Family Council Asks State Board of Education to Rethink EFA Restrictions on Team Sports

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On Monday, Family Council and its homeschool division, the Education Alliance, submitted public comments asking the Arkansas Department of Education to rethink a set of proposed rules prohibiting Educational Freedom Account (EFA) money from being used for team sports under the LEARNS Act.

The proposed rules say that registration fees, equipment, dues, and any costs associated with club and team sports cannot be paid for with EFA funding.

Homeschooling has surged in Arkansas and across the nation. Educational Freedom Account funding makes it possible for Arkansas students to use public dollars to pay for educational services at public or private schools or at home. State spending on EFAs has topped $120.5 million so far this year, and thousands of students have taken advantage of school choice in Arkansas as a result.

Many homeschoolers have expressed concerns that completely prohibiting EFA spending on team sports is unfair, because public schools fund team sports with state money. There is also concern that the new rules go beyond boundaries set in the LEARNS Act.

Earlier this year, lawmakers passed Act 920 of 2025 which limits EFA spending on sports and other extracurricular activities to 25% of a student’s annual EFA funding. That means a student who participates in the LEARNS Act cannot spend more than one-fourth of his or her EFA money on extracurricular activities. However, the new education rules would go beyond state law by prohibiting EFA money from being spent on team sports altogether.

Public comments on the proposed EFA rules are due by Tuesday, December 16. Home schoolers can email their comments to ADE.RulesComments@ade.arkansas.gov.

You can read Family Council’s comments on the proposed rules here.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

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Home School Numbers Hit Record Highs Across America

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Home schooling continues to surge across the United States. New data shows growth rates nearly triple what they were before the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to Johns Hopkins University research, home school enrollment grew 5.4% in the 2024-2025 school year—compared to just 2% growth before COVID-19. States like South Carolina saw 21.5% growth, while New Hampshire and Vermont rebounded with double-digit increases after temporary declines.

Homeschooling in Arkansas has surged since 2020. In 2019 there were a little less than 22,000 homeschoolers in Arkansas. In early 2020, those numbers climbed to 22,249. During the 2020-2021 school year, home schooling spiked to 30,267 students. By 2024, homeschooling surged again, to 32,767 students.

Arkansas has become a leader in educational freedom. The 2023 LEARNS Act lets public dollars follow students, giving families real opportunities to choose the best education for their children — whether that’s at a public school private school, or home school.

Family Council has always believed families deserve options when it comes to education. That’s one reason we support home schooling.

Research shows parental involvement generally is tied to better educational outcomes for children. That’s true no matter how families choose to educate their children — but home schooling is particularly good for many families, because it lets them choose the education that’s best for them.

Home schooling offers more than an education. It gives parents the freedom to pass their values and convictions to their children. Families can customize curriculum, set their own schedules, and ensure their children receive one-on-one attention that large public school classrooms cannot always provide.

It’s good to see families taking advantage of everything homeschooling has to offer.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

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Home Schoolers Express Concern Over Proposal to Prohibit EFA Spending on Team Sports

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The Arkansas Department of Education has proposed new rules governing the LEARNS Act’s Educational Freedom Account program.

Family Council and its home school division, the Education Alliance, are encouraging home schoolers to review these proposed rules and submit any comments on the rules to the Department. The rules are available at https://adecm.ade.arkansas.gov/Attachments/6CARpt.35-_EFA_Program_-_Public_Comment_Draft_164210.pdf.

Several home schoolers have expressed concerns about new prohibitions on EFA funding for team sports in these rules.

These provisions can be located on page 5 under the definition of “Extracurricular activity.”

The language in the rules makes it clear that registration fees, equipment, dues, and any costs associated with club and team sports cannot be paid for with EFA funding.

Under Act 920 of 2025, state law restricts EFA spending on sports and other extracurricular activities to 25% of a student’s annual EFA funding. The proposed rules would go beyond state law by prohibiting EFA money from being spent on team sports at all. 

Some home schoolers are concerned that this ban is unfair, because public schools fund team sports with state money.

In addition, there are concerns that this complete prohibition on funding for team sports contradicts the purpose of the program to “provide Arkansas families with more educational options for their children as they seek educational solutions and curricula that fit the needs of their families.” While we have the “Tim Tebow” law that lets home schoolers play for Arkansas public schools if they make the team and otherwise qualify, a different option for team sports may work better for some families.

In addition, new proposed rules on page 4 recognize the value of extracurricular activities that “support the…physical…development of a student” and that have a “developmental purpose that promotes personal growth, discipline, physical health, teamwork, responsibility, or civic engagement.” The restriction on team sports seems to contradict those stated purposes.

Public comments on the proposed EFA rules are due by Tuesday, December 16. Home schoolers can email their comments to ADE.RulesComments@ade.arkansas.gov.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

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