Homeschool Heartbeat Radio Program

Michael Farris:
This week we’re going to be talking with Senator Sam Brownback. Sam is from Kansas and is seeking the Republican nomination for president in 2008. Sam, it’s an honor to have you with us.

Senator Sam Brownback:
My pleasure, Mike.

Mike:
Sam, I’d like to ask you, what’s your position on homeschooling? How much involvement, if any, should the government have in a family’s homeschooling decisions?

Senator Brownback:
Well, I’m very supportive of homeschooling. A number of people that I know have homeschooled; it’s been a very rewarding experience for the family, it’s been very good for the children, and they’ve performed well educationally up through high school and have done well in college. The involvement that I think government should have is very limited on this—I think that’s some of the very feature of homeschooling is that people want to be able to school, they don’t want to be driven into public schools or forced into private schools; they want to be able to do this on their own. Any sort of assistance we can give, I think, would be positive, but not a regulation that drives people away from it.

Mike:
Senator Sam Brownback, thank you very much.