Defining Your Market: How My Microschool’s Focus Has Evolved
Jennifer Kempin | November 2025
In October, we had an education entrepreneur meetup where we got into a lively discussion about defining—or not defining—what a microschool is or isn’t.
In many ways, it comes down to two key questions: Who are we serving? and What is our mission?
Some of us around the table are running full replacements for traditional school—supporting families who are leaving the conventional system entirely and looking for a new kind of “school” experience.
Others are building programs designed to appeal to homeschool families, offering part-time instruction, requiring parent involvement, or offering only enrichment while still allowing plenty of hands-on time with their children.
And then, of course, there’s everything in between.
So where’s the line?
What makes a program a co-op rather than a school?
When does a hybrid model stop being hybrid and start being a school?
What if defines a school really?
Listening to that conversation, I realized the question isn’t really what a microschool is, it’s who it’s for. Every model at that table was shaped by the families it served. And that’s when I started thinking about how much my own school has changed in that way, how my “who” has evolved since I first opened my doors.
The beauty of this moment in education is that there aren’t rigid definitions. We, the entrepreneurs, get to define these models in the ways that best serve our children, families, and visions. But that freedom also brings a challenge: as we shape and reshape our schools, we have to keep asking who we truly serve and stay grounded in our mission while doing it.
Starting Out: Appealing to Homeschool Families
When I opened Fáilte Microschool, I imagined that one day we’d be an option that would replace full-time traditional schools for families whose children were struggling in public or private schooling environments. But I also knew that would be a hard sell, especially in a state that doesn’t offer many supports for alternative education programs.
At the time, I was homeschooling my son after some failed attempts in traditional school. It made sense to start by appealing to the homeschool community, with the hope of gradually expanding into a “school replacement” option down the road.
So, with homeschool families in mind, we opened three days a week, from 10–2. I filled my first few spots quickly.
I soon realized that many homeschooling parents I was marketing to wanted more direct input into our curriculum, daily structure, and scheduling than I was offering. They wanted to pick which days their children attended or influence how lessons were run.
Meanwhile, the students I did have were asking for more. They were bored during their days at home and wanted school to meet more often!
At that point, I knew it was time to pause and reflect:
What was the community asking for?
And does it align with our school’s mission?
The First Shift: Moving Toward a School Replacement Model
My passion was always to support those families that came to homeschooling out of necessity or as a last-ditch effort to help their child. So as I looked at what the market was asking for—more influence on our day-to-day (from the homeschool community) and more time in school (from the traditional schooling community)—it became clear what changes I should make.
I added a fourth day of school.
The result was immediate: my current families and children were thrilled.
And suddenly, the families reaching out to inquire about enrollment were no longer traditional homeschoolers—they were families leaving public and private schools and looking for something more aligned with their values.
This was exciting! I was starting to reach a new market that I was passionate about supporting. But with a new market came a new set of concerns. By the middle of last year, I started hearing new concerns from these prospective families. Many of them loved our approach but found the short day (10–2) difficult to manage in a two-working-parent household.
Once again, it was time to step back and reflect.
Reflecting on Mission Before Making Change
Whenever I make a big decision, I start with two guiding questions:
- What is the community asking for?
- Does it align with our school’s mission?
The people who were now interested in Fáilte were asking for more school—a more “typical” eight-hour day, five days a week. When it came to our shorter day and four-day week, I knew I made both of those choices rooted in purpose. We keep our days short because we want children here when they’re well-rested and at their best. We want them to leave school still full of energy—excited to come back tomorrow.
Our Wednesday off also serves a purpose. It gives anxious students a midweek reset and provides space for others to participate in outdoor or specialized programs.
But as I reflected, I also saw that our older students were ready for more. They had the stamina and focus for a slightly longer day. What I wasn’t ready for was turning our microschool into a full eight-hour day or adding before- and after-care—that would go against our mission and the spirit of what makes us who we are.
So, I made a small but meaningful change:
I increased the day by one hour for our older students.
The feedback from families and students was positive. It was the right step forward—aligned with our mission and responsive to real needs.
Where We Are Now: Balancing Mission and Access
Expanding to five days a week remains on my mind, but that’s more of a logistical challenge than a philosophical one.
As we continue attracting more families from public and private schools, we’re also encountering new barriers—things like transportation and the overall trust leap it takes for parents to leave the “protection” of the traditional system.
I’m exploring ways to mitigate those challenges without compromising our values. That includes:
- Looking into partnerships that could offer Wednesday programming for families who want a five-day option.
- Considering a move closer to where most of our families live to help with transportation.
- Building connections with school psychologists and other professionals whom parents already trust and who could refer families to us.
Evolving Without Losing Our Core
Defining your market isn’t about narrowing your dream—it’s about clarifying it.
Every time I’ve made a shift, it’s come from listening carefully—to families, to students, and to our own mission.
Each decision, from adding a day to lengthening our hours, has been about finding that balance between what our community is telling us and what we stand for.
And that’s what this movement is all about: building something new, listening as we go, and defining success on our own terms.
