New Jersey
Klagholz Nightmare Almost Over
In our November/December 1999 Court Report, Home School Legal Defense Association reported on an important meeting between home schoolers and the New Jersey Department of Education. John Carrasquilo, President of the Education Network of Christian Educators of New Jersey (ENOCH), David Pannasch, legislative liaison for ENOCH, and HSLDA attorney Scott Woodruff met with representatives of the department last fall. Department representatives agreed to form a task force to draft correct legal advice for school districts to replace the nightmare guidelines that previous Education Commissioner Klagholz issued in April 1997.
The Klagholz guidelines stated that parents should submit an outline of their curriculum and that local school boards have power to scrutinize the outline and determine if it is academically equivalent to a public school curriculum. Innumerable conflicts followed as local districts treated the guidelines as law and attempted to enforce them against home schoolers.
On April 25, 2000, a crucial step was taken to fulfill the New Jersey Department of Education’s promise to replace the Klagholz guidelines. Seven representatives of the home school community met with seven state and local education officials to review a document entitled “Homeschooling Questions and Answers,” the department’s first draft of a proposed replacement for the Klagholz guidelines.
Although the first draft was seriously flawed, department of education representative Gloria Hancock, who chaired the meeting, was very attentive to the concerns of the home school representatives and seemed supportive of the great majority of changes proposed. HSLDA expects to receive a second draft for review in the not-too-distant future.
There was a consensus on several key points. School officials may ask a family if they home school, but if the answer is yes, no further inquiry can be made or documents requested unless there is credible evidence the compulsory education statute is being violated. The mere act of withdrawing children from public school to be taught at home is not evidence of truancy. Home schoolers need not follow any public school calendar. Home schoolers need not initiate any contact with school officials, although it is advisable to notify the school when withdrawing a child.
In addition to Scott Woodruff (HSLDA), the representatives of the home school community at the April 25 meetings included: John Carrasquillo and David Pannasch, Nancy Plent, (Unschoolers Network), Barry Sugarman (Traditions of Roman Catholic Homes), Tim Haas (New Jersey Homeschool Association), and education policy advocate Carolee Adams (President, Eagle Forum of New Jersey). Each of these participants made highly valuable contributions.
God blessed this meeting with a spirit of friendly cooperation. The occasional disagreements that naturally come when 14 people work toward a common objective were respectful and honest. Thank you for your prayers. Please continue to pray for all those involved as we wait for the second draft to be delivered. — Scott A. Woodruff
