K-12 Homeschool in Washington State

Alger Learning Center:
The Alger Learning Center, based in Washington State, is a correspondence homeschool that offers a nationally-accredited Independence High School Diploma program to students across America, and those living, traveling, or working globally. We work with children at all grade levels from pre-K through 8th Grade, and offer two types of high school completion programs for Grades 9-12 through our Independence High School. The Alger Learning Center was founded in 1981 to provide students with creative educational alternatives while empowering them to take charge of their own lives and learning.

At the Alger Learning Center & Independence High School, we believe that learning is a natural ongoing process, which is best achieved without restrictions, confinements, or limitations. We believe that it is as unnecessary to regulate or standardize learning as it is to regulate or standardize breathing; both are naturally occurring, lifelong processes.

Healthy learning requires freedom – the freedom to learn subjects that are interesting and relevant to one’s own goals, the freedom to learn in a fashion or style that is enjoyable and tailored to fit individual learning styles and rates, and the freedom to choose not only what but how much to study in each subject.

We believe that students deserve trust and the basic freedom to make choices, to put ideas into action, and to grow and learn according to their own individual learning style and goals. Students should be free to pursue topics that are interesting and pertinent to them, and to approach those topics at a comfortable pace in the way they learn best. When students are allowed to work at their own pace, their understanding and retention of the subject matter increases, and most students find that the rate of learning accelerates. Because we are in operation year-round, and because our programs are self-paced, many of our students complete high school in three years rather than four, and often take college level courses in the high school and even middle school grades.

Our Programs:
We offer both local assisted learning and distance learning programs, and validation for homeschoolers and unschoolers.

We work with children at all grade levels from pre-K through 8, and offer high school completion programs for grades 9 through 12 through our Independence High School. Washington resident can complete the requirements of the Washington State Board of Education for high school graduation through our local or distance learning homeschool assistance programs, and receive a diploma reflecting the State approved private school status of the Alger Learning Center.

Homeschoolers, unschoolers, and independent learners from every state, as well as globally, can enjoy unprecedented maximum freedom to pursue their academic and life interests in a decidedly less-structured manner than typical mainstream programs

- High School Diploma program
- Distance Learning program
- Local home schooling assistance
- Diagnostic testing and credit analysis
- Adult education            
- High school completion programs

What is the primary difference between the Local and Distance programs?
Our Distance Learning program does not require the four hours of attendance that our Local program requires. In exchange, the role of the ALC staff is changed from that of instructors to being facilitators. The parents and students are primarily responsible for the materials and lesson plans, with ALC staff doing follow-up and assessment.