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Please sign our Guestbook (at the bottom of the page). Thanks!
Healthy debate is a staple of American society and we celebrate it! However, in an effort to maintain a good level of civility on this website, comments will be limited to 2 per person (I.P. address). This is not to stifle debate, but rather to just keep it friendly. We reserve the right to delete any entry at any time for any reason. All posts containing inappropriate comments, personal attacks, profanity, etc will be deleted immediately.
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Good luck with all of this home schooling and sports. I believe that all schooling, whether it’s home, public, or private should all have equal rights! Fight for the rights to play sports!
Ginny… the best thing you can do right now is contact the elected officials! We have provided sample letters and all the contact info you need.
I am beginning to hear back from a few of them… and they (those that sponsored this last time) are all very interested in seeing this pass…. but they need to hear from ALL of us!
I hate to hear about families ceasing to homeschool because of this issue. I’m hearing it more and more every year. It’s a choice that we should not be forced to make… but except for a few, it’s where we are right now.
Steve
I WISH so much that my kids could participate in school sports. I homeschooled my son for 9 years and would of through highschool except for the sport issue! I sent him back this year so he could play on the highschool basketball team and golf team. Now I am facing the same situation with my daugher and sports. There is nothing like homeschooling(especially not I can say that that my son is in the public school!!) and their education! Children everywhere should be able to play sports in their local schools and homeschool!
Great website, great cause. One which I will get behind. I have read some of the discussion about this on other forums, and I just don’t understand how supposedly “informed” homeschool people can say NO to something like this. Makes no sense to me.
Keep up the good work and ignore the nay sayers!
Your site is nicely done. Wishing the best for your family.
Not only does your son have amazing talent on the football field, his willingness and ability to so openly share the word of God is awesome. Unfortunately, many kids today do not speak up for the Lord, especially to their peers. I know first hand how frustrating it is for homeschool parents that want their children to have the experience of playing sports, playing in a band, singing in chorus, etc. but are not able to because the public school system will not allow it. The state I live in does not allow homeschool students any priviledges or rights outside of academic acknowlegement. My daughter took all the state exams and passed but returned to public school her senior year because she was not allowed to walk across stage, go to senior prom or any other activities as a homeschool student. Good luck, I hope NC is more open and willing to change than the remaining 27 states that have yet to catch up with non traditional schooling… and Dakota, keep up the good works. God Bless you all.
Facebook is doing something strange again so I’ll post this here! Thank you, Thank you, Thank you to James Gaffney for our website! As stated previously, THIS IS SWEET!!!
Hey! Our new website looks pretty cool!! Thanks to James Gaffney at Independent Studios getting behind our efforts… and for volunteering to host this website, getting this set up and helping me out with the editting!
Thanx my brother!
Be sure to contact James for all your website needs! Support a homeschool dad’s business!
Click the link at the bottom of the page for his business “Independent Studios”!
Hey Guys! Great Website!! Keep up the great work. Neil and I support you and your family and all the Homeschoolers on WNC. Dakota’s story is very well written and powerful which shows what homeschooling is ALL about!!
Love you guys!!!
Cherie… what is posted on this site as far as the Bills are concerned are from last session, and they both died in committee because of time restraints. Sen. Jacumin and the others are planning on introducing NEW Bills this year, which is why we need to contact them NOW. Contacting them now gives us the ability to show them that yes…. there are many homeschoolers who want/need this legislation to pass, and also so we can help them mold these Bills into what we want them to say. It has been pointed out that there are some holes in this legislation, which we agree there are.
And so everyone knows, this legislation would NOT put an end to the Trail Blazers, Saints, or any other homeschool athletic association. The Bills state that this would be for homeschool athletes who do not have another reasonable option offered to them.
And if the homeschool athletic associations are good options for homeschoolers (which many are) then they do not have to worry about competition from public school teams anyway.
It amazing some of the private responses we are receiving from some folks. There are a lot of misunderstandings and assumptions going on. We hope that this website will help clear some of that up. People need to read everything on this website, and investigate this issue for themselves. Many people are assuming this legislation would spell the end of homeschool athletic associations and even homeschooling itself.
We’re fighting for MORE rights! But there is a lot of fear out there. I am thankful our Founding Fathers did not bend to fear of the government.
I just recieved the following from John Snow, is he not aware of the new legislation?
“Thank You ! But I am sorry to say that it never got out of committee. We will try to continue to look at this issue. J Snow”
This is a great site. My only advice is to never, never, never give up. The public schools are supported by the public (you). To deny you the rights you deserve is wrong. Too often people give up their rights through apathy. The problem with that is ~ when you easily give up one right, it will be easier to take away more of your rights. Keep up the great work!
It’s about time more people stand up to the government and demand our rights. Afraid that the government may try to intervene in our freedoms? That’s what they are already doing! We all pay school taxes, regardless of who is doing the actual teaching. We should have access to the sports teams we are paying for.
You definitely have our support!!!!!
I think what you are doing is great! I wish that more people would find appropriate ways to support causes they believe in.
I, for one, feel that being AFRAID of the government is EXACTLY what the government wants. WHY would we be afraid to face them and stand up to them when “THEY” work for “US”??? This is EXACTLY what is happening in our White House today. Too many people are AFRAID to take a stand. Too many people FEAR what will be taken away instead of standing up and saying ENOUGH IS ENOUGH! Our children deserve the same rights as every other child in this state. If we don’t stand up for the rights of our children NOW then how can we possibly teach them to do the same for their children?
My son will probably never be able to play sports of any kind, however, if he were able to, he should be allowed to. Should there be academic eligibility? Absolutely! Just because a child is homeschooled does not give him/her a free ride, however, WHERE he receives this academic eligibility should be entirely the choice of his parents.
Finally, just because you DO NOT want YOUR child to have the rights of all the other children in our state DO NOT DENY MINE or others the opportunity.
My point is that government has been shown historically to grow only larger and more invasive. Once they start asking for more from one segment, it is only a matter of time before the rest of us feel the pinch.
If the only way for your child to get a government-funded college scholarship is via athletics, then you should go the whole government-funded schooling route.
If your child has the talent they can “walk on” to tryouts when they get to college. I know people who have done this.
The Tebows in this world are rare. If this is the way your child should go, then YOU, as the parent, are responsible for that, not a collective group. If God doesn’t make a way for them, then why should I be forced to?
You say that I won’t be forced to do anything. I do not trust government not to make a way to intervene if they can find a way, which they are quite good at doing.
In the research we have done, I have found that in states where this type of bill was passed, no other infringements were made on homeschoolers. Of course, they do need to meet an academic standard – which is not clearly defined, but more defined by the school district. It is understandable that homeschool students should meet academics standards if they are participating in public school sports. This could be in the form of the homeschool parent providing a report card to the coach, or in some other form of communication with the school or coach. I do not think this is unreasonable to ask. In the current form of the bill it says only that students need to meet academic eligibility. I think it is best to be left up to the coach and parent to work that out.
Believe me, I do not want to have any infringements on our homeschool freedoms. However, I do want our children to be able to use the gifts that God has given them athletically. We are aware that there are some homeschool sports opportunities, however, if you have a child who is very gifted in a sport and live in a rural area like we do, the time/money/travelling involved sometimes makes it impossible for them to pursue that sport. Scripture says to train up a child in the way HE should go…. and to me, that means if a child has a gift in a particular area, you should try to help them continue to excel in that area. If sports happen to be that in NC and you are homeschooled, your options are currently very limited.
If this legislation is passed, no one will force anyone to participate if they don’t want to, and the academic eligibility only applies if your child is playing public school sports. However, I feel that we, as homeschoolers, should band together to fight for our equal rights.
I know there are a lot of things to consider here. I have heard from many people over the years about not wanting to expose our children to the things in the public schools and about it being “only a game”, etc. However, for some students it is not “just a game.” Our one son has a real gifting in football. We are praying for him and are hopeful that he can be the next “Tim Tebow” type of witness in the football community. However, if he is not allowed to play then that potential is taken away from him because of the fear of some people. We as homeschoolers feel very strongly about our choice to educate our children. Why would we not want to give our children the choice to play sports?
I, of course, am very cautious and do not want to lose any of our homeschool freedoms so I am prayerfully proceeding in this venture. We cannot be ruled by fear. One of my family members was one of the original people fighting for our rights to homeschool. We feel that pursuing this endeavor is a continuation of that fight?. It does not contradict it or take away from it. We can take nothing for granted but we also cannot be satisfied with the attitude of ?we have the right to homeschool so let?s not mess with it.? We must continue the fight. Homeschoolers are growing in numbers and being recognized in the academic community not only as an acceptable way of educating our children, but as something that colleges are actually seeking. I would appreciate the prayers and support of other homeschoolers.
So impressed with your conviction and standing up for what you believe in! Thankful for people that use their voice to be heard on these important issues!!
HSLDA even states on their website (the link can be found on this site) that there have be NO encroachment on homeschool rights in ANY of the 24 other states that have equal access. None. We are ardent about keeping the rights and freedoms we enjoy, and this movement can be just as successful in NC as it has been in other states. And yes, Florida’s “intervention” into homeschooling was not caused by their “Tebow” laws. In fact it has nothing to do with it.
THank you, thank you, thank you. As a parent of a son who has shown a surprising aptitude in sports, this is an answer to prayer. We simply do not have the means to travel to the nearest homeschool athletic group.
My question for Mrs. Jackson is this — did Florida develop their legislation as a result of a few homeschool athletes, or were their laws already stricter?
I will never support this kind of legislation.
When you chose to homeschool, you chose to opt out of the system. Period. That you are forced to pay taxes to support schools is irrelevant to this issue.
“Give an inch and they will take a mile.”
We have INCREDIBLE freedom in NC to homeschool as we see fit. Just take a look at the government intervention in homeschooling in other states, including the one Tebow came from. Is that the price you are willing to exact from ALL OF US homeschoolers so your child can play in government school sports? Sounds like socialism to me!
Separation of Homeschool and State!
No matter how well-meaning your movement may be, and how benevolent legislators may be at this time, you cannot predict how this kind of opening will lead to the state butting into our personal homeschooling decisions in the future.
Other options are available, including starting your own organization. Even if it is small, it can be fun.
DO NOT jeopardize all of us for the sake of a few.