| From the HSLDA E-lert Service: |
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| Date: From: Subject: | 2/26/2003 2:21:38 PM Home School Legal Defense Association Missouri--Bill Would Raise Compulsory Attendance Age in St. Louis |
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---------------------------------------------------------------------- From the HSLDA E-lert Service... ---------------------------------------------------------------------- February 26, 2003 Dear HSLDA Members and Friends, Each year Home School Legal Defense Association works to defeat legislation that would expand the government's control over school- age children. Senate Bill 286 allows the city of St. Louis to raise the age of compulsory school attendance from 16 years of age to 17 years of age. This would apply to all children in St. Louis, including homeschoolers. S.B. 286 has already gone through the senate education committee and will now go to the senate floor. HSLDA and Families for Home Education oppose this attempt to expand the compulsory attendance age since it would increase the time during which the state has the potential to exercise jurisdiction over our children. ACTION REQUESTED 1. Call your senator and courteously express your opposition to S.B. 286. Your message can be as simple as: "I urge you to vote against S.B. 286. It wastes taxpayers' money. Statistics show that compelling 17 year olds to attend school does not improve graduation rates." Remember that your senator may not be familiar with the bill. Go to our legislative toolbox at http://www.hslda.org/toolbox to find out who your senator is and get his or her contact information. 2. Pass this on to others. Remember that S.B. 286 would affect all parents, not just those who homeschool. BACKGROUND Raising the compulsory attendance age will not reduce the dropout rate. In fact, the two states with the highest high school completion rates (Maryland, 94.5% and North Dakota, 94.7%) compel attendance only to age 16, but the state with the lowest completion rate (Oregon, 75.4%) compels attendance to age 18. (Figures are three year averages, 1996 through 1998.) Most states (29) only require attendance to age 16. Older children who are unwilling to learn can cause classroom disruptions and even violence, making learning harder for their classmates who truly want to learn. When California raised the age of compulsory attendance, unwilling students were so disruptive that new schools had to be built just to handle them and their behavior problems, all at the expense of the taxpayer. This bill would require homeschool families to submit to another year of governmental red tape and threat of legal action in the event of an alleged violation. It would restrict parents' freedom to decide if their 17 year old is ready for college or the workforce. Some 17 year olds who are not academically inclined benefit more from valuable work experience than from being forced to sit in a classroom. If St. Louis raises the compulsory age, it will only be a matter of time before other school districts ask for that same power, or power to raise it even higher. This would soon lead to a crazy quilt of compulsory attendance ages across Missouri. Even though the bill exempts homeschool parents of 16 year olds from keeping records and providing 1,000 hours of instruction, the 16 year old would still be obligated to enroll in and "attend regularly" a homeschool as defined by law for the entire school term. Failure to do so could mean criminal or civil punishment for the homeschooling family. Thank you for your efforts for freedom! Sincerely, Scott A. Woodruff HSLDA Staff Attorney {{JoinAd}} ---------------------------------------------------------------------- The HSLDA E-lert Service is a service of: Home School Legal Defense Association P.O. 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If this is an invalid e-mail address or you have other problems, please reply to webmaster@hslda.org. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- DISCLAIMER: This is considered a private and confidential message from HSLDA to its bonafide HSLDA E-lert Service subscribers. HSLDA cannot attest to the authenticity of copies posted, forwarded, or sent by any party other than HSLDA. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE: Please do not reply or otherwise use this e-mail address; hslda@hslda.org is for broadcast purposes only and is not intended to receive incoming messages. We cannot reply to any e-mail sent to this address. If you have comments or questions, please send e-mail to info@hslda.org or call HSLDA at 540-338-5600. HSLDA members can also e-mail staff directly through the Members website at http://members.hslda.org/contact.asp. 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