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The History of Homeschooling in Virginia

- By Yvonne Bunn, director of homeschool support. Published in the Spring 2008 The Virginia Home Educator. 

Celebrating blessings, remembering history, renewing vision, and honoring the Lord

Parents charged with child abuse and educational neglect; families forced to move from one county to another; a mother arrested for criminal truancy in front of her homeschooled son.... A little more than two decades ago these were the hardships faced by some parents who decided to homeschool.

Homeschooling wasn't an easy choice. Much of what we take for granted today was fought for by brave parents who put their beliefs—and their families—on the line. Homeschool laws and many school-board and DOE policies were hammered out one at a time by persistent parents who refused to give up their rights to teach their children. These were parents whose convictions were so strong they were willing to stand up to truant officers who knocked at their door, and to police officers who wanted to search their homes without warrants. They faced social-service agents who were ready to question or strip search their children, and judges who denied their constitutional rights by imposing fines and threatening jail time. The battle over who could teach children was fought for years, one family at a time, before school boards and before hostile judges in the courts. Again and again homeschooling families faced opposition in state legislatures. But armed with deeply held convictions, these parents stood their ground, and won the battle!

Homeschooling's Early Development
By the 1970s, many families had become disillusioned with government education. The Christian school movement began to take root even though it was strongly opposed by the government. It offered parents a return to basic education using traditional methods and biblical principles. During the late 1970s and early 1980s, parents from all over the nation began responding—one at a time—to a still small voice in their hearts. They began to understand they were the ones responsible for teaching and training their children.

What a radical thought! This was the generation that had been taught, "Let the experts do it. The professionals know the answers; they've been trained." From child-rearing, to sex education, to teaching, parents looked to the experts for solutions, and many let the experts take over their job. But during this unsettling time, questions were stirring in the hearts of many parents. Who do the children belong to—the parents or the state? Who is responsible for their education? Who decides what educational philosophy to use? Who should teach moral values and who decides on the basis of those values?

As parents considered these weighty questions, many decided to take on the task of educating their children themselves. Home education wasn't a "movement" spear-headed by any one organization, or a grass-roots response to a dynamic academic leader. It was a spark fanned by the Holy Spirit in the hearts of parents all across our nation. God would use home education and biblical training to strengthen families and bring them closer to Him. "And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse." Malachi 4:6 (KJV). This conviction was growing family by family, and in a few short years, would grow into a movement that would make a lasting impact on our society.

[Picture: Yvonne Bunn homeschooling back in the '80s.]

Homeschool Pioneers
John Holt, a disillusioned teacher of the 1960s, first introduced homeschooling to the general public with the publication of several controversial books. How Children Fail and Teach Your Own focused on the failure of government education and the ways children could learn outside traditional classrooms. Holt believed children learned naturally if given the opportunity. This idea became known as "unschooling." Holt's Growing Without Schooling, founded in 1977, was the nation's first home-education newsletter.

During the same time, educational professionals Dr. Raymond and Dorothy Moore became two of the strongest proponents of home education. Following years of research on early childhood education, they concluded children learn better if formal education is delayed until a child was eight to 12 years old. After the publication of Better Late Than Early in 1975 and Home Grown Kids in 1981, the Moores became popular homeschool advocates and consultants. Dr. Moore's homeschool message was the first to be broadcast by the major media. The Moores' stories of homeschool success, backed by solid academic studies, prepared the way for a ground-swell of parents who were eager to venture into the uncharted waters of home education.

At the same time the Moores' were expounding the benefits of homeschooling, Gregg Harris became a strong proponent of Christian homeschooling. During the 1980s and 1990s, Harris had a profound influence on Christian parents with his nationwide Christian Life Workshops. His seminars, books, and teaching strengthened the convictions of Christian parents. At the same time, he gave parents practical ideas on how to homeschool and how to strengthen their families.

During these early years of homeschooling, the legal landscape was dreary. Parents who were trying to obey God had to fight the government at every turn. Seeing the need to protect and defend the rights of these parents, attorneys Michael Farris and Michael Smith founded Home School Legal Defense Association in 1983. Court cases mounted as states charged homeschooling parents with violating compulsory attendance laws. As homeschooling grew, HSLDA became a powerful legal force in defending the rights of homeschooling parents across the U.S.

Because of the sacrifices made by committed homeschooling parents, the tireless work of newly formed support organizations, and the legal persistence of HSLDA, the tide began to turn. The first homeschool laws were passed in Arizona and Mississippi in 1982, Wisconsin and Montana in 1983, followed by Georgia, Louisiana, Rhode Island, and Virginia in 1984. By 2005, 37 states had specific homeschool statutes and all remaining states had laws that allowed home education under private school statutes or other laws.

[Picture: Rick Boyer homeschooling his children back in the early '80s.]

Homeschooling Grows in Virginia
As early as 1979, the Virginia General Assembly ordered a joint study on homeschooling. The results were not favorable and the opposition was powerful—the Virginia School Board Association, the Virginia Association of School Superintendents, and the Virginia Education Association (teachers' union) adamantly opposed home education. In 1981, two public hearing were held, each with more than 200 homeschooling families attending. The second hearing resulted in three failed proposals: one from the education subcommittee staff; a second from the State Superintendent of Public Instruction; and a third from the Rutherford Institute. The following year another proposed homeschool law failed to pass the General Assembly Education Committee.

During the same year, Dick and Peggy Snider of Richmond were denied a religious exemption. At that time, religious exemption was the only way parents could legally teach their children if they were not certified teachers. Although their request was denied, they remained steadfast and appealed their case all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. During that time, Dr. Mary Kay Clark and her husband moved with their family from Ohio to Virginia in order to be near one of their seven sons who was attending college in Virginia. A few years before, Dr. Clark had founded the Ohio state homeschool organization. She contacted the Snider's and asked if anyone was helping them. When they replied they were on their own because there was no organization in Virginia to help, Dr. Clark determined she would begin one.

In 1983, Dr. Clark set up a card table outside a General Assembly committee room during a public hearing on home education. She gathered names and addresses from supporters and homeschooling parents who wanted to receive a newsletter. She named the group Home Educators Association of Virginia (pronounced H.E.A.V.).

Soon after the organization began, HEAV sent an official letter on behalf of homeschooling parents to all Virginia legislators appealing to them to pass reasonable homeschool legislation. HEAV considered a 1984 proposed bill to be restrictive and unreasonable, and opposed it because other non-public educators, i.e., private schools, had no teacher requirements, no curriculum requirements, and no testing requirements. The first paragraph of the letter stated:

"Are you aware that there are court cases pending in the State of Virginia which may serve to jail parents for educating their own children at home? The forthcoming legislation proposed by the Education Subcommittee, if passed, will promote more of this persecution because these proposals discriminate against parents who choose to educate their own children and, understanding their constitutional rights, are determined to continue to do so."

Homeschool Law Passes in 1984
  Their determination paid off. Although this was not the ideal language, a homeschool law finally passed that allowed parents to teach their children at home—legally. At the time the homeschool law passed in 1984, there were an estimated 5,000 or more homeschooling families in Virginia.

Even with the new law, parents were still fearful, and weren't sure how the law would be applied or what officials might do. Some parents would not answer the door during the day, and others never allowed their children to go outside during school hours. One Virginia family had a contingency plan: If officials came to the door during school hours, the children were to run and hide under their beds.

With the passage of the new law, HEAV was busy on several fronts. In the legislature, HEAV representatives talked to senators and delegates about amending the new homeschool law.

[Picture: HEAV President Anne Miller and Governor George Allen at Day at the Capitol 1995.]

HEAV newsletters explained the law to homeschoolers again and again. During the early years, changes in the law and policy were carved from the sacrifices of stalwart families who refused to back down. Parents were questioned before school boards and brought before judges. Legal battles went on for years. Some cases were won; some were lost; and some decisions were appealed and continued for years. Many more families were taken before school boards and before local Juvenile and Domestic Courts to defend their right to educate their children at home. In most cases, the religious beliefs of the parents were not accepted as bona fide, although no evidence was presented in any of the cases that the parents failed to educate their children. One school board denied a religious exemption because "it would set a very dangerous precedent."

We are grateful for brave families such as Dick and Peggy Snider, who ultimately lost their appeal for religious exemption when the U.S. Supreme Court decided not to hear their case, citing there was not enough federal interest. We are grateful for David and Nancy Benner, who won the right for religiously exempt parents to be exempt from the requirements of the homeschool statute. And we are grateful for Terry and Joyce Foreman, whose two-year struggle resulted in a positive decision by Judge Walther Fidler that clarified many aspects of the religious exemption law.

New Subtle Tactics
Gaining the right to homeschool was a long and hard battle, fought by many committed parents. But the fight is not over. We're in the midst of a new battle—a battle for the survival of home education as we know it today. The opposition is very subtle. Those in control of public education have always wanted to draw us back into their system. 

Oversight and control are the big issues, but it ultimately funnels down to money—more money for government education. Free virtual schools and on-line academies that are connected to public schools are the "camel's nose under the tent." One principal remarked, "We only want to help. We want to make homeschooling easier for you!"

The state of Virginia has joined 41 other states in targeting homeschoolers with phone calls and mailings touting the virtues of virtual schools. Watch out! These on-line, government-run schools are one of the fastest growing trends in education. They lure homeschoolers with free counseling, free textbooks, free resources, maybe a free computer, and the free services of a certified teacher to oversee everything! It's promoted as a new curriculum delivery system for the "new homeschooler!" In the comfort of their own homes, students are enrolled in government schools and under government control. Make no mistake: Virtual schools, though meeting at home, are public schools tied to Virginia's SOLs—not independent homeschools.

The Threat of Virtual Schools
  Virtual schools are a serious threat to home education. Why? Students who participate in government controlled virtual schools are full-time public school students and do not come under homeschool laws. Parents are no longer in control of their child's education. They are not able to individualize their curriculum to suit their child's needs, interests, or leaning style. And what concerns us most is parents who take part in virtual schools send the message that homeschoolers don't mind getting the help they need through increased government control. It's logical to think if parents are willing to submit to more controls through virtual schooling, why not carry over these same controls with independent homeschoolers? There are lots of legislators who would agree and attempt to legislate new laws that would give them more oversight over all homeschoolers. Government control over homeschooling is at the heart of the battle.

The National Education Association (NEA teachers' union) has passed a resolution each year since 1984 stating that homeschooling should be allowed only if supervised by a state-certified teacher, using a state-approved curriculum, with state-controlled testing. HEAV believes virtual schools are the government's attempt to bring homeschoolers back under the state's authority.

This is probably the single greatest threat to home education today. It's already in Virginia, and in the technological age we live, it won't easily go away. Our hard-fought freedoms could be lost if parents are unaware of what is lurking behind the offer to "make homeschooling easier." The battle must be won by this generation of homeschoolers—homeschoolers who value their freedom more than they value "free" services.

We have the freedom to homeschool today because of the sacrifices and convictions of those who have gone before us. Let's take courage from their example and fight as they did for our rights as parents to freely homeschool our children.

[Picture: Lobbying at the General Assembly.]