135 - Jody Underwood: Homesteading, Microschooling & Living Off-Grid

Homesteading, Free State Project, Micro Schools, Education Reform, School Budgets, Off-Grid Living, Homeschooling, Bitcoin, Local Government, Critical Thinking.

Timothy Allen speaks with Jody Underwood

A former school board member and Free State Project board member, Jody discusses her off-grid lifestyle in New Hampshire, where she pursues self-sufficiency and runs an education non-profit. Drawn by the Free State Project, she moved with friends to embrace off-grid living, raising animals and growing food.

Jody shares insights into local education reform, including a controversial vote to drastically cut the school budget—later overturned—that sparked backlash. She critiques the traditional education system and advocates for alternatives like micro schools and homeschool co-ops, reflecting a broader shift toward personalized, parent-driven education.

Enjoy the conversation

SHOW SPONSOR: Veritas Village: https://www.ecovillages.life/freecities

Veritas Village is a phenomenal project in Panama, building off-grid, energy self-sufficient luxury homes for freedom lovers. Bitcoin is accepted at all villages, including for the purchase of property.

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TIMESTAMPS

• 0:00:30 – Introduction to the episode and Veritas Village sponsor
• 0:03:35 – Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Fountain integration announcement
• 0:08:18 – CONVERSATION STARTS
• 0:12:50 – Differences in daily life between New Hampshire, New York, and California
• 0:14:59 – Off-grid living, farming, and self-sufficiency
• 0:19:35 – Animal slaughter regulations in New Hampshire
• 0:21:10 – Registering chickens and avian flu
• 0:22:36 – Experience with the Free State Project and involvement in local government
• 0:25:18 – School board involvement and budget slashing
• 0:30:17 – Voting process and budget reduction
• 0:34:12 – Quorum, smear campaign, and revote
• 0:36:51 – Micro schools and learning pods
• 0:40:19 – Homeschool co-ops
• 0:41:51 – Micro schools as an entrepreneurial option
• 0:42:12 – Education savings accounts and government's role in education
• 0:48:11 – Shifting roles in education and the job market
• 0:53:30 – Individualization of learning
• 1:01:18 – Critical thinking in children
• 1:04:25 – Publicly funded Charter schools and religion
• 1:06:05 – Classical Schools with DEI
• 1:07:20 – Pornographic books in school libraries
• 1:08:22 – Leaning to the left on the education scale
• 1:08:57 – Is it possible as a homeschooler to get government money and universal ESAs?
• 1:11:37 – If bringing up kids, what's the best path forward and starting with homeschooling

NOSTR:

• Timothy Allen: Search '[email protected]' on your Nostr app
• Free Cities Foundation: npub1lsj8pmgedqqamt89c27tzjjnlf0wn7q7udjm7j2cl9xxz97eacns2mwpee

LEGACY SOCIAL MEDIA:

• Jody Underwood: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jody-underwood-157299
• Timothy Allen: https://twitter.com/MrTimothyAllen
• Free Cities Foundation: https://twitter.com/freecitiesfound

OTHER LINKS:

• Jody's non-profit - EdOpt: https://edopt.org/
• Free Cities Foundation: https://free-cities.org/
• SPONSOR: Veritas Village: https://www.ecovillages.life/freecities