Greetings to the editor,
We are writing to comment on an article we recently found on
your site. It is entitled "Legislative Challenges" and was written by
Howard Richman:
http://www.pahomeschoolers.com/pafree.htm
While we agree with Howard's opposition to lowering the Compulsary
School Age from 8 to 6, we have determined through contacts with the
House and Senate Education Committees that HB1924 is a non-issue for
this session. We would like to request that you add a link to the updated
information regarding this bill:
http://members.truevine.net/pilgrimspage%40truevine.net/HB1924_Nov1.htm
In addition, while we support as broad a range of homeschooling
options as possible, the fact that Howard has referred to cyber charter
schools as "public home education" is most unfortunate. Cyber schools
are definitely public schools operated at home,
not home schools
governed by home school law (Act 169). This terminology has badly confused
the strict separation of home education programs from the public schools
in the minds of many legislators and families, which in turn leads people
to think home schools should be governed by public school code. This attitude
truly threatens the future of homeschooling freedom in PA.
Finally, Howard has simply refused to acknowledge that his diploma
business is
not threatened by the proposed improvements to PA
law, known as HB2560.
HSLDA issued a memo on May 2 countering Howard's misinformation.
You can read this memo here:
http://www.hslda.org/hs/state/PA/200205020.asp
Yet more than a month later, the prime sponsor of the bill, Rep.
Sam Rohrer (a Christian homeschooling father), had to publicly reprimand
Howard at the end of a hearing held by the House Education Committee
for repeating this misinformation. You can read the transcript of Rep.
Rohrer's comments at:
http://members.truevine.net/pilgrimspage%40truevine.net/Nailor_Rohrer_closing_020613.htm
We hope that you will prayerfully reconsider hosting remarks from
Howard Richman on your site without also soliciting opinions from the
many homeschool leaders across the state who disagree. Otherwise, you
will be leading many homeschoolers astray, regardless of how well-intentioned
you may be. Unless you remove the link to this article or post our rebuttal
with it, we will no longer recommend your site to the hundreds of homeschool
contacts we have in PA.
--
David and Rachel Jones
Webmasters for the HB 2560 Web Site and Lobby List
Proverbs 21:1
1 Timothy 2:1-2