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Below is an article that appeared in the Jonesboro Sun on Sunday, December 26. The article delves into home school legislation that is being touted by public school superintendents. This legislation sounds very similar to a bad home school bill proposed by Rep. David Cook in 2009 that would have effectively limited parents’ ability to begin home schooling their children during the school year. We will know more about this potential home school bill after the Legislature convenes on January 10.

Home-schooling issue facing Ark. legislators

By Anthony Childress

JONESBORO — Education is always a primary subject when state lawmakers gather for their biannual session, and come next month that will not change.

So the Craighead County Superintendents Association took full advantage of chatting with current and soon-to-be legislators earlier this month, presenting a lengthy list of potential bills and offered their views on several. Home schooling was on there as administrators brought up an issue they face regularly.

“We need to have deadlines in place for when students who are going to be home schooled,” Brookland Superintendent Kevin McGaughey told state Rep. Butch Wilkins, D-Jonesboro, and state Reps.-elect Homer Lenderman, D-Brookland, and Jon Hubbard, R-Jonesboro.

District leaders stated their support for setting Aug. 15 and Dec. 15 as deadlines for parents to have their children schooled in that manner. Westside Superintendent Dr. Bryan Duffie said the primary need is to provide a clear setup for schools, students and families to follow in determining whether or not youngsters are home schooled.

Other administrators urged the county’s House delegation to consider it for providing clarity on the matter.

“What we’re asking you to consider is closing the door to abuses of kids coming in and out of school in order to avoid punishment for attendance problems,” Nettleton Superintendent James Dunivan said, with colleagues pointing to parent-school disputes as another component.

Hubbard and Wilkins agreed that such a deadline should not be a problem. Dunivan said this and other home-schooling issues have been a part of past legislative sessions.

Superintendents believe about 800 youngsters are home schooled in the county, out of thousands across the state.

The intersection of public education and home schooling has often been contentious in the Legislature. Jonesboro Superintendent Dr. Kim Wilbanks said representatives and senators hear from differing sides on these and many other things during each session, so the educators wanted to bend their ears before the pace speeds up considerably in January.

“You have the job of filtering through interests tied to hot-button topics,” Wilbanks said. “As superintendents we spend a lot of time talking with members of the Education Committee in both houses about bills.”

To that end, Wilkins said that because none of Craighead’s representatives serve on the House education panel they will leaning more on education leaders in gathering information and making decisions about legislation. However, state Reps. Jerry Brown, D-Wynne, and Jody Dickinson, D-Newport, will sit on the Education Committee.

“Fortunately, the House is full of retired educators so we depend a lot of them, and we’ll do that with you all as well. Having your input and feedback matters,” Wilkins said.

Lenderman is a retired Brookland teacher, while Hubbard also taught at one time. State Sen. Paul Bookout, D-Jonesboro, is president of that body and has extensive roots in education. In addition, state Sen. Robert Thompson, D-Paragould, will be the majority leader and a member of the Senate Interim Committee on Children and Youth.

Democrats will hold a 20-15 majority on the committee that was sharply reduced in the November general election when Republicans captured seven seats.

On the House side Democrats will lead as well, though the total could be either 56-44 or 55-45 depending on the outcome of a special election for a Hot Springs-based seat in March.

Dunivan summed up the home-schooling discussion as one that simply needs some tightening. Westside Superintendent Bryan Duffie agreed.

Wilkins said he was encouraged that superintendents took the initiative and believes it will continue.

“It’ll be very good to have dialogue with you,” he added. “Any help we can get out of y’all would be most appreciated.”

Related posts:

Harvard Professor Calls for “Presumptive Ban” on Home Schooling Video: Harvard Professor Calls for “Presumptive Ban” on Home Schooling After COVID, Home Schooling Remains Popular Arkansas House Resolution Honors Home Schooling

7 comments

  1. Carol Fryer

    Governments are doing more and more each year to control honest people and less to fight crime. It seems they think the whole job they were hired for is to control us and syphon more and more money from us. Seeing them act and seeing them move more and more toward global and generic asperations though, I dont think they will ever let us have our rights while they are alive. I see them wearing down America slowly into communism.

  2. Rick Jackson

    I don’t see where these folks have any business telling parents when they can home school thier child. If we sold our home and moved to another county I guess we could only do it during August or December so it wouldn’t upset the balance. How about a bill for home schoolers to be excused from paying school taxes even though thier child or children don’t go to a public school? I’m not trying to be ugly but you’ve got to see what this could start. By the way, has there been anymore discussion on the ‘Tim Tebow’ bill?

  3. Joanna Dowelarn

    I understand what public schools are saying (used to work in the system), I have seen the “homeschoolers” that come in and out of the system every few months, the ones that aren’t really being educated at home let alone even cared for; the paperwork is a headache, but only for the secretaries (that was my job), because no one else really deals with it, there isn’t any genuine teaching/learning occurring in PS anyway. Honest homeschoolers, who already subsidize the debacle called PS should be free to do pretty much as they please; until I am not taxed to pay for that mess (which we choose not to be a part of) then there shouldn’t be too many rules to govern what I do. I know the tax issue is a touchy one, if I claim to be homeschooling to get my tax break then I will have to PROVE that I am homeschooling; more regulation over my measly pennies. I would rather pay the tax and have them keep their noses out of my business, but then they must KEEP THEIR NOSES OUT if they keep taking my money. And since I DO pay taxes to fund PS I should be able to use the resources that I am essentially purchasing, the Tim Tebow Bill should be enacted as law.

  4. Admin

    We expect the ‘Tim Tebow’ bill to be introduced during the upcoming legislative session; we will let you know when it is filed.

    In the meantime, it would be entirely appropriate to get in touch with the legislators who will represent you in Little Rock this January, and let them know how you feel about both this prospective piece of legislation and the ‘Tim Tebow’ bill.

    Let us know if you have further questions about either topic.

  5. Marti Scharlau

    Since current homeschool law states that you cannot withdraw a student out to homeschool while that student is under disciplinary action, why does Superintendent Dunivan believe there needs to be a change in the law? He states that he wants to stop children being pulled out to avoid punishment for attendance violations. However, the law clearly states that students being punished for unexcused absences cannot be withdrawn for homeschooling. Perhaps Superintendent Dunivan just needs to read the current law.

  6. Lesli Chestnut

    Marti, that is exactly what I was thinking. A child can not be pulled out to be homeschooled while they are under a discpilnary action. Maybe this should be brought up to the legislators?

  7. Kent Witcher

    This entire argument is based on the false premise that the gov’t should have the power to force parents to submit their children to mandatory attendance. No school system, administrator or otherwise should hold that power. Currently however they do and that by law.

    These “homeschooling loopholes” are only the result of free thinking parents trying to abide within the current laws and still maintain their parental rights. (the door closes so you open a window). If a student is only allowed to miss 10 days of school and you are at day 9 with more absences looming and the only way for you to stay within the boundries of the law is to pull your child out of public school and homeschool them yourself; wouldn’t you? Of course! Any caring law-abiding parent would!

    This is yet another attempt by public school administrators to make a power grab for parental rights cloaked under a guise of child welfare.

    “Change for the sake of change is a recipe for disaster” Dr. Travis J. Hedrick

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