The Ferguson Road area of East Dallas is a collage of cultures, socio-economic groups, and every type of environment, from the 1960-s style comfortable homes shaded by a canopy of trees to the pay day loan businesses that cater to those in need. Cody and Shelly Pope moved to this neighborhood with their children last year from another culturally diverse East Dallas community. Cody and Shelly exhibit an authentic acceptance of life and embrace the challenges they encounter with a grace that deeply influences those around them. I had the opportunity to speak with them across their kitchen table at length a few weeks ago about their commitment to home school their children in an area as rich with educational lessons outside the home as within it.
Chuck: What led the two of you to commit to home schooling your children?
Cody: Both of us were raised in public schools. For me, that was not a great thing as I got into tons of trouble at school due to my own insecurities, the influences around me and my great need to please and get acceptance from others. Our children are young and Shelly and I want to protect them and help train them up in the ways of the Lord. One problem in urban areas today is that many parents are letting the schools parent their children. The result of this is that there are numerous social issues that schools are forced to deal with, and that has lowered the level of rigorous education to the lowest common denominator in many classrooms.
Shelly: Mainly because of the negative influences from children with different values is why I chose to home school. Children aren’t mature enough to handle negative or overcome negative peer pressure. I thought homeschooling was a good idea after observing my closest friends educating their children at home. When my children were of age I wasn’t ready for them to go into the public school system, so I was willing to make the tremendous sacrifice needed to educate them.
Chuck: Why do you continue to home school with the tremendous sacrifices involved?
Cody: We feel that it is our responsibility and not the government's to train up and educate our children. Especially in these formative years, we want to be our children’s greatest influences! They might need additional education and training after the high school years from public or private institutions.
I like what the Bible says in Deuteronomy. ‘For what great nation is there that has God so near to it, as the LORD our God is to us, for whatever reason we may call upon Him? And what great nation is there that has such statutes and righteous judgments as are in all this law which I set before you this day? Only take heed to yourself, and diligently keep yourself, lest you forget the things your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life. And teach them to your children and grandchildren, especially concerning the day you stood before the LORD your God in Horeb, when the LORD said to me, 'Gather the people to Me, and I will let them hear My words, that they may learn to fear Me all the days they live on the earth, and that they may teach their children.'
Chuck: You live in a very diverse area of East Dallas. What is your family exposed to from your choice to live and home school in a central Dallas area neighborhood?
Shelly: Our children see hurting, broken, desperate people on a daily basis. It is common for them to see people walk up to us and ask for money. We have had to create strict boundaries for them due to the potential danger in the streets around this neighborhood. The parks and shopping aren't as safe and luxurious in East Dallas, but we adapt and choose to enjoy the attractions and activities that we have here.
Cody: The homeschooling groups and activities aren't as plentiful in Dallas as the suburbs, but we do receive encouragement from a great homeschooling small group with our church and our son is able to participate in a great home school sports program in Dallas.
Chuck: How are you being shaped by your experience in living and home schooling in a this environment?
Cody: We hope and pray that our children will be exposed positively to many different people groups and the apparent needs that are evident in East Dallas. We have been called to Dallas to be salt and light, and we minister, as a family, to the needy and hurting in the city. The suburbs don't show the hurt and need as vividly as the city. There are more amenities and comforts in the suburbs, but we are called to Dallas. They get to see that a place without Jesus is a desperate and broken place. Our comforts come secondary to the needs of those around us. Jesus was called to the needy.
Shelly: We hope to be a positive example to our children as we encounter the needy and not a negative example. Our children see the consequences of wrong choices almost everywhere we go. We must use these opportunities to teach our children of the blessings of obeying the Bible and the curses of disobeying the Bible. I think they can see that very vividly in the city.
Chuck: As you are being shaped, how are you shaping and impacting the environment around you in Central Dallas?
Shelly: We are being a light, loving on the loveless. Just having our whole family together and having fun is a testimony. It is so rare to have an active father in the lives of his children and wife in the inner city! That causes us to stand out and impact lives as we are loving on all those around us. We do not look down upon others, but take advantage of opportunities to serve, love, and speak the truth.
Cody: We are actively engaged in our neighbors' lives and looking for opportunities to serve them. We try to preach the gospel through our acts of service and love to our neighbors and have seen God move mightily in their lives.
Chuck: You mention your encouragement from your church and the home school sports league. How many other homeschooling families live in the East Dallas area?
Shelly - I don't know. There are three in our neighborhood whom I know from word of mouth. There are five families living in one apartment complex who go to our church that home school. One of the members of our church has started a science co-op. Joshua participates in a science lesson through that co-op with two other children. I know of other co-ops in North Dallas and the suburbs. Mothers can pay small fees for their children to attend them. Our son has started participating in a home school basketball league. He practices two hours twice each week and competes often during the season. This has allowed him to learn a sport and make friends.
Chuck: Are there things your family has been exposed to through your involvement in the area that you wish it had not been?
Cody: I really am thankful for all that I have seen. I want us to have a good attitude and not convey a bad attitude to our children. I want to let them know that they need to work to eat while at the same time have compassion for those with needs
Shelly: I really want to avoid the suburban trap. I want our children to learn how to respond properly to what they encounter. When things get stolen or other negative things happen, I want them to learn how to love those around us. I want them to not be judgmental but to have a heart of compassion for the needy.
Chuck: Let’s speak about something which some might debate. Are children who are taught in the home more likely to be professionally and materially successful as adults than children who are taught in a traditional school setting whether it is public or private? If they are, why?
Cody: Good home school education can raise the confidence level in a child for success in what they pursue. Their parents have a vested interest in their children developing confidence in their abilities. This provides them with the confidence to take risks and pursue their dreams. It lays a good foundation.
Shelly: Homeschooling may not always be the better environment. In some cases there is not excellence in the home. The child’s success really depends upon the parents’ expectations. Speaking as a former teacher in the public school system, I know what to expect, and I want to do everything I can in order for my children to succeed in school and in life. I want to prepare them for college and ensure that they have a good enough foundation to feel confident and prepared to enter a competitive world and to excel in it.
Cody: Private schools are much more rigorous than public.
Shelly: There is a lot of wasted time in the public schools. I want my children to be able to compete with the best. I will use the example of Tim Tebow. He was homeschooled, and his parents instilled within him a spirit of excellence.
Chuck: Speaking of expectations, what traits and skills do you desire to see developed in your children before they leave home?
Cody: I want to see good discipline in studying, and their taking responsibility to accomplish tasks on their own.
Shelly: I want to see them learn how to take initiative.
Cody: They need to learn to work for things and save for the big items that they want. It will be important that they learn how to socially relate to people, to be respectful, to be able to interview well. When they get a little older, I would like for them to know the importance of diligence, hard work and getting their hands dirty (doing something, whether it is assisting a plumber who we know or something else..)
Shelly: My father was very impressed with our son’s desire to help with the trash. He has an eye to serve. I want to continue to develop that motivation within him to love and serve people. I want him to be excellent in his academics. I was a teacher in the public school which helped me realize that anybody can home school their children.
Chuck: How do you want your childrens’ lives to be different than your own?
Shelly/Cody: A whole lot
Cody: I want our children to be encouraged to excel. I did not have that confidence. I desire that they can manage their finances. I would like for them to place more value on relationships than type of job or how much money they are making. That they would have confidence to go and reach their dreams. That they would feel comfortable to call us for direction even after they leave and have a close relationship with us.
Chuck: What academic subjects are the two of you strongest in?
Shelly: Math, grammar, and the three R’s
Cody: Writing and art
Chuck: Cody, speaking of art, how have you and how do you desire to use your experience to enhance your children’s education?
Cody: I need to do more. They do art with various things. We do things together musically as a family. We work on the house, putting stuff together.
Shelly: The Dallas Museum of Art has art lessons for home schooled children. We have been involved with that program in the past. At school, you teach and repeat. I am exposing Joshua to history and the stories involved with that. We go on field trips to learn about different subjects. It is great to expose them to certain things now that they will be taught later.
Chuck: Is individualism in children a good thing?
Shelly: Please define individualism
Merriam Webster Dictionary
(1) : a doctrine that the interests of the individual are or ought to be ethically paramount; also : conduct guided by such a doctrine (2) : the conception that all values, rights, and duties originate in individuals b : a theory maintaining the political and economic independence of the individual and stressing individual initiative, action, and interests; also : conduct or practice guided by such a theory
Cody: The group activities are very important for our children. Children need positive peer interaction. The peers our son is around have parents who are very involved in their lives. It would be tough on him if he was by himself. I did not have to take responsibility and lead growing up. It is good that he has siblings and has to do much for his sisters. At the same time, teaching him one on one means that he can’t hide behind others. He has to know the right answers.
Chuck: Shelly, you stated earlier that home schooling is a big commitment, what are things that you do for yourself that recharge you?
Shelly: I meet with other home school moms once per month. Our church has a group of moms who take our children on field trips together. Honestly, I am also thankful for the opportunities to spend time with my children and influence their lives. I know however that I need to do more to rejuvenate myself. It just takes discipline to make that time.
Cody: One hundred years ago children were raised in the home and went off with their dad to work. I try to help by taking the kids for a while to let Shelley go to do things.
Shelly: I really enjoy getting with the LORD, taking long walks and spending time with my husband.
Chuck: How does raising children in the diversity of a central city environment prepare them for adulthood?
Shelly: It will help better prepare them for the world around them. I was sheltered growing up. My dad was in the military and we moved around and then settled in Highland Village. I went to Texas A&M University. I really did not know reality. My view of life was: get a good job, settle down, buy a home in the suburbs with a white picket fence, have 2.5 kids, etc. Essentially, I viewed that as the American dream.
Cody: It will also help them to not be so self centered, and teach them to interact with others of multi cultural differences. I can see our son growing up and being a leader in the city of some sort where he is influencing others.
Chuck: How has your involvement at City Church International enhanced your children’s education experience?
Cody: It has definitely helped with their socialization. They are around healthy children and families. Our son likes the other boys and girls who are there
Shelly: It is a smaller group. The children stick together. There is a wide spectrum of ages to which they are exposed. Being around a lot of like-minded, multi-cultural families who are from all different nationalities and every socio-economic level has been healthy for them.
Chuck: How is your situation better than a situation in a suburban setting?
Cody: We are close to our pastors and church friends. We are in the middle of God's will in East Dallas. We tried to move to the suburbs last year, but God kept us from that by closing all doors, and then supernaturally opening doors for us in the city. Though outwardly our environment in the city looks grim, we are truly thriving and hope to help others to also thrive. Dallas is our Promised Land; though it looks like a desert, there are underground springs that just need to be tapped into and dug up so that growth can take place (Isaiah 62). God has radically redeemed us and we are here to see others experience the abundant life that only Jesus can give. Our hearts are for the people of the city and we hope that our children's hearts will also be filled with compassion for the inner-city people.
Chuck: What are your long term goals for your family?
Shelly: That we are spiritually healthy, unified and strong so that we can also help other families to experience the same blessed lifestyle that only Jesus can give and He gives liberally. We hope to see God move in the inner-city of Dallas. It would be nice for our children to remain in Dallas when they grow up and help us see righteousness established here. A righteous life equals a blessed life which impacts a whole community and city if enough people are choosing God's standards of life. Sin equals a cursed life of hopelessness, brokenness, hurt, pain, guilt, and shame.
Cody: We see the fruit of sin in the city with the problems that are all around us, and hope that cycle of sin will be reversed as people surrender their lives to Jesus. His desire is to see a whole city transformed from death to life. It can be done as His people who call upon His name yield their lives to His will. That is what we are trying to do with our children too.
City Life Education
Posted: January 31, 2012 by Chuck DeShazo
