Homeschool Co-op Waivers and Forms: What Groups Usually Ask Families to Fill In

Most homeschool co-ops ask each family for a handful of forms when they join. In co-ops' own public handbooks, the usual set is a registration form and an emergency contact. Then come medical and allergy notes, a photo preference and a signed code of conduct. Some add a medical release, which lets someone seek emergency care if a parent can't be reached. Some add a liability waiver. A small parent-led co-op can put most of this on one page per family, and a copy is further down. This page describes what co-ops and advisers say. It isn't legal advice: for any waiver or release, check with your state homeschool association, an insurer or a lawyer.

What forms does a homeschool co-op need?

Picture the first Tuesday of term in a small Waldorf-inspired co-op. The children are hanging coats on the pegs, and the painting boards are stacked by the sink. Someone is warming beeswax for modeling, and the snack parent is slicing apples. Before the morning verse, the coordinator has one job. She needs to know who to call for each child, who can't eat what, and whether each family is happy for their child to appear in the group's photos.

That's what forms are for. Here's what co-ops' own handbooks ask for, one form at a time.

Registration

The registration form is the family's yes to the group. HSLDA suggests a membership application ask for the names and ages of the children, and what the parent would like to help with. It also lists things some groups ask families to sign. Among them are a code of conduct, a dress code and, in religious groups, a statement of faith. One co-op's handbook says that signing its registration form "constitutes an agreement to pay the fees on time." HSLDA's main advice is that whatever you ask, you ask of every family equally.

For a small Waldorf-inspired group, registration can also be where a family ticks that they've read the handbook and the refund policy, and names the job they'll take.

Emergency contacts

A co-op needs to be able to reach someone. One Missouri co-op asks every member to keep an emergency contact up to date on its website. Before a field trip, its coordinator makes a roster with each person's name, phone number and emergency contact. Ask for two people if you can, so there's a second number when the first doesn't answer.

Medical and allergy information

Food comes up in almost every Waldorf-inspired morning: a shared snack, bread baked for Michaelmas, soup at a harvest festival. So the allergy line on your form carries real weight. The Missouri co-op says it's the parents' job to make sure teachers know about any allergy. An Ohio group asks parents to tell the teacher about allergies personally. Both are good habits. Put it on the form, then say it out loud to whoever runs the snack.

Some co-ops also ask for a medical release. One Minnesota group's combined form, for example, gives permission to call an ambulance if a parent isn't present. It authorizes doctors to treat the child when a parent can't be reached to consent. It also asks for health insurance details, medicines and allergies, and someone to call in a non-medical emergency. An Ohio co-op asks for a signed medical release only when a parent leaves the building while their child stays. If your group is deciding between drop-off and parents staying, our drop-off guide covers the rest of that choice.

Photo permission

Co-ops handle photos in one of two ways. Some ask families to opt out. A Missouri co-op asks families who don't want photos taken or posted to tell the teachers, and asks members to share pictures only in a closed members' group. Others treat joining as consent: a Maryland co-op says that by joining, families grant it permission to use their image. Choose one, and write it on the form so nobody has to remember.

A lantern walk or a May Day circle is lovely to photograph, and some families would still rather their children stayed off social media. A tick box on the form lets them say so without an awkward conversation.

A code of conduct

A code of conduct is a short promise about how children and adults treat each other and the space. HSLDA lists it among the things a group may ask families to sign. One New Jersey co-op asks members to sign its code of conduct along with its bylaws. The co-op rules article has a one-page agreement you can use as your code.

A liability waiver

A waiver, or release, is a form where a parent accepts the risks of an activity. Some co-ops ask every family to sign one each year. The New Jersey co-op also asks guests and visiting grandparents to sign one at the sign-in table.

Carol Topp, a CPA who writes for homeschool groups, says a waiver helps less than many leaders think. The idea that a signed waiver means a family can't sue is, in her words, "not true." She says a release can only cover ordinary negligence, and that minors generally can't release liability, so a parent signs. She also says a waiver doesn't replace insurance, though insurers often ask groups to collect them. She suggests having an attorney licensed in your state look at yours. Our US co-op insurance guide covers what insurers and venues ask for.

Don't copy another group's waiver word for word. Waivers are legal documents, and one written for a church hall in another state may not fit your group or your state's law.

Forms larger co-ops add

Bigger groups often add more. You may not need these, but it helps to know they exist.

• Background checks. HSLDA's guidance on child protection lists screening such as background checks, references and interviews. The Missouri co-op asks every adult who regularly attends to have one. A Pennsylvania co-op requires state and federal clearances for every participating adult.
• Incident reports. The Pennsylvania co-op asks for an incident report after any injury, signed by the child's parent and a leader.
• Conflict forms. The Ohio group asks families to fill in a form on its website to start mediation.

One family form to copy

Change the brackets and leave out what you don't need. One page per family, collected each year at registration.

[Co-op name]: family form for [year]

1. Parent or guardian names, phone numbers and email.
2. Children's names and dates of birth.
3. Emergency contacts: two people we can call if we can't reach you, with phone numbers.
4. Allergies, medical conditions and medicines, including what to do if a reaction happens.
5. Anything else that helps us care for your child (for example, needs extra time at transitions).
6. Photos: [ ] Yes, photos of my child may be shared in our private group. [ ] No photos of my child, please.
7. Pick-up: adults who may collect my child, other than me.
8. I've read the handbook, the code of conduct and the refund policy, and agree to them. [ ]
9. The job our family will take this year: [ ]
10. Signature and date.

If your group uses a medical release or a waiver, keep it as a separate page, and have a lawyer write or check the wording.

Keeping the forms

HSLDA suggests homeschool groups use annual memberships, and many co-ops collect their forms each year at sign-up. Between times, ask families to tell you straight away if an emergency contact or an allergy changes.

Keep the forms together, somewhere the adult in charge on the day can reach them, and take a copy of the emergency contacts on outings, as the Missouri co-op does. Remember that these pages hold private details about children. Decide who can see them, and say so in your handbook. If you're setting up the group itself, our guides to a co-op's legal structure and co-ops and pods cover the bigger questions.

None of this is legal or insurance advice. The co-ops and organizations quoted describe their own practice and views. For a decision about your group, check with your state homeschool association, an insurer or a lawyer.