King George County

A King George County parent who submitted her NOI under option (iii) received a written response from a district secretary indicating that her curriculum choice did not qualify. She was told that she could either file under option (iii) using a program that is approved by the district or file under option (i) – which requires a high school diploma or higher. Having already withdrawn her children and feeling as though she had been put into a difficult position, the distraught parent contacted HEAV for help.

HEAV confirmed the parent’s compliance with the law and provided the parent with detailed, written feedback including statute and VDOE references. The parent provided HEAV’s feedback to the district and, although the parent followed up several times, she did not receive a response. HEAV then communicated with the supervisor of student and family services, and discussed the law that was changed in 2008.

Upon the written request of the supervisor of student and family services, HEAV’s Director of Government Affairs, Yvonne Bunn, confirmed the accuracy of the information provided in the initial phone discussion through written correspondence with the supervisor. Details regarding the history of the homeschool law and its historical interpretation and implementation were provided. HEAV was pleased to learn that, after two weeks of seeking resolution, the district provided a written acknowledgment to the parent to correct the error.

Parents without a high school diploma or those with a GED may file under option (iii) or option (iv). The law does not require the curriculum to be approved by a public school district under any of the four NOI options. A description of curriculum is limited to a list of subjects the parent plans to teach. (Reference: §22.1-254.1.(A) and §22.1-254.1.(B))