| From the HSLDA E-lert Service: |
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| Date: From: Subject: | 1/24/2006 4:35:11 PM Home School Legal Defense Association Hawaii -- Calls Needed to Stop Mandatory Kindergarten |
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====================================================================== From the HSLDA E-lert Service... ====================================================================== Dear HSLDA members and friends: Four bills have just been introduced in the Hawaii legislature that would lower the compulsory attendance age from 6 to 5 and make kindergarten mandatory. Last year, many thought the legislation could not be stopped but your calls were successful and the bills did not pass. We can do it again. Your calls are needed again in order to prevent any movement on these bills. While all of House bills listed below are slightly different, they all lower the compulsory attendance age from 6 to 5 and make kindergarten mandatory. All of these bills would require a homeschool parent to file the notice of intent letter if their child is to turn 5 by January 1st. Homeschool parents will also be required to submit an annual progress report at the end of their school year for their 5-year-old. All of the House bills are currently in both the Education and Finance Committees while Senate Bill 2186 has not yet been assigned to a committee. Please call all of the legislators listed below and urge them to vote against these bills. Help get the word out about these bills and forward this e-mail to your friends and family who would be opposed to these changes. Action Requested: 1. Please call and e-mail the House Education Committee members listed below and give them this message: "Please oppose House Bills 2088, 2089, and 2139. Lowering the compulsory school attendance age from 6 to 5 and making kindergarten mandatory takes away the right of parents to decide whether their children are ready for school and would only waste taxpayers' money." Do not identify yourself as a homeschooler, instead you can identify yourself as a concerned parent and taxpayer. House Education Committee Members Committee Chairman: Representative Roy M. Takumi Phone 808-586-6170 E-mail reptakumi@Capitol.hawaii.gov Vice Chairman: Representative Lyla B. Berg, PH.D. Phone 808-586-6510 email repberg@Capitol.hawaii.gov Representative Dennis A. Arakaki Phone 808-586-6050 E-mail reparakaki@Capitol.hawaii.gov Representative Rida T.R. Cabanilla Phone 808-586-6080 E-mail repcabanilla@Capitol.hawaii.gov Representative Jerry L. Chang Phone 808-586-6120 From the Big Island, toll free 974-4000 + 66120 e-mail repchang@Capitol.hawaii.gov Representative Corinne W.L. Ching Phone 808-586-9415 E-mail repching@Capitol.hawaii.gov Representative Lynn Finnegan Phone 808-586-9470 E-mail repfinnegan@Capitol.hawaii.gov Representative Josh Green, M.D. Phone 808-586-9605 From the Big Island, toll free 974-4000 + 69605 E-mail repgreen@Capitol.hawaii.gov Representative Helene H. Hale Phone 808-586-6530 From the Big Island, toll free 974-4000 + 66530 E-mail rephale@Capitol.hawaii.gov Representative Bev Harbin Phone 808-586-6180 E-mail repharbin@Capitol.hawaii.gov Representative Michael Puamamo Kahikina Phone 808-586-8465 E-mail repkahikina@Capitol.hawaii.gov Representative Maile S. L. Shimabukuro Phone 808-586-8460 E-mail repshimabukuro@Capitol.hawaii.gov Representative Tommy Waters Phone 808-586-9450 E-mail repwaters@Capitol.hawaii.gov 2. Please call and e-mail the House Finance Committee members listed below and give them this message: "Please oppose House Bills 2088, 2089, and 2139. Lowering the compulsory school attendance age from 6 to 5 and making kindergarten mandatory takes away the right of parents to decide whether their children are ready for school and would only waste taxpayers' money." Do not identify yourself as a homeschooler, instead you can identify yourself as a concerned parent and taxpayer. House Finance Committee Members Chairman Representative Dwight Y. Takamine Phone 808-586-6200 From the Big Island, toll free 974-4000 + 66200 E-mail reptakamine@Capitol.hawaii.gov Vice-Charman Representative Bertha C. Kawakami Phone 808-586-6280 From Kauai, toll free 274-3141 + 66280 e-mail repkawakami@Capitol.hawaii.gov Representative Mele Carroll Phone 808-586-6790 From Maui, toll free 984-2400 + 66790 From Molokai and Lanai, toll free 1-800-468-4644 + 66790 E-mail repcarroll@Capitol.hawaii.gov Representative Pono Chong Phone 808-586-9490; fax 808-586-9496 E-mail repchong@Capitol.hawaii.gov Representative Cindy Evans Phone 808-586-8510 From the Big Island, toll free 974-4000 + 68510 E-mail repevans@Capitol.hawaii.gov Representative Marilyn B. Lee Phone 808-586-9460 E-mail replee@Capitol.hawaii.gov Representative Michael Y. Magaoay Phone 808-586-6380 E-mail repmagaoay@Capitol.hawaii.gov Representative Colleen Rose Meyer Phone 808-586-8540 E-mail repmeyer@Capitol.hawaii.gov Representative Mark S. Moses Phone 808-586-8500 E-mail repmoses@Capitol.hawaii.gov Representative Bob Nakasone Phone 808-586-6210 From Maui, toll free 984-2400 + 66210 E-mail repnakasone@Capitol.hawaii.gov Representative Scott Y. Nishimoto Phone 808-586-8515 E-mail repnishimoto@Capitol.hawaii.gov Representative Anne V. Stevens Phone 808-586-8520 E-mail repstevens@Capitol.hawaii.gov Representative Kameo Tanaka Phone 808-586-6160 From Maui, toll free 984-2400 + 66160 E-mail reptanaka@Capitol.hawaii.gov Representative Clift Tsuji Phone 808-586-8480 From the Big Island, toll free 974-4000 + 68480 E-mail reptsuji@Capitol.hawaii.gov Representative Glenn Wakai Phone 808-586-6220 E-mail repwakai@Capitol.hawaii.gov Representative Ryan I. Yamane Phone 808-586-6150 E-mail repyamane@Capitol.hawaii.gov Representative Kyle T. Yamashita Phone 808-586-6330 From Maui, toll free 984-2400 + 66330 E-mail repyamashita@Capitol.hawaii.gov 3. Please call the sponsors of Senate Bill 2186 listed below to give them this message: "Please withdraw your support for S.B. 2186. Lowering the compulsory school attendance age from 6 to 5 and making kindergarten mandatory takes away the right of parents to decide whether their children are ready for school and would only waste taxpayers' money." Do not identify yourself as a homeschooler, instead you can identify yourself as a concerned parent and taxpayer. Senate Bill 2186 Sponsors Senator Suzanne Chun Oakland Phone 808-586-6130 E-mail senchunoakland@Capitol.hawaii.gov Senator Brian Kanno Phone 808-586-6830 E-mail senkanno@Capitol.hawaii.gov Senator Carol Fukunaga Phone 808-586-6890 E-mail: senfukunaga@Capitol.hawaii.gov Background: House Bill 2088 will require any child who will turn 5 by January 1st to attend a public or private school or be homeschooled. Kindergarten or junior kindergarten will be mandatory if the child is 5 by that date. Senate Bill 2186 is identical to this bill. House Bill 2089 will require a child who turns 5 by January 1st to attend school. While kindergarten is mandatory for a child who is 5, attendance in junior kindergarten is not. H.B. 2089 also removes guidelines which state when a child may attend kindergarten. House Bill 2139 is the same as H.B. 2089 but keeps the current guidelines as to when a child may attend kindergarten. > Lowering the compulsory attendance age from six to five would subject Hawaii home educators to the requirements of the homeschool laws one year earlier. (You do not need to share this reason with your legislators.) > Many education experts have concluded that beginning a child's formal education too early may actually result in burnout and poor scholastic performance later. > Lowering the compulsory attendance age erodes the authority of parents who are in the best position to determine when their child's formal education should begin. > It would restrict parents' freedom to decide if their children are ready for school. > Another significant impact of expanding the compulsory attendance age would be an inevitable tax increase to pay for more classroom space and teachers to accommodate the additional students compelled to attend public schools. For more information on compulsory attendance, please see our memorandum at http://www.hslda.org/elink.asp?ID=1421 . If you are not a member of HSLDA and would like to help us fight for greater homeschool freedom in Hawaii please visit http://www.hslda.org/join/apply.asp . If you would like to be on our e-mail list to receive vital e-lerts you may sign up at http://www.hslda.org/elink.asp?ID=2803 . Thank you for your part in fighting for freedom in Hawaii. Sincerely, Thomas Schmidt HSLDA Staff Attorney ---------------------------------------------------------------------- -> What do you look like when you get out of bed? It's hard to look our best all the time. HSLDA works to present homeschooling in an engaging, dynamic, and informative light to the public news media. More reasons to join HSLDA... http://www.hslda.org/elink.asp?id=1104 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ====================================================================== The HSLDA E-lert Service is a service of: Home School Legal Defense Association P.O. 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