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MONTANA

Homeschoolersflood capitol to oppose bad bill

February 14, 2005, was Valentine's Day all across America, but in Montana it was a day of battle for homeschooling freedom. Approximately 2,000 homeschoolers packed the state capitol in Helena to express their opposition to a legislative proposal that would have saddled Montana with one of the most restrictive laws in the nation. Sponsored by the chairman of the Senate Education Committee, Senator Don Ryan, Senate Bill 291 would have

	>>	changed the definition of "home school" to exclude stepparents and legal guardians from being able to teach a child at home;
	>>	required parents to register their children with the local school district instead of notifying the county superintendent of the child's enrollment in a homeschool;
	>>	required that parents be (a) licensed to teach in Montana, (b) hold a bachelor's degree, or (c) have a high school diploma or GED and be monitored by a state-certified teacher for two years;
	>>	required the monitor to evaluate and report the child's academic progress to the school district twice a year;
	>>	required homeschool students in grades 4, 8, and 11 to take the same "nationally standardized examination" required of public school students;
	>>	required that students scoring below the 30th percentile on the test be evaluated for need of special education services; and
	>>	prohibited the homeschooling of children determined to have a developmental disability, such as autism or Down syndrome.

After a hearing that lasted over two hours, during which proponents and opponents expressed their views, the committee voted 10-1 to table SB 291. This effectively killed the bill for this legislative session.

Special thanks go to Steve White, the legislative liaison for the Montana Coalition of Home Educators, for organizing homeschoolers' response to this dangerous legislation and coordinating the testimony presented in opposition to the bill. Without his skillful efforts, the homeschoolers of Montana would not have been nearly as prepared as they were to participate effectively in the legislative process. This was an unprecedented response by homeschooling families to threatening legislation. Never in the history of Montana's legislative hearings have there been so many people in attendance at the capitol.