PAGE FOUR
AN ELECTION WARNING FOR HOME SCHOOLERS
By Tim Lambert
Oct. 24, 2008 - THSC PAC has been trying to get home school families involved
in campaigns for Texas House candidates that have been endorsed by THSC PAC
because they support parental rights and home school freedom. The results have
not been encouraging.
We have seen small groups of home school students and families at these events,
while we had almost 80 families at a meeting to discuss cities adopting daytime
curfews for the purpose of enforcing e compulsory attendance laws. The discussion
of the daytime curfews, which have already been adopted by two cities, included
potential violations of home school families' freedom and how to defeat these
measures or reverse the decisions of these city councils.
Unfortunately this scenario is all too familiar. Home school families who believe they
are too busy to be involved in campaigns and don't have time to vote may find their freedom threatened or
actually taken away. Then they must desperately try to find out after the fact how to keep their freedom. I
was asked what the greatest threat to our home school freedom in Texas is. My response was apathy. Too
often we are too busy to be involved until it's too late.
Democratic voters are flush with excitement of the opportunity not only to elect a president and veto-proof
majority in the U.S. Senate and House but also to take control of the Texas House. The Democratic Party
supports the position of the National Education Association (NEA) that home schooling should be regulated
at the same level as public schools. If they take control of the Texas House (which only requires that they
win five seats), they will set the agenda for the coming legislative session.
Let me explain what that could mean. Prior to the Republican takeover of the Texas House, we had pushed
for the passage of a law to require state colleges and universities to treat home school graduates the same as
public high school graduates for college admission. While that seems like a common sense measure to us,
the Democratic chairman of the House Higher Education Committee would not even allow us to have a
hearing on that bill, much less a vote. When Republicans took control in 2002, a new chairman not only
allowed a hearing but also enthusiastically supported the measure, and it became law.
This is indicative of the kind of opposition our legislative agenda of parental rights and home school freedom
could face if Democrats take control of the Texas House. It could be worse. Democratic legislators in other
states have filed bills to require regulation of home schooling, and it could happen in Texas as well. The time
to be proactive in the protection of our freedoms is now!
Early voting is going on now, and voter turnout will make the difference in many of these races. I am
pleading with you not to ignore the potential threat to our freedom! Please go to the THSC PAC Web site,
find out which candidates are supportive of home school freedom, and vote NOW. Get your friends and
family members to vote as well. Please consider taking some time these next two weeks to work for some
of these candidates. Many of these races are very close and will be decided not by money but by volunteers
who walk-door-to door or make phone calls. You could make the difference between victory and defeat for
some of these candidates, and they could make the difference between us working to expand our freedom in
Texas and being on the defensive to defend it.
Please pray for these elections and do what you can to make a difference. It would be very disheartening to
wake up the day after the election and see that only a few votes could have made a difference for our
freedom. A few hundred home school families could turn defeat into victory in campaigns, and those
legislators could make the votes we need next session.
Tim Lambert is president of the Texas Home School Coalition
By Tim Lambert
Oct. 24, 2008 - THSC PAC has been trying to get home school families involved
in campaigns for Texas House candidates that have been endorsed by THSC PAC
because they support parental rights and home school freedom. The results have
not been encouraging.
We have seen small groups of home school students and families at these events,
while we had almost 80 families at a meeting to discuss cities adopting daytime
curfews for the purpose of enforcing e compulsory attendance laws. The discussion
of the daytime curfews, which have already been adopted by two cities, included
potential violations of home school families' freedom and how to defeat these
measures or reverse the decisions of these city councils.
Unfortunately this scenario is all too familiar. Home school families who believe they
are too busy to be involved in campaigns and don't have time to vote may find their freedom threatened or
actually taken away. Then they must desperately try to find out after the fact how to keep their freedom. I
was asked what the greatest threat to our home school freedom in Texas is. My response was apathy. Too
often we are too busy to be involved until it's too late.
Democratic voters are flush with excitement of the opportunity not only to elect a president and veto-proof
majority in the U.S. Senate and House but also to take control of the Texas House. The Democratic Party
supports the position of the National Education Association (NEA) that home schooling should be regulated
at the same level as public schools. If they take control of the Texas House (which only requires that they
win five seats), they will set the agenda for the coming legislative session.
Let me explain what that could mean. Prior to the Republican takeover of the Texas House, we had pushed
for the passage of a law to require state colleges and universities to treat home school graduates the same as
public high school graduates for college admission. While that seems like a common sense measure to us,
the Democratic chairman of the House Higher Education Committee would not even allow us to have a
hearing on that bill, much less a vote. When Republicans took control in 2002, a new chairman not only
allowed a hearing but also enthusiastically supported the measure, and it became law.
This is indicative of the kind of opposition our legislative agenda of parental rights and home school freedom
could face if Democrats take control of the Texas House. It could be worse. Democratic legislators in other
states have filed bills to require regulation of home schooling, and it could happen in Texas as well. The time
to be proactive in the protection of our freedoms is now!
Early voting is going on now, and voter turnout will make the difference in many of these races. I am
pleading with you not to ignore the potential threat to our freedom! Please go to the THSC PAC Web site,
find out which candidates are supportive of home school freedom, and vote NOW. Get your friends and
family members to vote as well. Please consider taking some time these next two weeks to work for some
of these candidates. Many of these races are very close and will be decided not by money but by volunteers
who walk-door-to door or make phone calls. You could make the difference between victory and defeat for
some of these candidates, and they could make the difference between us working to expand our freedom in
Texas and being on the defensive to defend it.
Please pray for these elections and do what you can to make a difference. It would be very disheartening to
wake up the day after the election and see that only a few votes could have made a difference for our
freedom. A few hundred home school families could turn defeat into victory in campaigns, and those
legislators could make the votes we need next session.
Tim Lambert is president of the Texas Home School Coalition
TIM LAMBERT