Zuckerberg and Chan defend homeschool after Palo Alto zoning probe
Taylor Hill/FilmMagic via Getty Images
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, pediatrician Priscilla Chan, defended their decision Monday to homeschool a small group of children — including their own — inside a residence at their Palo Alto compound, following a New York Times report over the weekend that raised concerns about the legality of the operation.
A spokesperson for the couple said in an email to the Chronicle that the homeschooling arrangement began as a pandemic pod during COVID-19 school closures to support childcare and education, and has continued to provide stability for their children.
According to the Times, the setup — known as BBS — enrolled approximately 14 children and employed multiple full-time staff members, sparking complaints from neighbors of families dropping off children and 'big vehicles with darkened windows' picking up the children for outings — prompting a city investigation.
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Emails obtained by the Times show Palo Alto Planning Director Jonathan Lait concluded the operation violated city zoning laws, which prohibit businesses — including schools — from running in residential areas if employees do not live on-site or if the activity significantly increases traffic.
Although state filings listed the site as a private coed day school, the couple's representatives said the designation stems from limitations in the California Department of Education's affidavit system. The same form is used for both traditional private schools and homeschool pods, and contains no field to distinguish between the two.
'Mark, Priscilla and their children have made Palo Alto their home for more than a decade,' the spokesperson said. 'They value being members of the community and have taken a number of steps above and beyond any local requirements to avoid disruption in the neighborhood.'
Zuckerberg's team said they were unaware the school was in violation, but they have agreed to relocate the children to a different site. No tuition was charged, and many subjects were taught by parents.
City spokesperson Meghan Horrigan-Taylor confirmed the home-based school has since shut down.
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Parents pick up their kids outside of The Primary School created by the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative in East Palo Alto on Monday, April 28, 2025.
Laure Andrillon/Special to the Chronicle
The revelation comes at a sensitive time for Zuckerberg and Chan. In April, the Primary School — a tuition-free private school serving low-income families in East Palo Alto and backed by the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative — announced it would close at the end of the 2025–26 school year.
Founded by Chan in 2016, the school aimed to integrate education, health care and family services, and served hundreds of mostly Latino students.
While no official reason was given for the closure, the decision followed broader retrenchments from social initiatives linked to Meta and Zuckerberg. The Initiative pledged $50 million over five years to support families during the transition.
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As of January, 57 private school affidavits were filed in Palo Alto, more than half for schools with six or fewer students — a common marker of homeschooling, according to the state's education department.
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