Category: Texas

URGENT: Romeike Family Facing Deportation

Posted on | by Edward Murray

From Classical Conversations & HSLDA

Within our organization there is unanimous conviction that all people have a right, not just a priviledge, to educate their children freely, without any intervention by state or any other organizations. One such family – The Romeike’s – fled Germany to the United States to exercise this freedom, but are now facing deportation.

The Romeike’s need your help, and they need it FAST. Please see the following message from our friends at HSLDA below, contact your Representative, and sign the petition.

The Romeike family fled Germany for the United States in 2008 seeking asylum so that they could homeschool their children without fear of persecution. After more than a decade of making the United States their home, the Romeike’s were abruptly informed they had four weeks to return to Germany.

Tennessee Congresswoman Diana Harshbarger has introduced private bill H.R. 5423 to stop this deportation from happening and make the Roeikes eligible for an immigrant visa or permanent resident status.

But the Romeikes also need your help!

Please take just a moment to ask your congressional representative to intervene on their behalf. It’s as easy as filling out this form.

HELP NOW

Rallying support for the Romeike family and H.R. 5423 is so important—we need voices from both sides of the aisle speaking out for them.

Will you stand with the Romeikes and ask your representative to support H.R. 5423?

As always, thank you for your continued support of homeschool families and homeschool freedom!

HSLDA passionately advocates for the freedom to homeschool and offers support for every stage of your homeschool journey. To learn more about HSLDA, and various legal issues facing homeschool families, please visit herhttps://hslda.org/e.

Get Ready! April & May Homeschool Days at the Capitol!

Posted on | by Lauren Gideon

Capitol Days, Legislative Days, Homeschool Day at the Capitol, Pie Day, and other similar events foster communication between parents and their elected representatives. This is a great opportunity for you to teach your children the importance of the legislative process and help them mature into civic leaders who will help protect American freedoms.

The chart below lists April and May Capitol Days; you can also check your state’s dates here if it’s not listed below.

ColoradoApril 23, 2023
LouisianaMay 1, 2023
MaineMay 7-13, 2023
New YorkMay 8-9, 2023
Texas Lobbying WorkshopApril 5, 2023

Homeschool Organizations Ally to Protect Homeschooling Freedoms & Offer More Help Understanding EdChoice, ESAs, Vouchers

Posted on | by Lauren Gideon

Constitutional Home Educators Alliance has been helping parents navigate the nuances of EdChoice, ESAs, parent/school choice, vouchers, and special scholarships. Visit their site for information and research on the topic, and read why they support Education Liberty over EdChoice and similar policies.

Parent Rights Erosion Continues

Posted on | by Lauren Gideon

Even if you aren’t a Colorado resident, it is important to keep abreast of the political climate in other states because it won’t be long before it’s in your state. Be prepared for what’s coming your way.

Carolyn Martin, the Director of Government Relations for Christian Home Educators of Colorado, sounds the warning on HB23-1003, a bill currently under consideration that represents an outright assault on parental rights.

The question we need to ask is: “Where does the civil government’s authority and jurisdiction stop?

“This year an introduced bill, HB23-1003 School Mental Health Assessment, grants children twelve years or older the ability [to] override a parent’s wishes concerning a mental health assessment given in a public school. Although the bill allows parents to opt their child out of the assessment, it also authorizes the school to ignore the opt-out when the child dictates. Children can also keep parents from seeing the results of the assessment. Note: If your child participates in a part-time public-school program, this bill applies to you as well!“

Keep reading here.

Confused by ESAs, Vouchers, and EdChoice?

Posted on | by Lauren Gideon | 1 Comment on Confused by ESAs, Vouchers, and EdChoice?

Education policy jargon is enough to make anyone’s head spin! What in the world is the difference between school vouchers and ESAs? How does taxpayer-funded education threaten your educational freedom? And how does so-called parent choice (or school choice) actually eliminate your educational options?

The Constitutional Home Educators Alliance has created a fantastic video to answer these questions and more. And have you read our blog post, All That Glitters Isn’t Gold, published on December 28, 2022? Be sure to check it out!

Unfrgamented Book Club Starting Soon!

Posted on | by Lauren Gideon

Save the date for Unfragmented, a new book club hosted by our very own Leigh Bortins, beginning Thursday, January 5, 2023, at 8:00 p.m. EST. Just click the Unfragmented book club banner on the home page of Leigh’s website to find the Zoom link and join in the discussion.

January will feature author Kevin Novak and his book, Abolition. No preparation is required, but it definitely helps to have the book in hand. Enjoy the relaxed conversation!

You can also listen to this interview between Leigh and the author.

All That Glitters Is Not Gold

Posted on | by Lauren Gideon | 2 Comments on All That Glitters Is Not Gold

Taxpayer-funded education goes by a variety of names these days, such as school vouchers, charter schools, and education savings accounts (ESAs), which different states variously call Education Freedom Accounts, Empowerment Scholarship Accounts, or Individualized Education Accounts.

These lovely names suggest a commitment to the principles of freedom and self-determination that define the homeschooling movement, but buyer beware: all that glitters is not gold.

Take No Child Left Behind: glittering name, pyrite legislation. Enacted with bipartisan support, NCLB promised to fix the substandard and ever-worsening quality of the public education system. In fact, one of the legislation’s objectives was to offer parents school choice! (Sound familiar?)

Instead, NCLB vastly expanded the federal government’s role in education while public schools continued to deteriorate and school choice was left by the wayside. Despite the glittering name, despite the promise of school choice, NCLB only eroded educational freedoms.

School choice—a.k.a. “parent choice”—funded by taxpayers’ money represents a similar bait and switch. The government  offers this money to parents when they withdraw their students from the public school system, ostensibly because the money would’ve followed the students anyway. Sounds great, right?

Here’s the catch: this money is then deposited in government-authorized savings accounts—accounts subject to government oversight. And that’s where the trouble begins.

Government oversight means regulation. Regulation is the death of freedom and self-determination. Soon, you won’t be able to spend those funds according to your own wants and needs. Instead, you’ll need the government’s approval for your expenditures.

And then your home school won’t be your home school—rather, your home school will be just another government-run program in your living room.

Pyrite is called fool’s gold because it tricks people into believing it’s real gold. School choice funded by taxpayers’ money isn’t school choice at all—it’s just fool’s gold. Like No Child Left Behind, taxpayer-funded education will only undermine legitimate educational freedom.

Don’t trade your child’s future for pyrite.

Learn more about taxpayer-funded education here!

Podcast: Refining Rhetoric, with Robert Bortins, May 11, 2022

Posted on | by Lauren Gideon

In this episode, Robert Bortins and Michael P. Farris discuss basic human rights, educational choice, and the possible overturn of Roe v. Wade. Robert is the CEO of Classical Conversations and Michael is the founding president of both Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA) and Patrick Henry College. Today, he serves as chairman of the board of HSLDA, chancellor emeritus of Patrick Henry, and president and CEO of Alliance Defending Freedom. Throughout his career, Michael has defended human rights for freedom of religion and speech, promoted educational choice, and fought for the sanctity of human life.