The State War Against Homeschooling

I’m not a prophet. I’m not even clairvoyant, a fortune teller, etc. But, I’ll admit that I seem to be able to make accurate predictions based on my experience as a person, a parent, a teacher, a coach, etc. especially when it comes to the education establishment.

When we started our group to remove CRT and Mask/Vaccine mandates from the public schools, there were many parents who moved their kids to private schools to avoid the indoctrination and dangerous Covid 19 policies. I told them at the time that this might be a short term solution, but that sooner or later the private schools would “bend the knee” to the state and federal governments.

And they did. Within a few days of the public schools in our area instituting mask mandates in order to get millions in federal funding, the private schools did the same. What people don’t understand is that private and parochial schools are not really what they say. They are STILL under the supervision of state and federal governments under the guise of Independent School Associations and the Archdiocese of Catholic School Administration. They comply more slowly, but they still comply.

Again, not psychic, just aware.

So, some parents said they had enough of BOTH of these educational establishments and decided to homeschool. Actually, homeschooling has become my number one advice to parents. If they can arrange their lives to homeschool, they should. Because it is clear that the public and private schools don’t necessarily do what is best for kids.

But, I did give homeschool parents a warning. I told them to get ready because sooner or later, the public education establishment in conjunction with the autocratic state and federal governments would come after them as well.

There has been a precedent in other countries. Countries such as Iran, China, Turkey, Germany, Greece, and Spain have outlawed homeschooling. Others strictly regulate it, regulate it, or just allow it. France is in the process of outlawing it as we speak. China and Iran are not surprising considering the totalitarian nature of their governments.

Why would governments want to restrict the practice of the parents teaching the children?

Remember, the number one goal of government officials is to get and keep power.

If you think about it, any time a dictator or tyrant wants to “rule the world” or even his/her country, they include education of the children as one of the main ways to turn citizens into subjects. In China during the Cultural Revolution, children became an important part of the “Red Guard,” and then the “Red Army,” the group that terrorized anyone who disagreed with Mao and his dictates. Hitler did the same in Germany and created the “Hitler Youth.” Of course Stalin did the same. Teaching one’s children in any of these situations would subject you to extreme punishment including death.

Just to be fair, monarchs in Britain didn’t allow the common folk to be educated until the 18th Century. Even reading a book could get you in a lot of trouble if you were not royalty.

All of these dictatorial governments knew that they had to control WHO was taught, WHO taught them, and WHAT they were taught. Information, knowledge, etc. was the seed of revolution. Educated people could think, question, rebel.

Homeschooling has always been a part of our culture in the United States. Early settlers had no choice if they chose to educate their children. That education centered mostly on skills like farming, raising animals, building etc. Reading and math were taught only as those skills where needed for specific reasons such as reading the Bible or taking a count of commodities. As our country grew, churches, towns and villages began to educate children as well. Even so, many children were educated at home by a parent.

Homeschooling is probably the oldest form of education in the world.

For most of our modern lives, homeschooling has been an anomaly. Very few kids were schooled at home since the public schools were there and seemed to do a good job. I remember being told by my education “superiors” that homeschooled kids were shy, weird, stunted children who could only spell and win national spelling bees. That’s if they weren’t being schooled by a parent who was a religious zealot. We were told that they would never be normal. Looking back on it now, I see how the story line fit the public educator elites’ motives to make sure NO ONE was homeschooled by choice. None of that nonsense was true.

But, it was a small problem for them then and quite frankly, public educators didn’t pay homeschooling much attention other than an occasional visit from some disinterested middle level bureaucrat to make sure that children were alive and breathing.

That all changed in 2020. As parents saw what their children were being taught in the classroom, they got angry. They didn’t want indoctrination. The mandates in 2021 convinced parents even more that what the public schools was offering was not what they wanted. Over 500,000 left the public schools to either go private or homeschool. Most went private. Parents just didn’t think they could handle what was required to teach their own children.

When the private schools caved and parents didn’t want the “public school lite” many offered for hefty tuitions, they finally decided to give homeschooling a try.

And that led to what the National Home Education Research Institute says is 4 to 5 million or approximately 9% of school aged children suddenly being homeschooled in 2021. In 2019, that population was only 3% of school aged children. And now, the states and feds are paying attention. Remember, school systems get money based on how many children are enrolled in their districts. In Talbot County alone, that is approximately $15,000 per child (federal, state, and local money). Under the new Kirwan legislation, which might be the largest education funding initiative in the WORLD, that amount will double. They don’t want to lose that money.

https://weatherfordtx.gov/DocumentCenter/View/18784/homeschoolFAQhandout2021

Not only is government paying attention, but so are the Teachers’ Unions. The unions dislike both private schools and homeschooling because they can’t force teachers in either of those situations to pay union dues even though the Unions have more money than many small countries and don’t need more. Homeschooling is a huge loss of revenue AND power. And, believe me, the Unions in our state have more power than ANY OTHER LOBBY in Maryland. They really HATE homeschooling. And they will let legislators know that.

Just as important is the fact that you can’t indoctrinate children you don’t teach. How will all the “social justice warriors” teach kids that skin color, ethnicity or economics define who you are and that some of their classmates are oppressors and some are oppressed?That you don’t have control of your own destiny because the system is against you? It’s a lesson the public schools teaches quite well when they are left to do it. But, kids being taught at home will never learn the lessons the Marxists want. Even if they can stuff CRT into a homeschool curriculum, there’s no guarantee a parent will teach it. There is no “centralized” curriculum taught by brainwashed young public school educators.

So, the government education system HAS to do something.

Historically, most states and school systems have some cursory control of homeschoolers. However, homeschooling itself is decentralized and no one group controls or speaks for it. Now, at least in the State of Maryland, our officials want to do much more.

In steps Sheila Ruth, Baltimore County Democrat, to fix all that individual freedom. She created HB 832, which will create the “Maryland Homeschool Advisory Council.” This bill disguises itself as an attempt to give homeschoolers a “voice” in Annapolis by having the Speaker of the House and the President of the Senate in Maryland appoint a council of 12 parents to represent homeschooling. Another unaccountable appointed “board” to circumvent the opinions of everyone else. And, they can collaborate with the 70% of the legislature and the unions who would like homeschooling to go away.

Lauren Arikan, Republican and District 7 Delegate in Maryland, reminds Delegate Ruth that homeschooling parents are independent individuals who are smart and know what they need. They don’t need representation, they need to be left alone. Delegate Arikan states this articulately and professionally in this video:

I think she makes one big mistake. I think she gives Delegate Ruth too much credit for an honest motive. Yes, she may be nice, but she is a stone cold Progressive as you will see by her biography. She posted a video after all the backlash to this bill where she stated that this council would not be regulatory but just the voice of the homeschoolers in state government. She didn’t sound convincing. You watch and tell me if she convinces you.

https://fb.watch/b2iFPNrZ_-/

(if the link doesn’t work, go to her Facebook page. It’s posted there)

This is a woman who has been in state government for a LONG time. She knows that usually that which begins as an advisory council making suggestions often turns into a board telling others what to do. There are MANY examples of this, not the least of which is the new “Accountability and Implementation” Board assigned to oversee the new Kirwan “Blueprint for Education.” That committee began as advisory just a few years ago. Now it has the power to override county governments and school boards.

For more info on Delegate Ruth:

https://msa.maryland.gov/msa/mdmanual/06hse/html/msa18255.html

As Delegate Arikan said, the biggest lobby in the State Legislature is the Teacher’s Unions. It wouldn’t surprise me if they were involved in this proposal. I’m not alleging unethical behavior, I’m just saying that they are not afraid to throw their weight around and perhaps Delegate Ruth, an experienced legislator, has been “encouraged” to get the homeschooling option under state control with this bill.

While 70% of our State House and Senate are not friends of homeschooling and will gladly support this power grab, thank GOD for people such as Delegate Arikan who is a homeschool parent. We also have gubernatorial candidate Delegate Dan Cox, who, like Arikan, homeschools his children. Here’s his letter to the legislature:

It is vital that everyone who believes in the freedom of parents to have a say in the education choices for their child write to tell our legislature to oppose this bill.

Here’s my email that I sent. Feel free to use my ideas!

Send to: sheila.ruth@house.state.md.us, alonzo.washington@house.state.md.us, Eric.Ebersole@house.state.md.us, michele.guyton@house.state.md.us, wayne.hartman@house.state.md.us, Kevin.Hornberger@house.state.md.us, julian.ivey@house.state.md.us, dana.jones@house.state.md.us, julie.palakovichcarr@house.state.md.us, April.rose@house.state.md.us, Vanessa.Atterbeary@house.state.md.us

Delegate Ruth, 

I was an educator for over 30 years in this state. In that time I knew parents who homeschooled their children. I know even more who do that now. 

Based on my conversations with them and my knowledge of how the state education bureaucracy works, I am asking you to withdraw this bill. If you don’t, I am asking that the committee do not support it. In short, homeschool parents do not need a council made up of political appointees to represent them in Annapolis. They are more than capable and willing to do this themselves. They have not asked for this and don’t want government intrusion into their work as homeschoolers. 

Also, you keep saying that this board is only to present their concerns and has no regulatory power. Let’s just say what that statement is. It’s either naive on your part, which after all your years in the legislature seems unlikely or it is false. Therefore I can only assume that you are saying that NOW while knowing that the State Government, as it does so often, will adopt the council as just a group to voice homeschool issues but it will evolve into a regulatory body as soon as the State Education bureaucracy and teachers’ unions want it so. 

Either way, the homeschoolers will be harmed by this while the State will assure their full control over the education of all children through filling “loopholes” with unelected, unaccountable boards. 

I don’t know your character, and I don’t need to know it. What I do know is that this is a terrible power grab by the state whether you intended it or not. 

Do not support this. Withdraw it if you can. 

Janet Greenhawk

Oxford, Maryland

Folks, this battle is on many fronts and it will be long and difficult. One day it’s masking our children, or vaccinating them, or controlling elected officials via appointed unaccountable boards, or taking control over a parent’s right to homeschool his/her own child.

Here are just a few:

Last night, I participated in a Zoom call regarding the upcoming FDA hearing to approve the Pfizer vaccine for our BABIES, who have zero chance of dying from Covid. I will share more on this later. This was the Children’s Health Defense organization ( childrenshealthdefense.org). You may know its leader, Bobby Kennedy Jr.. This is one huge fight and we have some strategies that will be released within the next day or two. Once this vaccine gets approved for this age group, it will get on the vaccine schedule for your children and grandchildren, regardless of the danger. And Pfizer will have ZERO LIABILITY.

Another battle is being fought by this group who is mounting a legal fight against mask mandates in Maryland:

This group is a partnership of successful school advocacy groups and reopening leaders in the State of Maryland. They have retained Ed Hartman of Hartman-Attorneys at law to challenge the Maryland State Department of Education universal mask mandate. You can donate here and become a member of this group:

https://coalitionofmarylandparents.nationbuilder.com/legal_fund

And, of course, you can come to our local Family Advocacy Alliance meeting on February 15th, 7-9 at the Easton Fire House. We are helping public school, private school and homeschool parents fight these draconian measures to steal their parental rights.

This meeting will feature State Delegate Johnny Mautz who will be there to talk about these measures being presented in the legislature, their consequences, and what we can do to fight them.

WE NEED YOU!

One last thing, the deadline to file if you are in School Board districts 1,3,4. and 7 and wish to run for the Board, is 2/22/22. Please file in your district if you want to help children!

So many battles. So tiring. But, remember this: “You may have to fight a battle more than once to win it.”- Margaret Thatcher

And we have to win.