Tampa Bay Homeschool Empowerment

LIFE Fest 2010 Home and Informal Education Conference Program Online

2010-09-14T11:29:00.000-04:00

The program for LIFE Fest 2010 is online and freely available.

We've got an exciting program on tap for Saturday, September 18th, at the Orange County Extension Education Center, and we hope you'll join us for a full day of fun and learning together.

Childcare is available for the day for just $20, and we have a wealth of enriching program content, plenty of hands on opportunities for all ages, and a great collection of raffle and door prize items.

Check out the LIFE Fest 2010 Program and see how much fun you can have for $10 for the whole family!

Calling all Tampa Bay area mentors! (That's YOU!)

2007-11-08T13:10:00.001-05:00

Learning is for Everyone is compiling a Tampa Bay area Mentor directory – a MentorMatch, if you will, initially to support area homeschooled youth, but with the potential to help any child in Tampa simply wanting to know about something.

Our local homeschool groups are well stocked with a variety of experts, hobbyists, and professionals across a wide array of interests, abilities and fields. And while we're no doubt serving our own children well with our personal expertise, if we pooled our collective intelligences together, our kids could potentially have access to some powerful learning resources we can't achieve alone.

I'm not talking about a cooperative – although cooperatives necessarily include community expertise – but something more like a Mentoring collaborative; opportunities for apprenticeship and the tapping of insights and ideas from willing adults who have experience in areas in which our kids are interested.

I’m throwing my own name in the hat first. I’m a professional writer with more than 25 years of experience. I’m a freelance journalist for several newspapers; I’m a book author (The Food Allergy Field Guide: A Lifestyle Manual for Families); I’ve been a magazine writer (trade journals, Home Education Magazine, Life Learning and others); and as an editor (member of the editorial board of the Journal of School Choice).

Rather than running a class, which I've contemplated doing off and on (and have done in the past), I've concluded that it's not a "class" kids need when they have a particular interest, but the opportunity to spend *time* with someone who shares their interest.

Spending time with an expert mentor – once a week, once a month, for an occasional lunch out, or for a day with someone where he or she works – can:

1) Help guide interested kids in their learning and practice choices,
2) Connect them at the community level with respect to their interests,
3) Give them adult perspectives different from those in their own
families;
4) And gives them a realistic, hands-on look at careers and interests.

Mentoring is also a more realistic way for experts to help – it's certainly less time consuming than teaching a class, it's more personal, and certainly potentially more meaningful and enduring. Just the fact that you're not working with a group, but more one on one makes it easier for kids to ask questions, and for experts to give more contextual replies and guidance.

So where am I going with all of this? I'm going to YOU.

What do you do? Whatever it is, you can rest assured that some child, somewhere in our homeschool community, is interested. If you're willing to act as a mentor to youth in our homeschool community – and you determine completely what that means with respect to your time and energy -- drop me a line with a short overview of your expertise and how you think you can help a child with your shared interest.

And think about people you know – tap them for their willingness to mentor youth. For teens, that might include a day with the mentor, or regular visits at work, or possibly apprenticeships. For younger children, you'd probably want to accompany them, or have the mentor over to your home.

We build the MentorMatch directory. You decide all the comfort levels and parameters.

And ask your kids what they'd really like to learn about, what they're interested in. You might think you know. You might not! Then post your “seeking mentor” request here.

And then we can take the whole thing even further with the online school I created recently:

http://universityoflife.myicourse.com/

Anyone can be a "faculty" member of the University of LIFE. "Courses" can be long or short – a resource list; a couple pages of instructional material about something; a paper; a how-to. You name it, and we can do it. It's extraordinarily easy to use Myicourse, and
it's completely free. I've got a rudimentary Earth Science course up there right now that you can look at . It's only the first unit, but it gives you an idea of what a course can look like.

The thing is, we can do so much more than we're doing, and we can much better utilize the human capital we've got in great abundance here.

So let me know what you think. Tell me what you do and how you can share it. Let's create a real learning *community* and set some real examples of home based learning success.

I'll take the first step: I write, and I'm happy to talk to your child about writing.

What about you?

Terri

willinghamster@gmail.com

WUSF Florida Matters “Homeschooling” (October 5, 2007)

2007-10-06T10:37:00.000-04:00

Recently, homeschooler Jacinta Sousa, of FL Homeschoolers, and Terri Willingham, of LIFE of Tampa, were invited to be part of a WUSF radio show on homeschooling. The program aired Friday night and will air again Sunday, Oct. 6, at 10AM. You can also hear the broadcast at the WUSF-Florida Matters website . Several local resources and groups are posted at the show's website.

_________________

It wasn't too long ago when the idea of modern home schooling was considered to be the province of hippies and fringe groups — and perhaps a few small religious groups. Not any more. It is most definitely mainstream.

Legalized in Florida in 1985, the number of students whose home room might very well be their living room has increased by up to 2,000 a year. At last count, nearly 56,000 students were being home schooled in Florida.

So why home school a child? Does it give students an academic edge? Do they lose out on the social experience of the traditional classroom setting? We’ll meet some of those parents and students who are among this growing trend on this week’s Florida Matters. Listen now

Guests: Jacinta Sousa - whose 8-year-old daughter Audra has been home-schooled her whole life.

Terri Willingham - whose family home-schooled for 14 years. Her 14-year-old son Chris and 17-year-old daughter Andrea join us too

Cathy Russell - Home Education Specialist, Office of Independent Education and Parental Choice, Florida Department of Education

--> Join WUSF's Carson Cooper for Florida Matters Friday evening at 6:00 PM, and Sunday morning at 10 AM, on WUSF 89.7, your NPR Station.

The Future of Bright Futures

2007-09-06T13:30:00.000-04:00

Recent news about the potentially shakey future of Bright Futures scholarships, a popular merit based program that can pay anything from 100% of community college tuition to 100% of university tuition, has prompted area families to inquire about its status. Information is difficult to come by, and its future difficult to predict, but LIFE of FL suggests you inform yourself about the latest arguments pro and con (see links below) and drop Governor Crist a line (http://www.flgov.com/contact_form ) with your thoughts, if Bright Futures is important to you, since he appears to be it's most influential supporter:

http://checksnbalances.blogspot.com/2007/04/fl-college-tuition-increase.html

Additional articles/discussions:

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/columnists/orl-miket1407aug14,0,4172612.column (read through the comments, too)
http://www.topix.net/forum/source/orlando-sentinel/TR9CHVID9MSJM3NPQ http://www.sptimes.com/2007/07/24/Opinion/Bright_Futures_progra.shtml
http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20070820/BLOG29/70820040

http://www.sptimes.com/2004/05/09/State/Incentive_to_stay_in_.shtml
(old – 2004, but interesting)

http://tinyurl.com/2rbjzy - even older, a 2003 rallying cry to "save
Bright Futures"

You can also visit the Board of Governors website for more information on anything related to the FL University system or additional contact information: http://www.flbog.org/ and http://www.flbog.org/BOG_regs/ to sign up for email updates regarding regulations changes.

Potential changes to college admission requirements for homeschoolers in FL

2007-08-13T23:56:00.000-04:00

Homeschoolers recently noticed changes to college admissions requirements that seem to include acceptance recommendations for homeschoolers as well. Until recently, Florida Statute 1007.261 governed state university admission, specifically stating that home education students did not need to demonstrate completion of specific courses in order to be considered for admission to state colleges and universities.

Thanks to some research by a local home educator, we know the following:

The full text of the original statute can be found here: http://tinyurl.com/2w6eqmThis statute was repealed in the 2007 regular legislative session, and the home education statute (1002.41) was amended as follows:(8) Home education students are eligible for admission to stateuniversities in accordance with the policies and guidelines ofthe Board of Governors provisions of s.1007.261.

Full text of the session law is here:http://election.dos.state.fl.us/laws/07laws/ch_2007-217.pdf A 'proposal to propose' rule, titled 6C-6.002, has been located on the Florida Board of Governors website (http://www.flbog.org/bog/) that puts forth a minimum SAT score for home education students, and provides that colleges can require additional documentation from home education students. A portion of the text is below.Information about the proposed regulation and Thursday's BOG meeting in Tampa can be found here:http://tinyurl.com/2pevs2

This rule has not been published in Florida Administrative Weekly, yet, and as far as our intrepid homeschool researcher can tell, the upcoming meeting will approve it for publication.Snipped from Proposed 6C-6.002Undergraduate Admission of First-time,Degree-seeking Freshmen(3) Normally a high school diploma from a Florida public or regionally accredited high school, or its equivalent, shall be required for admission to a state university. Students completing a home education program according to Section 1002.41, F.S., are eligible for admission; however, each university may require additional documentation to verify student eligibility.

Students admitted under early admission in accordance with Board of Governors regulation are exempted from this requirement while they are classified as early admission students.(4)A student applying for admission who is participating in a non-traditional high school program must present credentials equivalent to those described in regulation as judged by the individual SUS institution to which the student has applied. A student whose high school educational program is not measured in Carnegie Units mustpresent a test score of at least 1010 on the SAT I, SAT Reasoning Test Critical Reading and Mathematics portions, or the equivalent on theACT; or a combined test score of 1450 on the SAT Reasoning Test. Students with test scores from older versions of the admission test(s)may be required to retest for admission purposes.
Hillsborough County.

Cathy Russell, Home Education Specialist with the Office of Independent Education, responded promptly to a Learning is for Everyone inquiry about this issue:

"...Once the board approves the intent to publish notice of the proposed regulation, that notice will be posted for 30 days on the BOG websitehttp://www.flbog.org/BOG_regs/ We'll have 14 days from posting of the notice to comment."The change in regulation is subtle."With the repeal of 1007.261,home ed students have lost the specific statutory guidelines it provided, but practically speaking the change in rule may not be significant. However, the reference to home ed in the first paragraph of the new rule (Students completing a home education program according to Section 1002.41, F.S., are eligible for admission; however, each university may require additional documentation to verify student eligibility) [seems] a little ...vague ..."

Cathy Russell
Home Education Specialist
Office of Independent Education and Parental Choice Office
Main: 850-245-0502Office Fax: 850-245-0868
Web: www.floridaschoolchoice.org

We'll keep you posted as we learn more, and will include additional information and documentation about this issue as discussion progresses.

From Home Education Foundation: [HEF_Info] FHSAA new eligibilty forms and guidelines

2007-07-20T14:59:00.000-04:00

"After weeks of cooperative work between the FHSAA, the Home Education Foundation, HEAT teams, and county liaisons, we have some new, and very worthwhile, information for home educators statewide. The FHSAA recently updated their EL 07 form which is used by student athletes wishing to participate in competitive sports with FHSAA member teams.

"The information we are providing is uniform throughout the State and consists of the new EL 07 form, a Guide to filling out the EL 07, and a new Verification form which is to be filled out by your county's home education liaison. Please download and/or print the information and familiarize yourself with it. All 3 parts may be found individually on the HEF website at: http://www.flhef.org/extracurricular-activities/sports.html or on the FHSAA's website under Eligibility and Compliance.

"Home education students wishing to participate in fall sports will need to have these forms filled out and returned relatively soon, so please forward this email to your groups as soon as possible. We recommend you have this information printed and available at your next group meeting.

"As we are updating our email loop, please let us know of any new group leaders you wish to have added to this list": http://www.flhef.org

New FL Legislative Updates online at LIFE of FL

2007-04-11T11:54:00.000-04:00

Visit LIFE of FLs new website at http://lifeofflorida.blogspot.com to read the latest pending legislation updates.

Governor Crist declares April 1-7th Home Education Week in FL

2007-04-04T10:50:00.000-04:00

Click on the picture, or visit the FL Dept. of Education's Home Education page for a closer look at the proclamation.

Basically it says homeschooling is good for FL.

Be Proud.

Proposed "Homeschool Procedures" for Hillsborough County Parks & Rec Facilities use

2007-03-28T10:43:00.000-04:00

Just filing this here. The meeting that had originally been scheduled for Wed, March 7, has been postponed until further notice. Recent correspondence with Lois Kessler, of the county parks & rec division, indicates that the proposal is still under review by county attorneys, in the interest of creating a facilities use policy that is fair across the board to *all* county citizens. (as per March 27, 2007).

Here's the background though:

Due to misuse of indoor county facilities in recent months,
Hillsborough County Parks, Recreation and Conservation department is
considering instituting "homeschool procedures" to govern the use of
indoor facilities by homeschool groups.

Similar policies have been used for public school and other groups
using Parks & Rec facilities, and are now being considered for
homeschoolers because of growing use of
facilities and commensurate damage that has resulted. Some
facilities have been more open than others in allowing homeschool use.

My personal take is that discussions should focus on *fair use for
all* policies that require exactly the same thing of *any group*
using county facilities. I don't believe it's a good idea to set up
the precedent of "homeschool procedures" within the county, because I
believe it could open the door to the establishment of "homeschool
procedures" elsewhere in the county.

If you would like to express your thoughts to the county, Lois
Kessler is the Parks & Rec regional director handling this issue, and
she can be reached at 813-903-2253, or via email at
kesslerl@hillsboroughcounty.org . There's also a feedback form on the
Parks & Rec website at http://www.hillsboroughcounty.org/parks/

As always, *professionalism, compassion and understanding* is
recommended in all communications.

Ms. Kessler inherited this issue from a previous director and is just
starting to get a handle on everything, including an understanding of
the homeschool community. No one is out to get us -- they're just
trying to find a way to solve a problem. With good communications on
our part, an equitable solution for everyone is possible.

__________________________________

Text of proposed "Homeschool School Procedures" as per Hillsborough
County Parks, Recreation and Conservation Department:

The following sites have been designated Home School sites for the
2006 2007 school year:

Turkey Creek – 5936 Connell Rd., Plant City, FL 33566 (813) 757-3822
FAX: 757-3880, contact: Jim Knight
Temple – 7701 Temple Terrace Hwy, Temple Terrace, FL 33637 (813) 987-
6205 FAX:
987-6138, contact: Eddy Perez
Country Place – 15728 Country Lake Dr., Tampa, FL 33624 (813) 964-
2921 FAX: 964-2923
Contact: Bridget Gonzalez-Wilder
Keystone – 17928 Gunn Hwy, Odessa, FL 33556 (813) 264-3819, FAX: 264-
8588, contact: Mike Eden
Bloomingdale – 3940 Canoga Park Dr., Brandon, FL 33511 (813) 744-5907
FAX: 635-8028
Contact: Donna Clouse

Future Sites:

Evans – 1104 N. Kingsway Rd., Seffner, FL 33584 (813) 744-5574 FAX:
635-8193, contact: Carol Shepherd
Alexander – 5602 N. Lois Ave., Tampa, FL 33614 (813) 554-5001 FAX:
801-6724, contact: Parviz Hajinezhad
Egypt Lake – 3126 W. Lambright St., Tampa, FL 33614 (813) 975-2103
FAX: 975-2088, contact: Willie Outland
Timberlane – 10210 Westgate Dr., Tampa, FL 33615 (813) 554-5048 FAX:
554-5108, contact: Lucy Romero
Perrone – 5120 Kelly Rd., Tampa, FL 33615 (813) 554-5000 FAX: 554-
5073, contact: Melba Haley
Providence West – 5417 Providence Rd., Riverview, FL 33569 (813) 635-
7452 FAX: 635-7451
Contact: Denise Minner

County responsibilities for each site:

• Each year provide facilities to be used for home school
activities during normal weekday hours Monday through Thursday
between the hours of 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. Sites to be used will
be determined once our Recreation Section's yearly calendar has been
completed in August of each calendar year.

• PRC (Hillsborough County Parks, Recreation and Conservation)
will provide one staff (minimum level recreation leaders) to be
present at all times to monitor the facility. Staff will monitor the
home school activities while completing their normal work schedule.

• PRC staff will provide the home school representative our
updated copy of the Parent Handbook, a copy of our Code of Conduct
procedures, as well as a copy of the Rules and Regulations for use of
PRC Buildings. The Parent Handbook and Code of Conduct will need to
be distributed to the parents. We want the parents, the home school
Home School Procedures
Page 2

representatives, as well as the children that participate in the home
school program to understand the procedures and follow the guidelines
while using a county facility.

• PRC Staff and the home school representatives will have the
responsibility of communicating any concerns and requests as well as
making sure all procedures are followed correctly.

• The scheduling of the outside areas and/or facilities for PE
activities

• Indoor facilities may be scheduled to satisfy academic PE
needs for dance, individual health awareness, assessments, fitness,
etc.

• Free play should be kept to a minimum inside or out

• Scheduled County programs and or activities will take
precedents over all other outside agencies programs. Examples would
be County holidays when sites will be closed, early release days,
school out camp days, etc. The PRC staff will provide you a list of
these dates. However, there may be times we may need to close the
facility early due to training of staff, holiday luncheons or
maintenance situations. PRC staff will contact the home school
representative in case facility has to be closed and it is not on the
original schedule provided

• Authorization of facility is only during the school term
session
• PRC Staff will provide equipment for check out

Home School Program Responsibilities:

• Must comply with the Parent Handbook, Rules and Regulations
for use of buildings and enforce the Code of Conduct provided by PRC

• Provide a minimum of one staff member for each room being
used to supervise the students in accordance with the Code of Conduct

• Ensure each staff member is CPR/First Aid certified.

• Report all incidents to the PRC staff and provide a written
report.

• Schedule facility in a timely manner.

• Provide adult supervision per room and/or 1:25 ratio or less.

Home School Procedures
Page 3

• Set up and take down.

• Replace damaged equipment with equal or better.

• If you make a mess you clean it up.

• Each student completes a registration card kept on file.

• Signed Hold Harmless Agreement and insurance.

• All volunteers/teachers must have a back ground check and be
cleared prior to their working with the children while in a County
facility.

submitted by Terri Willingham, LIFE of Tampa homeschool support group

New FL DOE Home Education Specialist

2007-03-28T10:42:00.000-04:00

FYI: Evidently replacing long time Home Ed director Mary Lou Carothers:Cathy Russell Cathy.Russell@fldoe.org Home Education SpecialistOffice of Independent Education and Parental ChoiceOffice Main: 850-245-0502Office Fax: 850-245-0868Web: www.floridaschoolchoice.org

Proposed bills commentary from Home Education Foundation

2007-03-28T10:41:00.000-04:00

From Home Education Foundation:
http://www.flhef.org
______________________________

Dear Leaders,

This is long, but I asked several people to help me cut it down. All
of them said it was important information, so please persevere and
read it all.

Many of you may have received an alert or had a friend forward the
HSLDA alert to you this week regarding HB 799 (SB 2822) -- K-8
Virtual School Programs. To eliminate confusion at the outset, the
Florida Virtual School s. 1002.37 F.S. and the K-8 Virtual School
Program s.1002.415 F.S. are different. The K-8 Virtual School Program
is for Kindergarten through 8th grade public school students. Two
different state-approved private vendors, The Connection Academy and
The Florida Virtual School Academy (formerly the K-8 Academy founded
by Bill Bennett) provide students with a computer and curriculum for
which the private schools receive about $5200 per year. The K-8
Virtual Schools are considered public schools and students are fully
enrolled in this program and have to take the FCAT. The Florida
Virtual School http://www.flvs.net is an online public school, serves
grades 7-12, offers courses on a course by course basis and serves
home education, private school and public school students free of
charge. HB 799/SB 2822 will not affect the FLVS.

HEF is aware of HB 799 and SB 2822, has been in touch with committee
staff and will be working with the bill sponsors on this issue. HB
799 will be heard in Education Innovation and Career Preparation on
Tuesday. The bill is one of the Speaker's "100 Ideas" and is a
leadership bill. HEF looks at bills very carefully before deciding
to oppose a bill, especially if it is a leadership bill. We may need
to have these same people help us when something is proposed that
will adversely affect home educators. We need to be very careful and
contemplative about our position and actions. HEF likes to take a
more friendly approach to legislation than starting with the phone
blitz. I know there will be some changes to this bill as it goes
through the process, so opposing it now is NOT the right time, even
if we do oppose it later.

Also, after carefully thinking through this bill and the arguments in
the HSLDA alert, I want to give you some more food for thought.

HSLDA states in their alert that they are opposed to virtual schools
for the following reasons:

"Much freedom is lost as the homeschool movement slowly becomes
secularized. If your child is enrolled in one of these virtual
schools, the following occurs: (1) your children become public school
students; (2) your homeschool must use a secular public school
curriculum; (3) you must be supervised by a certified teacher from
the public school; (4) your children must be tested with the state
assessment; and (5) your house is open to home visits by school
officials and possibly social workers.

These programs pose a danger, particularly because early statistics
show that 80% of those who first enroll in a virtual school were
previously homeschoolers."

Every family registered with the county is NOT a "true" home educator.

While the HSLDA reasons may be valid, there is another side to this
issue. Florida has many parents who use the home education program
for a variety of reasons; many of which are not good. They may be
trying to escape truancy charges, their child may refuse to go to
school, the child or parent had a disagreement with the teacher or
administration, school safety, illness and the list goes on. You, as
leaders, have heard them all. HEF does not consider those
parents "true" home educators, although they may become one.

Many home education leaders have complained to me about these
families and asked what can be done to make sure they are
not "abusing" the home education law. HSLDA members are screened and
only families who take their commitment to home educate seriously and
conform to the HSLDA requirements are accepted into membership. HEF
has to deal with all the families in Florida, whether they are
committed to home education or not. HEF has to look at what is good
for the home education movement as a whole.

HEF has been proactive in creating choices for parents.

Since 1993, HEF has worked hard to provide parents with as many
options as possible. In the early 90's we saw a lot of families put
their children back into public school at 9th grade because they
could not teach chemistry, physics or algebra. In 1993, HEF began
working on inclusion for home education students into the college
dual enrollment program because we could see a way for home education
students to validate their home education and earn college credit for
foreign language, chemistry, etc.

In 1996 Bob Muni, one of the HEF Board members, approached me about
joining him in trying to create a virtual school in Florida.
Immediately, I could see how parents could feel comfortable about
keeping their children home through high school if chemistry and
algebra were provided to them free and they could teach the other
courses they felt comfortable teaching.

HEF has never been afraid to create choices for parents. God did not
give HEF or the state your children. He gave them to you, their
parents. HEF has always worked hard to protect parental choice; it
would be inconsistent for us to limit parental choice because we fear
the choice that a parent may make. HSLDA and many home educators
opposed HEF in 1994 when we began working toward home education
student inclusion into the extracurricular activities of public and
private schools. Had the Craig Dickinson Act s. 1006.15 F.S. not
been passed in 1996, Tim Tebow would not be the quarterback for the
University of Florida. The Tebow's had to decide what was best for
their child. They were very committed to home education and would
have kept Tim at home, but he would not have been able to develop his
God-given talent in football. HEF worked to make it possible for Tim
and others to do both, home school and participate in competitive
athletics.

HEF can understand the arguments of HSLDA and there may be some home
education fallout. However, HEF believes that the "true" home
educator will not register with a K-8 virtual school because they do
not want any entanglement with the state. All of the opportunities
that HEF has helped to create in the past kept home education free
from government regulation, unless the parent chooses to participate
in the program and then there are certain additional regulations.
Nothing in the dual enrollment, extracurricular activities, Bright
Futures Scholarships or the Florida Virtual School programs infringes
upon the rights of home educators who choose not to participate in
these programs.

HEF does not try to control parental choice.

Secondly, parents are free to drop out of home education at any time
and enroll in the public school and many committed home education
parents do make that choice for a variety of reasons. HEF does not
try to limit parental choice, but will help educate families that if
the HB 799 passes, parents who choose to enroll their child for the
free curriculum will no longer be home educators. They will be
enrolling in a public school and their child will have to pass the
FCAT test.

K-8 Virtual School enrollment makes the student a public school
student.

Thirdly, parents who would withdraw their child from a home education
program to enroll in the K-8 Virtual School would most likely put
their child back into public school sooner or later. Leaders see
these parents all the time. They only plan to home educate for one
year or possibly two; they want you to tell them where to pick up
their curriculum and where they can drop off their child. Most of
these parents have the public school mentality and want someone else
to do the work for them. How many times has the school district home
education contact said to you, "Oh, it isn't the home educators like
you we are worried about. It is those that don't do anything to
educate their child."?

The parents that choose the K-8 Virtual School would be accountable
to the state. This would be one way that you as leaders can direct
these families to a transition program where they can receive the
assistance they need to get started, have the external accountability
to stay focused and let them test the waters and build their
confidence to later become home educators.

Some parents may choose home education as a result of having their
child in the K-8 Virtual School.

HEF looks at this a little differently than HSLDA. I believe that
these virtual schools can make believers out of public school
parents. I have seen parents of special needs children who left the
public school system on a McKay Scholarship give up thousands of
dollars of government dollars to enroll in a home education program
because they saw the benefit to their child. They would have never
decided to home educate without first seeing the results. We may
lose some families to the public school options, but we may gain
others who will be true believers in the benefits of home education.

And finally, there are cases where parents want to home educate, but
for financial or a multitude of other reasons may not be able to do
so. You can read about Connections Academy at
http://www.connectionsacademy.com and The Florida Virtual Academy at
http://www.flva.net Here are some points covered in the FLVA FAQ.

What kinds of students might a virtual program serve?

� Children looking for a challenging curriculum emphasizing
both knowledge and skills

� Children who are struggling academically

� Children who are academically gifted

� Children who attend unsafe or overcrowded schools

� Homebound students

� Students who are engaged in other productive endeavors (the
arts, athletics, or community service, for example) that make it
difficult for them to attend class during regular school hours

� Children who are self-directed learners

� Children who love computers and multimedia applications

� Children who move frequently due to changing family
circumstances (e.g., military families)

Will this program intrude into my home?
There are no home visits as part of the program, unless you ask your
teacher to come to your home (completely optional), and there are no
cameras or any other intrusions into your home. This school has been
created to help your child obtain a first-class education and serve
your family's needs. If you ever feel that it is not right for your
family or your child, you may disenroll your child at any time.

Is this homeschooling?
The Florida Virtual Academy is a public school program. It is not
homeschooling. FLVA provides another high-quality education option
for your family. FLVA will be the right option for many, but
certainly not all, families. Because it is a public school program,
parents who enroll their students in FLVA can disenroll at any time
if they are not satisfied with the program. We believe that families
should be able to choose the program they feel is most appropriate
for their child's education-and that they should be able to choose
public schools, private schools, homeschooling, or virtual schools.
FLVA seeks to be one more option to help you obtain the best possible
education for your children.

HEF is NOT opposing HB 799 (K-8 Virtual School Program) and ask you
not to for the following reasons:

1. We believe that parents should make decisions for their own
family and children.

2. Your call may easily be discredited and you may appear to be
selfishly trying to control the choice of other parents since this
bill will not directly affect home education under s. 1002.41 F.S.
This bill does NOT require home education parents to enroll in the K-
8 Virtual school nor do we see that ever happening in Florida.

3. Since the sponsors of these bills are strong supporters of home
education and will quickly fight against any laws that would restrict
our rights, it is not politically expedient to oppose their bill. If
I could argue that this bill would have a direct impact on our rights
as home educators, I would be camping out in their offices until they
agreed to withdraw their bill.

4. Money is very tight this year and it will be interesting to see
if the program receives extra funding. Currently, the dollars that
would be spent on a public school child can be used in a K-8 Virtual
School. Including private school and home education students in the
K-8 Virtual School would take money away from public schools and the
state will be paying for students who they are not currently paying
for. I think it will be a hard sell for the bill sponsors.

5. Some parents who have their child registered in a home education
program may want to enroll their child in the K-8 Virtual School. If
they call legislators in support of the bill and you call in to
oppose it, legislators are going to think we are divided and will not
listen to either opinion. They will do what they want to do.
Presenting a divided front does not do home educators any good. It
is better to work this out with diplomacy.

HEF will watch this bill and if it appears that changes to this bill
will jeopardize the freedom of home educators we will let you know
and alert you when it is the appropriate time for action. If you
have a strong opinion about this, please feel free to email me
through the HEF website www.flhef.org. Go to hefquestions and send me
your opinion.

Brenda Dickinson

President of The Home Education Foundation

Proposed FL Legislation with potential homeschool impact

2007-03-28T10:19:00.000-04:00

Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA) recently sent out an
alert to Florida home educators, "warning" us about bills that "pose
a danger to homeschoolers." I would suggest people educate
themselves completely about the facts of each bill and decide based
on your own assessment. I'm including HSLDAs comments, and then
links to read up further where available, as well as relevant contact
information for each bill.

HSLDA commentary:
"S.B. 360 & H.B. 277: Compulsory Attendance Increase. These bills
would raise the compulsory attendance age from 16 to 18, requiring
children to attend school for two more years. In addition, H.B. 277
would tie renewal of a driver's license to attending school for these
two additional years. We oppose this expansion of the compulsory
attendance age since this will require those of you under the
homeschool law to keep your portfolio and to assess your children for
two more years. We have been opposing these bills throughout the
country as the National Education Association is pushing them this
year even more in than past years."

LIFE Info:
Senate 0360: Relating to Mandatory School Attendance/Age
http://www.flsenate.gov/session/index.cfm?BI_Mode=ViewBillInfo&Mode=Bills&SubMenu=1&Year=2007&billnum=360
S360 GENERAL BILL by Wilson (Compare H 0277)
Mandatory School Attendance/Age [SPCC]; changes ending age for
mandatory
school attendance from 16 years to 18 years. Amends 1002.20,
1003.21,.51. EFFECTIVE DATE: 07/01/2007.
12/15/06 SENATE Filed
01/24/07 SENATE Referred to Education Pre-K - 12; Education Pre-K - 12
Appropriations

LIFE Comments:
SB 360 does not seem to apply to home educators from my reading of
the text, and it also appears that families can "opt out" of the
compulsory attendance ruling if they comply with the requirement of a
(rather extensive!) written declaration acknowledging their
understanding of the fact that dropping out will reduce earning
potential, as well as some other documentation:

The House version , however, H.B. 277 does include home educators in
the increased compulsory attendance language
http://www.myfloridahouse.gov/Sections/Bills/billsdetail.aspx?BillId=34599&

Sponsoring legislators and contact info

SB360: Senator Frederica Wilson, Miami
District Office:
18425 N.W. 2nd Avenue,
Suite 310
Miami Gardens, FL 33169
(305) 654-7150
SunCom: 429-7150
FAX: (888) 284-8589
FAX Suncom: 429-7153

Legislative Assistants:
Joan Glickman, Patricia Lightfoot and Angela Lane

Tallahassee Office:
Room 202
Senate Office Building
404 South Monroe Street
Tallahassee, FL
32399-1100
(850) 487-5116
SunCom: 277-5116
Email: wilson.frederica.web@flsenate.gov

HB 277 sponsored by Rep. Geraldine "Geri" Thompson, Orlando
Capitol Office:
1301 The Capitol
402 South Monroe Street
Tallahassee, FL 32399-1300
Phone: (850) 488-0760
Email from website form:
http://www.myfloridahouse.gov/Sections/Representatives/details.aspx?MemberId=4380&SessionId=54

District Office:
Suite 204
511 West South Street
Orlando, FL 32805-2761
Phone: (407) 245-1511
Legislative Assistant:
Kenneth Pratt
District Secretary:
Juanita Dantzler

HSLDA commentary:
" H.B. 799: Expansion of Virtual Schools. This bill would remove the
requirement that to enroll in a virtual school the student must have
attended a public school the previous year.

"Homeschool leaders and HSLDA are concerned about the virtual school
laws being passed around the country. Every time a public virtual
school program starts, private homeschoolers leave homeschooling to
join these programs.

"Much freedom is lost as the homeschool movement slowly becomes
secularized. If your child is enrolled in one of these virtual
schools, the following occurs: (1) your children become public school
students; (2) your homeschool must use a secular public school
curriculum; (3) you must be supervised by a certified teacher from
the public school; (4) your children must be tested with the state
assessment; and (5) your house is open to home visits by school
officials and possibly social workers.

"These programs pose a danger, particularly because early statistics
show that 80% of those who first enroll in a virtual school were
previously homeschoolers."

LIFE Info:

HB 799 - K-8 Virtual School Program http://www.myfloridahouse.gov/Sections/Bills/billsdetail.aspx?BillId=35668&

GENERAL BILL by Weatherford
K-8 Virtual School Program: Expands student eligibility for program.
Effective Date: July 1, 2007.

Last Event: Now in Schools & Learning Council on Wednesday, February
14, 2007 10:46 AM

Referred Committees and Committee Actions: - Schools & Learning
Council
- Policy & Budget Council

Related Bills:
Bill # Subject Relationship
SB 2822 K-8 Virtual School Program Identical

LIFE Note:
Denying virtual school options to others because they may prefer it
over private or home education is not a good reason for prohibiting a
choice, anymore than we would want people rejecting positive home
education legislation because it could potentially draw people from
pubic education.

Denying freedoms to others is not the right way to protect existing
freedoms.

Furthermore, HSLDAs logic is flawed and evidence for their claims are
unsubstantiated. Florida Virtual School has been used widely and
successfully by thousands of home educators for the past decade.
Public school families enjoy and benefit from Connections Academy and
Florida Virtual Academy, even as they join in with local
homeschoolers for activities and programs. None of those schools
have in any way negatively impacted the home education community in
Florida, which continues to grow significantly every year.

Furthermore, if the majority of those choosing virtual schools were,
in fact, previously home educators, then that would seem to indicate
that virtual schools meet their needs better and the more virtual
school choices available, the better those needs will be met.

There may be other personal reasons for opposing the virtual school
expansion bill, but fear about providing additional choices to
homeschoolers and others should not be one of them.

Bill sponsor: Rep. Bill Weatherford, Wesley Chaple
Capitol Office:
1101 The Capitol
402 South Monroe Street
Tallahassee, FL 32399-1300
Phone: (850) 488-5744
Email via website form:
http://www.myfloridahouse.gov/Sections/Representatives/details.aspx?MemberId=4399&SessionId=54

District Office:
38440 5th Avenue
Zephyrhills, FL 33542-4329
Phone: (813) 558-5115

Legislative Assistant:
Ash Mason

District Secretary:
Robin Ringeisen

HSLDA commentary:
"S.B. 704: Private School Testing. This bill will require private
schools, before awarding a high school diploma, to have students earn
a passing score on the FCAT or score "on a standardized test [that
which is] concordant with passing scores on the FCAT."

"Many homeschoolers have enrolled in 623 and 627 umbrella schools
that award high school diplomas. From our early understanding of this
bill, these private schools that cover the homeschoolers will have to
require the homeschool students to take the FCAT or score, on a
standardized test, equal to a passing score on the FCAT.

"This is needless and unnecessary government red tape over private
schools. This bill should be opposed.

LIFE Info:
Senate 0704: Relating to Private Schools/FCAT/HS Diploma
S704 GENERAL BILL by Siplin
http://www.flsenate.gov/session/index.cfm?BI_Mode=ViewBillInfo&Mode=Bills&SubMenu=1&Year=2007&billnum=704
Private Schools/FCAT/HS Diploma [SPCC]; provides that earning passing
scores on Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) or, in
specified
circumstances, on an equivalent standardized test is prerequisite to
receiving high school diploma from private school in this state.
Amends
1002.42. EFFECTIVE DATE: 07/01/2007.
01/23/07 SENATE Filed
02/08/07 SENATE Referred to Education Pre-K - 12; Education Pre-K - 12
Appropriations

Bills
Version: Posted: Format:
S 0704 01/23/2007 Web Page PDF

LIFE Note: This is, of course, a private school issue and not a home
education one. Those choosing to enroll in private schools that
provide a home based learning option have always been subject to
private school laws.

That said, to require the FCAT of a private school, with regard to
which state has long maintained a "hands off" policy, seems at the
very least, unethical. If the state neither licenses, approves,
accredits or regulates private schools, how can it mandate a state
test of those enrolled in "private" education establishments? And if
the state decides to mandate FCATs of private school students, it's
not a stretch to imagine this requirement eventually being extended
to home education students.

Bill Sponsor: Sen. Gary Siplin
District Office:
1436 North Pine Hills Road
Orlando, FL 32808
(407) 297-2071
SunCom: 326-2071
FAX: (407) 522-2153

Legislative Assistants:
Shannon Currie, Ricky Coleman and Tanika Bango

Tallahassee Office:
Room 205
Senate Office Building
404 South Monroe Street
Tallahassee, FL
32399-1100
(850) 487-5190
SunCom: 277-5190

Email: siplin.gary.web@flsenate.gov

HSLDA commentary: "S.B. 757: Driver's Education. Wayne Tully, the
director of the national Driver's Education Institute, has examined
the bill and believes this new requirement would not allow the parent
to be the primary teacher for driver's education training. Wayne
Tully states "studies have shown that this new legislation will cost
plenty of money and not reduce fatalities. Today, there is not even
one study to support this law. We need to use every resource we have
to stop S.B. 757."

LIFE Info:

HB 757 - Driver Education
http://www.myfloridahouse.gov/Sections/Bills/billsdetail.aspx?BillId=35481&
GENERAL BILL by Sachs
Driver Education: Requires persons under 18 years of age to complete
a driver education course prior to issuance of a driver's license;
provides that the course may be given by a public secondary school,
nonpublic school, or commercial driving school meeting specified
requirements; requires school to issue certificate to students who
successfully complete course; provides instruction & training
requirements.
Effective Date: July 1, 2007.

Last Event: Now in Committee on Infrastructure on Thursday, February
15, 2007 12:33 PM

Referred Committees and Committee Actions: - Committee on
Infrastructure
- Economic Expansion & Infrastructure Council
- Policy & Budget Council

Bills
Version: Posted: Format:
H 0757 02/08/2007 Web Page PDF

LIFE Note: Initially, I couldn't think of a single reason not to
require formal drivers education of everybody. Driving is privilege,
not a right. Florida, in particular, has a terrible record of
driving fatalities, particularly among young people
(http://www.nsc.org/public/state_ranked_fatality_statistics.docz )

On the other hand, there is evidence to support HSLDAs contention
that drivers education does not reduce fatalities:
http://www.scienceblog.com/community/older/1999/B/199901647.html
And
http://www.ajpm-online.net/article/PIIS0749379798001159/abstract

On yet the other hand, "graduated licensing"
(http://www.ncsl.org/programs/transportation/trgradli.htm ) referred
to in both of the above articles is, in fact, Florida's policy, and
HB 757 may simply be strengthening that policy.

Sponsor: Rep. Maria Lorts Sachs
Capitol Office:
1401 The Capitol
402 South Monroe Street
Tallahassee, FL 32399-1300
Phone: (850) 488-1662
Email via website form:
http://www.myfloridahouse.gov/Sections/Representatives/details.aspx?MemberId=4377&SessionId=54

District Office:
203 NE 1st Avenue
Delray Beach, FL 33444-3714
Phone: (561) 266-6645

Legislative Assistant:
Terry Tallent

District Secretaries:
Casey Kustin

LIFE encourages you to make educated decisions about legislation that
may affect you and to get all the facts necessary to make those
decisions.

Terri
LIFE Inc.
www.learningis4everyone.org