Homeschool Conventions?

As we get ready to attend, and speak at, a homeschool convention this weekend, I am reminded of how crucial these state and regional conventions are to the movement of home education altogether.

 Having said that, I am all for additional conferences about discipleship/home education and some of the virtual conferences focusing on specific aspects of home education. But the prospect of camaraderie with home educating believers in your own state coupled with the support that you are giving to the very organizations that ensure that you are even ABLE to home educate your children is of utmost importance.

 Have you ever researched the history of home education in your state? Do you even realize that as of only fifty years ago homeschooling was illegal in most states? In my own state of Illinois, it was one of our state legislators who made what seemed to be minor changes that led to Illinois being one of the best (maybe even the best) state in which to home educate in the entire nation! And this is said not to downplay the work of Michael Farris in the 1980s in his battles for parents to home educate their children, but to encourage you to understand how we can ensure permission to continue to do so ad infinitum.

 At the least, many states sponsor or hold Legislative Days at the state Capitol buildings during the yearly session. This gives opportunity for home educators to introduce themselves to their own state legislators and others so that there is a FACE to our efforts. We cannot discount the effect that this will have on how home education is viewed in our states by the very ones who may make or break our ability to legally continue our efforts in our homes. I hope to give my support to many of these days in the future!

 Additionally, your state organization may be supporting lobbyists who are advocates for you and your family in the chaotic world of politics. They may also work hand in hand with family organizations in your state to do this work so that you stay informed and prayerful about the “state of your state” in terms of home education.

 I believe it was about ten years ago in my state when one of our state Senators decided that home educators ought to be registered and created a bill to do so. Let me tell you what happened.

1.  We had lobbyists there from at least one of our family organizations who were right on top of this development and, in tandem with our homeschool organization, got the information to us as quickly as possible.

2.  We were able to mobilize and gather, to the tune of 6000 of us if I remember correctly, to descend peacefully upon our state Capitol on the day that the bill would be discussed.

3.  The bill was “tabled” and has never come up again to this point.

 Do you understand what that means? Are you aware of how fragile your rights are in a culture that at the least is disdainful and in some cases is openly antagonistic towards your efforts? Do we really want to go back to having to choose whether to do something that is against the law?

 Let me make an appeal. Attend the conference in your state this year. Keep attending them to support others who are just starting! Some states have them in different regions. Here is a list of the main organizations with links to their conference website if they have one.

 And if you absolutely cannot make it to your state conference, please give them a healthy donation. Many who are involved with these organizations are volunteers and for the ones who are paid as directors and/or lobbyists, it would behoove us to make sure that we have fully dedicated people for this cause…..and that will be very difficult to continue without monetary support.

 Let’s make it a point to support those who are willing to “stand in the gap” for us!!