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IAHE Works on Behalf of Indiana Homeschoolers

This article first appeared in The Informer Magazine, Summer 2014.

Summer 2014

Summer 2014

The Indiana General Assembly (IGA) met from January until mid-March in what is known as the “short session,” but it was by no means a slow legislative session for the Indiana Association of Home Educators (IAHE) Legislative Team. Legislative Director, Debi Ketron, along with a team of volunteers, worked many long hours reading bills and amendments, testifying at public hearings, and negotiating changes to legislation on behalf of Indiana homeschoolers. Outlined below are some of the highlights of the 2014 session.1.

One of the most visible legislative actions that many homeschoolers followed this session was House Joint Resolution (HJR) 3, the marriage amendment. The process to amend the State Constitution requires approval by two separately-elected legislatures in order for the amendment to be placed on the ballot for ratification by the electorate. However, both the Senate and House approved the removal of language regarding civil unions. This action delayed putting the question of defining marriage on a statewide referendum in November. With a recent lawsuit filed in Federal Court, it appears that this question may now be in the hands of unelected judges instead of the people of the state.

The IAHE legislative team stayed busy tracking bills potentially affecting homeschooling. Senate Bill (SB) 353, introduced by Senator Allen Paul of Richmond, would have created an interim legislative study committee to review and study the economic vitality of communities, including “home school oversight.” Senators Dennis Kruse of Auburn and Greg Walker of Columbus worked with the IAHE to improve the language of the bill. Senator Paul listened to our appeal to exclude homeschools from the study, set the bill aside, and introduced a Senate Resolution without the homeschool language included.

Common Core and Data Bills

While the Common Core State Standards Initiative (CCSSI) does not directly affect homeschool families at this time, homeschoolers have taken an interest in this issue because of its potential to directly or indirectly impact them, their curriculum choices, and high school students who take college entrance exams. In 2013, the Indiana General Assembly passed a bill putting Common Core on hold until further studies ensued.

During the 2014 session, SB 91, a bill to repeal Common Core in Indiana and replace it with Indiana standards, was introduced by Senator Scott Schneider of IndianapolisThis bill was amended in the Senate and House with questions remaining about its impact in removing CCSS. At the end of the legislative session, Senator Scott Schneider removed his name from SB 91 when it became evident that the bill was only symbolic since the federal ‘No Child Left Behind’ waiver requirement remained in the bill. Meanwhile, the State Board of Education continues to work on Indiana standards. On March 24, 2014 Governor Michael Pence signed the bill into law. Early indications suggest that the jury is still out on whether the new Indiana standards will significantly depart from Common Core standards or simply be a re-write with a few twists.

Three data collection bills were considered this session as well. SB 277, concerning data protection, had died in the Senate earlier in the session. Later, it was resurrected by its author, Senator Pete Miller, when it was added to House Bill (HB) 1204. Senator Miller worked with IAHE to remove homeschools from being included as an “agency” requiring the transfer of student-identifying data under certain circumstances. IAHE is grateful that Senator Miller responded positively to our request; however, the SB 277 language was removed from HB 1204 in Conference Committee. HB 1320, also known as the “backpack” bill, would have required the Department of Education to establish a statewide student record repository, but it never passed the House and therefore died before it reached the Senate.

Finally, Rep. Steven Braun of Zionsville worked with the IAHE legislative team to amend HB 1003 to remove high school homeschools from being named in the bill. Senator Mike Delph of Carmel assisted IAHE with our amendment, and Senator Jim Smith of Charlestown introduced it. The bill would have allowed homeschoolers to submit educational, workforce, and other data to the Indiana Network of Knowledge (INK), the new name for the Indiana workforce intelligence system. By narrowing the scope of the bill, IAHE is working to keep homeschoolers from becoming a part of the data collection and storage of student-identifying information currently in place for public school students. Since homeschoolers are considered nonpublic schools, receiving no public money, we believe our data should not be collected and stored in statewide databases. The IAHE places a high value on privacy rights and will continue to resist any attempts by the State to include us in these bills. IAHE will monitor future legislative sessions and work to keep homeschoolers from being included in any data collection bills.

Miscellaneous Bills

Two bills affecting high school athletics programs also passed this session. HB 1290, required information to be disseminated about the nature and risk of sudden cardiac arrest and originally included homeschoolers, but was amended in the Senate to remove homeschoolsSB 222 made some changes to the law regarding a coaches training and liability in respect to players’ concussions in high school interscholastic athletic events. Homeschool co-ops who offer interscholastic athletic events may want to investigate further to determine if these changes will affect them.

Early education and kindergarten were other topics taken up in this session. SB 275, a mandatory full-day kindergarten bill, would have required a student to enroll in a full-day kindergarten program, starting in the 2014-15 school year, if the student was at least five years of age on August 1. Fortunately, this bill died in the Senate without a hearing. HB 1004, passed by the Legislature, provides a pilot program to allow vouchers for early education. The bill also creates a Pre-K and early learning study commission, as well as a longitudinal study of the students in the pilot program to determine achievement levels in kindergarten and beyond.

Adopt-A-Legislator Program

The increase in proposed legislation that seeks to include homeschool families highlights why we need to stay involved in the legislative process. One way to get involved is to participate in the IAHE Adopt-A-Legislator Program. This program “is an organized way for a homeschool family to focus on building a relationship with their own legislator to further the IAHE’s mission of maintaining visibility with civil government leaders. It is a unique way for a legislator to learn more about home education in Indiana.” 2 To sign-up for the Adopt-A-Legislator Program, families must sign up for a free account and log into the private side of the IAHE website.

While the 2014 Legislative session may be over, the work of IAHE’s legislative team is not. Maintaining our homeschool rights and freedoms in Indiana takes hard work and a team effort. Whether a bill reader or a visible spokesperson, our volunteers allow IAHE to be the voice for homeschool freedoms in Indiana and keep an eye on legislation that would exert more state control over homeschoolers. We encourage every homeschooler to pray for, stay informed, and be involved in our civil government.

  1. At the time The Informer went to print, all the bills mentioned in this article that passed the Legislature were signed into law by Governor Pence.
  2. www.iahe.net/adopt-legislator

 

Camille M. Cantwell is a member of the IAHE legislative team. She has a degree in journalism and political science and worked for the Wisconsin State Assembly and Governor Tommy Thompson until 1989. She received her law degree at Regent University in Virginia and was admitted to practice law in Indiana in 1993. Her license is currently on “inactive” status. She and her husband David homeschool their two high school-age sons, Nathaniel and Joshua.