The "C" in STAC - Why Community Matters

This month’s blog post comes from Darby Kennedy, a founding member of STAC, and a current teacher.

Last week was a milestone: the 3rd anniversary of the incorporation of “Space, Time and Community, Inc,” the entity better known as STAC. As a founding board member, I find it hard to believe that it was three years ago that a group of parents set out to create a homeschool community that would support not just our children but would also be a place where we, as adults, could give and receive help.

When we were deciding on a name for our organization, we had long conversations about what kind of place learners needed to grow and blossom. We knew we wanted a place that would give our kids the space and time they needed. But the founding board also felt very strongly about community. Homeschooling can be overwhelming and it can be lonely. Families that choose to homeschool are, by the very nature of that choice, outside the mainstream. But that does not mean that we don’t have a need for community. With the creation of STAC, one of our guiding principles was that we all need interaction with other people in a safe and welcoming space. We need each other.

That’s why over the first three years, we have worked so hard to build a true community. We regularly gathered around the picnic tables at ECA to visit, work, eat, play games, make art, read stories, celebrate birthdays, tie dye shirts, and more. We came together for service projects, dance parties, potlucks, games, and roasting marshmallows and hotdogs around the fire pit. We held talent shows and market days where our students could sell things they created. Off campus, we met for museum field trips, camping, park days, and the all-important mom’s nights out.

A Zoom birthday party for a STAC teen.

Of course in March when we, like the rest of the world, ended up in the midst of a pandemic, we knew how important staying connected would be as everyone went into lock down. More than ever, we need each other. So we moved our community online. Whether it was weekly coffee breaks via Zoom, or online meetings for our Friday “Play, Create, Learn” time, we continued to gather. Moms enjoyed online happy hours, and our teens learned to play their weekly D&D games virtually. We are finding new ways to work together on service projects — right now we are collecting items to fill backpacks for financially struggling students returning to traditional brick and mortar schools in Fulton county.

Covid-19 is not going away any time soon, and so STAC continues to work on keeping that sense of community even though our times together is often through a screen. We eagerly look forward to the day when we are back to being in person again, sitting around the picnic tables, laughing and chatting, giving our kids the space and time they need to grow, learn, and blossom.

In the meantime as our world evolves through this pandemic, I believe that our need for community is greater than ever before. STAC will continue to emphasize that “C” in our name, whether in person or virtually, because it is an integral part of the reason that our group was created. Yes, academics are important, but STAC has always been much more than just a place for homeschoolers to take some classes. We are building a community.