| From the HSLDA E-lert Service: |
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| Date: From: Subject: | 1/16/2007 1:08:23 PM Home School Legal Defense Association Wyoming--Calls Needed to Oppose Compulsory Attendance Bill |
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====================================================================== From the HSLDA E-lert Service... ====================================================================== January 16, 2007 Wyoming--Calls Needed to Oppose Compulsory Attendance Bill Dear HSLDA members and friends, House Bill 129 has been introduced to raise compulsory attendance in Wyoming to age 18. The bill is sponsored by House Education Committee Chairman Del McOmie, Representative Debbie Hammons, and Senator Henry "Hank" Coe. If passed, House Bill 129 would raise the compulsory attendance requirements from age 16 to age 18 and from 10th grade to 12th grade, effective September 15, 2009. The effect of this bill would be to require two additional years of notification by homeschoolers. A child may be exempted from the new requirement if the child's parent, guardian, or custodian notifies the school district before September 15 that the child will not be attending a public or private school during that school year. Further, with the notification, the parent or guardian MUST certify in writing that he or she understands that the child will not receive a diploma from a public or private high school that year AND MUST document through required and/or state-approved testing or assessment that the student has demonstrated proficiency or equivalent competency in reading, writing, and math at the 11th grade level. Such a scheme would require homeschooled families who wish to be exempted from the new law to submit to government-directed testing, or to approval of an alternate testing plan. Today, many homeschool families graduate their children from homeschool programs to enroll them in college or apprenticeship programs. Today, parents have the authority to determine whether their children continue in formal secondary education after the age of 16--this right must be preserved. While documenting 11th grade competency for homeschooled students will be no difficulty in most cases, parents should not be required to submit further documentation to the government in order to graduate their children from their home education program. Calls are needed to urge members of the House Education Committee to oppose this legislation. ACTION REQUESTED Contact the Wyoming House Education Committee Members to oppose House Bill 129. A list of committee members and their contact information is below. You do not need to mention that you are a homeschooler. This issue affects all parents in Wyoming and it is not necessary that we make this a "homeschool" issue, even though it does affect homeschooling. You may also contact your representative to let him or her know that you oppose this legislation. To find out who your representative is, you can use the Family Research Council's Legislative Toolbox http://www.hslda.org/elink.asp?id=3603 . In your own words, convey the message that you oppose raising the age of compulsory attendance in Wyoming because it will: > Not accomplish the intended objective of increasing high school completion rates; > Create classroom difficulties overburdening teachers and administrators; > Place new and unnecessary burdens and restriction on the liberty of all parents; > Unnecessarily restrict the liberty of 16-year-olds who, with their parent's permission, wish to enroll in post secondary education or pursue a vocational calling; > Redirect funds needed from other more important programs. This bill was defeated in committee in 2005 and should be again. Remember, you do not have to identify yourself as a homeschooler. Members of the House Education Committee: Chairman Del McOmie (Republican) 307-332-4626 Email Address: dmcomie@house.wyoming.com Bernadine Craft (Democrat) Email Address: bcraft@wyoming.com Kathy Davison (Republican) 307-877-6483 Email Address: kdavison@wyoming.com Ross Diercks (Democrat) 307-334-3670 Email Address: diercks@wyoming.com W. Patrick Goggles (Democrat) 307-332-5318 Email Address: pgoggles@wyoming.com Allen M. Jaggi (Republican) 307-786-2817 Email Address: ajaggi@wyoming.com Matt Teeters (Republican) 307-837-2359 Email Address: mteeters@wyoming.com Sue Wallis (Republican) 307-680-8515 Fax: 307-682-3471 Email Address: sue.wallis@vcn.com Kevin A. White (Republican) 307-742-5541 Email Address: elkuw@wyoming.com BACKGROUND 1. House Bill 231 was an attempt made in the 2005 session of the Wyoming Legislature to raise the compulsory attendance age. This bill was defeated in committee by a vote of 8 to 1. Since then, the Education Committee has changed dramatically. You can read the old bill online at http://www.hslda.org/elink.asp?id=3604 . House Bill 231 was a simple attempt to raise the compulsory age. The current bill contains a lot more language as well as this "exception" language. 2. Statistics show that raising the compulsory attendance age will not reduce the dropout rate. In fact, the two states with the highest high school completion rates, Maryland at 94.5% and North Dakota at 94.7%, compel attendance only to age 16. The state with the lowest completion rate (Oregon: 75.4%) compels attendance to age 18. (Figures are three-year averages, 1996 through 1998.) 3. Twenty-nine states require school attendance only to age 16. Older children unwilling to learn can cause classroom disruptions and even violence, making learning harder for their classmates who truly want to learn. 4. Even with the exemption language, passing this bill would restrict parents' freedom to decide if their 16-year-old is ready for college or the workforce. (Some 16-year-olds who are not academically inclined benefit more from valuable work experience than from being forced to sit in a classroom.) 5. Another significant impact of expanding the compulsory attendance age is an inevitable tax burden to pay for more classroom space and teachers to accommodate the additional students compelled to attend public schools. 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. 6. A study by Cornell University on raising the age of compulsory attendance found that there was no correlation between passing a law to raise the age of compulsory attendance and high school completion rates. The study shows that specific programs targeted at at-risk youth can help improve completion rates, but a law raising the age of attendance does not. To read the report click here: http://instruct1.cit.cornell.edu/courses/pam230/Paper%20Examples/Paper Example3.pdf . Thank you for your vigilance on behalf of all Wyoming parents! Sincerely, Michael P. Donnelly, Esq. HSLDA Staff Attorney ---------------------------------------------------------------------- -> Are you "organizationally challenged"? Finding the time to organize your home, your schedule, and your silverware drawer is difficult enough. We have something that will take the pressure off as you organize your homeschool. Home School Minder will help with your schedule, lesson plans, grades, transcripts, and much more . . . everything except those missing socks. Free to families who join HSLDA for two years. 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Thank you for your cooperation. ====================================================================== | |
