Across the States
State Guidelines Are Just That
Vermont’s homeschool law was recently amended, making it slightly easier for homeschoolers to comply with the state’s burdensome requirements. The amended law has had mixed results.
Vermont homeschoolers’ forms must pass under the eye of the state’s active and notorious home study office. In its efforts to “implement” the law, the home study office has promulgated the “Guidelines for Home Study in Vermont.” While these guidelines may serve as the policy for the home study office, this policy has the force of neither regulation nor law. The law concerning enrollment in a home study program in Vermont is V.S.A. Title 16 § 166b and supersedes the home study office’s guidelines. For example, the home study office guidelines contain the following language: “To be enrolled in a home study program, at least sixty percent of the minimum course of study must be conducted at home” (emphasis in the original). Vermont law contains no such language regarding where or how much of a home study program must be conducted “at home.”
Though they often mean well, officials in state agencies can create confusion by adding to the state law. While these additions to the law are sometimes the result of innocent misinterpretation, in many cases state bureaucrats are attempting to enforce their own particular view of how the law should be implemented, causing problems for citizens.
Home School Legal Defense Association encourages members to become familiar with the new law. While the home study office “guidelines” may be helpful in some areas, they can be misleading or inaccurate in others. HSLDA has created a legal analysis of Vermont homeschool law as well as forms to help our members comply with Vermont law. Go to www.hslda.org/VT to access these forms. We encourage members to contact us if they have questions or encounter difficulties with the Vermont home study office.
— by Michael P. Donnelly
