Are Changes In Store for Kentucky?
Home schooling is coming under attack in Kentucky due to a push for more rules to regulate home education. Currently, a home school may qualify as a private, parochial or church school. The home school must send the local school district a notice of intent and keep attendance records which must be open to inspection by the school district. In 1979, the Kentucky Supreme Court ruled in Kentucky State Board v. Rudasill, 589 S.W.2d 877 (1979), that the state could not require private schools to have certified teachers, use approved textbooks or curricula or maintain accreditation standards.
Recently, the Kentucky Department of Education asked local school districts to supply a list of home schools in their school district. The Department of Education appears to have plans to submit a bill to regulate home schools to the General Assembly during the 1990 session. Education officials believe the state should establish stricter standards to ensure home school students of a quality education. Violators of the proposed law could face fines of $200 and 60-day jail terms. The law would specify the qualifications of home school teachers and require some type of evaluation at the end of each school year.
