Kansas Settles Down
In the last issue of the Home School Court Report, we reported that contacts in Kansas were primarily confined to the Wichita area. Since that time, HSLDA member families in Brookville, Norton, Coffeyville, Valley Center, Olathe, Haysville, Derby, Rose Hill, and Topeka have also been contacted. Additional families in Wichita have also been investigated.
Many of these contacts went no further than the local superintendent. In instances where the SRS (Social and Rehabilitation Services) was contacted by the school district, the investigations invariably led SRS officials to determine the cases unfounded. The law in Kansas is such that whenever the SRS investigates a case, it is automatically referred to the local prosecutor. Since the SRS reported the recent cases to be unfounded, and HSLDA sent a legal memorandum on behalf of the families, no prosecutor has filed charges against Kansas member families.
One SRS investigator was so impressed with a member family’s homeschool that she wrote the mother saying: “My supervisor said they’re not going to do anything—home school children are “probably” getting a better education than the public school children—relax and enjoy your children and your “job”.“
While Kansas continues to be a state to watch, things seem to have settled down for this year, though what will happen in the fall remains to be seen.
