Meet the 2024 MACHE Convention Speakers
We have an exciting line-up of top-notch speakers to encourage and equip you in the homeschool journey.Keynote Speakers
Zan Tyler
Keynote Speaker
Zan’s homeschool journey began in 1984 when homeschooling was illegal. The State Superintendent of Education threatened Zan with jail for insisting on homeschooling her son. For the next eight years, she and other homeschool families battled for homeschool freedom and the establishment of landmark homeschool legislation in South Carolina. To this day, her legislative success in South Carolina has spearheaded legislation to ensure homeschool freedom in other states. In 1990, she founded the South Carolina Association of Independent Home Schools (SCAIHS) and served as its president for ten years. Her fight for homeschool freedom has led her to serve as the National Grassroots Director for ParentalRights.org, to advocate for homeschooling in the media (appearing on NBC’s Today Show) and at the nation’s capital, and to write profusely about the benefits of homeschooling.
Zan’s deepest desire is to encourage parents to raise children who love the Lord, understand their callings in life, and become active citizens who understand the freedom principles undergirding our great American heritage. She is an inspirational speaker, author, and a consultant for BJU Press Homeschool. For sixteen years, Zan worked with Christian publishers to develop homeschool curriculum and resources. She considers the twenty-one-years she and her husband, Joe, spent homeschooling their own three children from kindergarten through high school to be one of the greatest privileges of her life. Zan is the host of the Zan Tyler Podcast where she is joined by a special guest each week for real encouragement, engaging stories, and practical wisdom for surviving and thriving on the homeschool journey.
Will Estrada
Keynote Speaker
Will began his legal career working for HSLDA in January 2004 as a legal assistant to HSLDA Senior Counsel Scott Woodruff. After graduating from Oak Brook College of Law and Government Policy with his Juris Doctor in 2006, he moved on to direct HSLDA’s Federal Relations department and serve as HSLDA’s federal lobbyist. Will worked as a career federal employee in the Office for Civil Rights at the US Department of Health and Human Services from 2018 to 2021. In November of 2021, he was selected by the Board of ParentalRights.org to serve as the first full-time president of ParentalRights.org and the Parental Rights Foundation.
In June of 2023, Will decided to return to his roots at HSLDA, this time serving as a senior counsel and contact attorney for HSLDA members in the states of California, Wyoming, Illinois, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and New Hampshire. He works to make homeschooling possible for thousands of member families and hundreds of thousands of homeschool students by advocating in state legislatures for homeschool freedom, working to ensure that homeschool graduates are treated equally, and that the laws protecting the rights of homeschool families are followed by government officials.
Will and his wife, Rachel, have two sons, Dominic and Merrick, and live in Northern Virginia.
Kym Kent
Leadership Keynote Speaker
With over 20 years of experience homeschooling her six children, Kym Kent is a compassionate, cheerleading connector, has emerged as a leader in championing homeschooling and educational freedom for families, and empowering non-traditional educational entrepreneurs to build programs to meet the needs of students and families in their communities.
A native of Queens, New York, Kym Kent is a graduate of the University of Maryland College Park, with a degree in Economics, and previously worked as a paralegal in Special Education litigation. However, her real education began in 2003 with the start of her family’s homeschooling journey. While participating in classical Christian homeschool tutorials, she taught elementary, middle and high school math, and is now well known for her high-energy math classes, where she helps her students enjoy math while preparing and challenging them for high-level studies.
Kym is the co-founder and director of eXtend Homeschool Tutorial in Bowie, Maryland, which began in 2017 as Bridge Elementary Tutorial Homeschool Ministries, and now provides core academic and elective classes to homeschooled students in grades 1 through 12 in suburban Maryland and the surrounding D.C. Metropolitan area. Through the years, Kym’s passion for homeschooling and non-traditional educational environments has enabled her to mentor countless students and families, organize and speak at area-wide expos and events, conduct workshops to educate and support homeschooling families, and serve as a voice of motivation and empowerment for families and educational entrepreneurs across the country. Most notably, she spoke as a panelist at the 2022 SXSW-EDU in Austin, TX and presented at the 2022 Stand Together Summit in Colorado Springs, CO. She currently serves as a Community Connector for VELA Education Fund and was a featured speaker in their expert series covering Models and Strategies of Sustainability for Homeschooling Co-Ops, Classes and Tutorials. In 2023, Kym was a featured speaker at the Baltimore Homeschool Yo Kids Conference, and spoke at every session of the 2023 Mt. Oak Women’s Retreat. Most recently, Kym spoke at the 2024 Virginia Education Innovation Conference and was the winner of the 2024 VEIC Pitch Competition.
While Kym relishes every opportunity to encourage and support homeschoolers and edupreneurs wherever she meets them, her greatest joy is found in loving, cheerleading, and spending time with her family.
Melissa Hannigan
Parenting & Family Wellness Keynote Speaker
Melissa Hannigan holds a Masters of Arts degree in counseling from Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. She has been married to John for 18 years, and is mom to 4 kids, one son (16 year old Joey, who ran ahead to heaven in 2023) and three daughters, Maddy, Ella and Charlotte. Before becoming a full-time homeschool mom, Melissa worked with teen girls to overcome abuse, addictions and trauma. She is passionate about helping people discover God’s best for their lives. Melissa and John founded Ignite the Family in 2023.
Featured Speakers
Vicki Tillman
Featured Speaker – New Homeschoolers, High School Track
Vicki Tillman is a visionary force in her local community; her mission is to advance God’s kingdom by investing in people. A homeschooling mom for 20-plus years, four of Vicki’s children are grown, and one is still in high school. As an Academic Advisor, she has invested in hundreds of families at MSA. She was there for the founding of Tri-State’s MEK/TEK, Rhetoric team, Cinematography Club, and Student Congress for homeschoolers. She teaches college-model classes (in person and online), writes curriculum and blogs for MSA. Vicki earned her MA in Counseling from Liberty University, and another way she carries out her mission is her work as a counselor at Pike Creek Psychological Center since 1996. A member of the American Association of Christian Counselors, she is trained on their Life Coaching model, which she employs in the mentoring she does in the homeschooling community and elsewhere. She has served as director of prayer ministries in her local church and writes about prayer on her blog.
David Gaines
Featured Speaker – High School Track
Dr. Rochelle Matthews-Somerville
Featured Speaker – Special Needs Track
Rochelle Matthews-Somerville, Ph.D., co-founded EFM Educational Consultants in 2010 after teaching as a university professor for many years. She has dedicated more than 25 years to supporting individuals with ASD and other learning and developmental disabilities to lead healthy, productive lives. During her years of serving the community as a University Professor, Special Educator, Autism Specialist, and Educational Consultant in the Southern Maryland area, she and her husband were blessed to be surrounded by a vibrant homeschooling community. As a natural extension of their passion for learning, they decided to homeschool their 6 children — and 15 years later, they are still going strong! Through her role as a homeschool mom and EFM, Dr. Somerville is dedicated to assisting families, especially those with homeschooling children with disabilities, to access high–quality, inclusive community-based activities, programs, and resources that prepare their children for the future.
Professional Membership
LaNissir James
Featured Speaker – High School Track, Black Homeschool Support
- In her role at HSLDA, LaNissir works closely with homeschooling families, guiding them through the high school process.
- LaNissir leads a homeschool co-op, tutorial, and oversight program for K–12 with a keen eye for the needs of homeschooling families.
- She’s a seasoned tutor with over a decade of experience in group class settings and one-on-one coaching.
- LaNissir and her husband are homeschooling their seven children from preschool to college.
Sue Manning
Featured Speaker – New Homeschoolers, Military Homeschool Support
Sue Manning is a veteran homeschool mom of 3. She is still actively homeschooling a high schooler, and has two graduates – one a college graduate, and one enrolled in a trade apprenticeship program. As a military spouse for many years, Sue has experience with homeschooling throughout the US and overseas, but has spent the last 16 years in Maryland. Her areas of expertise include homeschooling 101, homeschooling special needs, and creating connections in the homeschool community.
Sue has most recently served homeschool families in Southern Maryland through the Charles County Homeschool Connector which seeks to assist new homeschoolers as they begin their journey by connecting them with experienced homeschoolers.
Sheri Payne
Featured Speaker – Hispanic & Homeschool Group Support
Sheri Payne is a homeschool support group leader, former history and government teacher, co-op leader, writer, and speaker. She is currently the director of leadership and military support for Home Educators Association of Virginia.
She and her husband Jim have been married for 29 years and are parents to three always-homeschooled children. Jim is a retired Navy veteran who currently works for Naval Special Operations Group Two.