| From the HSLDA E-lert Service: |
< BACK TO ARCHIVE |
| Date: From: Subject: | 6/15/2007 1:59:04 PM Home School Legal Defense Association Nevada: Victory for Homeschool Freedom Bill |
|
====================================================================== From the HSLDA E-lert Service... ====================================================================== Nevada: Victory for Homeschool Freedom Bill Dear HSLDA members: After a tremendous effort by the Nevada Homeschool Network, especially Frank Schnorbus and Barbara Dragon, S.B. 404, the Homeschool Freedom Bill, has been signed into law. Joining in the effort during key periods over the past four months were Elissa Wahl, Irene Rushing, Carl Lucas, Tina Goodman, Kelley Radow and former Assemblywoman Sharron Angle (also a former homeschooler). Home School Legal Defense Association Senior Counsel Christopher Klicka was involved in the minute-by-minute drafting process and amendments, as well as orchestrating e-lerts to Nevada HSLDA members. Finally, without the help of the many emails, phone calls, and appearances at committee hearings from homeschool parents throughout Nevada, this bill would never have become law. Incredibly, S.B. 404 passed during just one legislative session. Many times, this type of bill, which eliminates over 50% of the current regulation, takes several sessions to actually pass. However, due to the expert guidance of the Nevada Homeschool Network, not only was the bill passed by the Senate and the Assembly, and signed by the Governor, but it was passed unanimously by the entire Senate! S.B. 404 does several things: > Eliminates oversight of homeschooling by the local or state public school system. It establishes a one-time (instead of annual) notification of intent to homeschool to be sent to the local school district when the child begins to homeschool. No longer do parents need to show the child's birth certificate. > Eliminates the requirement that homeschoolers provide "equivalent instruction to public schools." The law recognizes parents' rights to direct the education of their children and their full responsibility to determine how their children are being educated. It does list certain subjects that must be taught, but only as appropriate for each child's age and skill level as determined by the parent. > Requires the school district to accept a notice of intent that contains the name, age, gender of each child; name and address of their parents; a short educational plan, as appropriate for the age and skill level of the child at the time of filing for the first year of homeschooling. An optional privacy statement is included on the notice of intent form if you so wish to sign it to prevent your notification from being circulated to anyone else. The school district must give the parent a "written acknowledgement" that serves as a "Proof of Compliance" with Nevada's compulsory school attendance law. S.B. 404 requires the school district give notice about testing opportunities that must be available to homeschool students, such as college entrance exams and the National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Exam. One of the most amazing aspects of S.B. 404 is that it includes a religious freedom clause! This religious freedom provision in S.B. 404 states that "no regulation or policy of the state board, any school district or any other governmental entity may infringe upon a parent's right to educate his child based upon religious preference unless it is (a) essential to further a compelling governmental interest; and (b) the least restrictive means furthering that compelling interest." This language was crafted by Klicka in order to parallel religious freedom acts which HSLDA has helped to enact in nearly a quarter of the other states. However, this is the first time it is being used in a purely educational context. This is an important provision because it serves as a "backup" of the homeschool law. Any homeschool family who is teaching their children according to their religious convictions may invoke this clause any time a school district becomes abusive. HSLDA is particularly excited about this aspect of the new Homeschool Freedom Bill. The term "parent" is defined to include: "parent, custodial parent, legal guardian, or other persons in this state who have control or charge of a child and the legal right to direct the education of the child." The Department of Education is required to develop a standard form for homeschool children to participate in programs and activities, including classes, sports, and interscholastic activities. The Homeschool Freedom Bill will virtually end the state's power to create regulations for homeschoolers. Now homeschoolers will have all their rights specifically delineated in the Nevada Code as enacted by the Legislature. This makes homeschool rights more permanent. We are thankful to God for this incredible victory in Nevada. Nevada homeschoolers will now enjoy one of the best laws in the country. Sincerely, Christopher J. Klicka HSLDA Senior Counsel ---------------------------------------------------------------------- -> Is customer service an art or a science? For us, good customer service is both an art and a science -it should appeal to our members and be effective. Consider what our members say about us: We're thankful for the support HSLDA membership provides us. We'd never homeschool without them. We highly recommend HSLDA to all homeschoolers. - North Tonawanda, NY I cannot imagine our homeschool journey without HSLDA's strong leadership, protection, and guidance. God bless HSLDA! - Alta Loma, California More reasons to join HSLDA... http://www.hslda.org/elink.asp?id=1940 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ====================================================================== The HSLDA E-lert Service is a service of: Home School Legal Defense Association P.O. Box 3000 Purcellville, Virginia 20134 Phone: (540) 338-5600 Fax: (540) 338-2733 Email: info@hslda.org Web: http://www.hslda.org ---------------------------------------------------------------------- How To Subscribe: - Subscribe to the HSLDA E-lert Service at our website: https://secure.hslda.org/hslda/elert/account.asp?Process=Subscribe - Or send an email with name and complete mailing address to: subscribe@hslda.org ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Subscription Information: - You subscribed to the HSLDA E-lert Service as: ##ToAddress## - To unsubscribe from the HSLDA E-lert Service send an email from the email address you want to unsubscribe to: unsubscribe@hslda.org - To change your email address or make other changes to your subscription, visit the HSLDA E-lert Service account web page at: https://secure.hslda.org/hslda/elert/account.asp ---------------------------------------------------------------------- POSTMASTERS: This message is being sent to the most recent address we have for our subscribers. If this is an invalid email 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 email address; hslda@hslda.org is for broadcast purposes only and is not intended to receive incoming messages. We cannot reply to any email sent to this address. If you have comments or questions, please send email to info@hslda.org or call HSLDA at 540-338-5600. HSLDA members can also email staff directly through the Members website at http://members.hslda.org/contact.asp. Thank you for your cooperation. ====================================================================== | |
