This is long overdue, IMO. Some uniform regulation of the the home-schoolers..basically what amounts to a background check for parents that home-school and a requirement that every parent submit a form every year..delineating what form of education they are opting for.
It's my hope that this law serves as the model for other states to adapt..and close this glaring loophole in our children's safety net.
This is no more than requiring parents who teach to conform to the same rules that teachers have for decades. If you have a criminal past..or an open CPS investigation..you cannot be trusted--makes sense to me...how about you?
apnews.com
A controversial bill to impose Connecticut’s first regulations on homeschooling gained final passage in the Senate after lengthy debate Monday evening. Senators voted, largely along party lines, passing the legislation 22-14 just before midnight.
House Bill 5468 has faced pushback from Republicans at every stage of the legislative process, backed by a large and vocal body of homeschooling families who see the new regulations as an attack on their rights and freedoms. It narrowly cleared the Education Committee and underwent significant revisions on the House floor to win over hesitant Democrats.
The version approved by both chambers imposes two new rules for Connecticut. The first is that all families — not just homeschoolers — must submit a form each year identifying how their children will be educated, be that through public, nonpublic or homeschooling. The second is that anyone removing a child from school to provide education at home may not be under investigation by the state Department of Children and Families or on the state child abuse and neglect registry. Those already homeschooling are grandfathered in.
These rules are designed to close what proponents say are blind spots in the systems Connecticut relies on to protect children from abuse.
At the outset of Senate debate, Education Committee co-Chair Sen. Douglas McCrory, D-Hartford, observed that schoolteachers are required to pass a similar DCF check. He said it only makes sense to apply that same standard when the child’s teacher is their parent.
“It was very important to know that the adults who are responsible for educating these children do not have a history of harming children,” McCrory said.
It’s not clear where the broader public stands on the bill — or, indeed, how many people are aware of it — as most testimony and comment has come from members of the homeschooling community.
“My experience with this legislation, outside this building and outside this community, is people are shocked to learn this is not already the law in Connecticut,” said Education Committee co-Chair Rep. Jennifer Leeper, D-Fairfield.
It's my hope that this law serves as the model for other states to adapt..and close this glaring loophole in our children's safety net.
This is no more than requiring parents who teach to conform to the same rules that teachers have for decades. If you have a criminal past..or an open CPS investigation..you cannot be trusted--makes sense to me...how about you?
Connecticut adopts homeschool regulation over staunch objection from GOP
A controversial bill to impose Connecticut’s first regulations on homeschooling gained final passage in the Senate after lengthy debate Monday evening.
apnews.com
A controversial bill to impose Connecticut’s first regulations on homeschooling gained final passage in the Senate after lengthy debate Monday evening. Senators voted, largely along party lines, passing the legislation 22-14 just before midnight.
House Bill 5468 has faced pushback from Republicans at every stage of the legislative process, backed by a large and vocal body of homeschooling families who see the new regulations as an attack on their rights and freedoms. It narrowly cleared the Education Committee and underwent significant revisions on the House floor to win over hesitant Democrats.
The version approved by both chambers imposes two new rules for Connecticut. The first is that all families — not just homeschoolers — must submit a form each year identifying how their children will be educated, be that through public, nonpublic or homeschooling. The second is that anyone removing a child from school to provide education at home may not be under investigation by the state Department of Children and Families or on the state child abuse and neglect registry. Those already homeschooling are grandfathered in.
These rules are designed to close what proponents say are blind spots in the systems Connecticut relies on to protect children from abuse.
At the outset of Senate debate, Education Committee co-Chair Sen. Douglas McCrory, D-Hartford, observed that schoolteachers are required to pass a similar DCF check. He said it only makes sense to apply that same standard when the child’s teacher is their parent.
“It was very important to know that the adults who are responsible for educating these children do not have a history of harming children,” McCrory said.
It’s not clear where the broader public stands on the bill — or, indeed, how many people are aware of it — as most testimony and comment has come from members of the homeschooling community.
“My experience with this legislation, outside this building and outside this community, is people are shocked to learn this is not already the law in Connecticut,” said Education Committee co-Chair Rep. Jennifer Leeper, D-Fairfield.
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