a specific line item stating it’s a “discount”.
Registration opens in mid-May. Membership starts July 1st. You should be registered each year by the time school starts in your local district. Late fees will be implemented after August 1st.
Quality service, reliable expertise, affordable value and peace of mind.
Thanks for choosing SC TOP!
~Kim Andrysczyk, Director