Sometimes we get to play a part in making history.
Sometimes we get to right a wrong.
Sometime we have the opportunity to do both.
That’s always been my feeling about playing a small part in making history as the legal case of Leeper v. Arlington ISD made its way to the Texas Supreme Court in 1994–when, after many lower courts had made their rulings–the Texas Supreme Court would decide once and for all whether homeschooling was legal in Texas.
Of course, homeschooling has always been legal in Texas. Historically, families have always taught their children the skills they would need as adults.
In the earliest days there were no schools on the frontier.
Later, churches and communities pooled their efforts to establish schools for the children who lived nearby.
It wasn’t until the first part of the 1900s when local and state governments began to tax property to build schools…and to make school attendance mandatory. Of course, various private school options continued to exist, and attendance at these private schools was accepted as satisfying the mandatory schooling requirements, but families were taxes whether they had children in the government schools or not. This caused added strain for families who were already paying for their children to be taught privately.
In the 1970s and 1980s, there was a resurgence of homeschooling–primarily among Protestant families who didn’t prefer the government-run or Catholic-sponsored school options. Unfortunately, these families often faced hostility and severe legal challenges in addition to the financial disparity. Some were arrested and had their children removed from their homes.
As a parent who homeschooled in the late 1980s, I remember the need for constant caution and the fear that even that might not be enough.
Any disgruntled neighbor or relative could file an anonymous report of “abuse” with CPS.
For our family, the Leeper case was a fight for parents’ rights.
Apart from clear cases of abuse or neglect, should the government make the final decisions on how children’s needs are met? Or does that decision belong to the parents who love and care for their children?
We believe it belongs to the parents. If we aren’t free to raise our own children, are we really free?
It’s because of this belief and our experience with government intervention into our homes that we also stand firm against ANY mingling of government and family educational choices.
The main difference between a public school and a private school is where the funding comes from!
If ANY part of our homeschool’s funding comes from the government, the government considers itself “our partner” in the education of our children.
Historical experience has proven that what government funds, government runs.
Why would we think the government would be agreeable to vouchers unless there was something in it for them?
When issuing educational vouchers, the government agrees to return to parents a fraction of the property tax money they demand each year to be used for educational purposes the government agrees to.
“But it’s our money!”
Indeed! It is! The solution would be to lobby for tax deductions for families who educate their children privately. That way your money stays in your pocket without ever passing through government hands.
I know this is a controversial topic, but we fought too hard to win educational freedom for Texas families to barter any part of it back.
By voting to keep Texas private schools privately funded, YOU have the opportunity to make history and preserve our parental rights and academic freedoms.
If you’d like to know more about how Leeper v. Arlington ISD was won and what that means, here’s an excellent article from the Texas Home Educators.
Thirty years after the Leeper v. Arlington ISD decision, homeschooling in Texas is thriving, growing, and FREE! As we celebrate this anniversary, let’s honor the families who fought for parental and educational freedoms as we do our part to protect those freedoms for future generations.
