Kentucky Homeschoolers Declaration of Intent Forms
If you live in Kentucky, you will likely receive the Declaration of Intent Letter from your school board this week. This is the information posted by the Home School Legal Defense Association:
This was posted on HSLDA Facebook page yesterday………..From the desk of TJ Schmidt, HSLDA Staff Attorney providing member services for Kentucky.
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We have received many calls from homeschool families across Kentucky who have begun receiving the “Declaration of Intent” forms that usually come out around this time of year. As always, a family could fill them out and return them declining the services offered. However, a homeschool family is not legally required to fill these forms out. The public school district is required to send them to all homeschooles as they are considered a private school under Kentucky law. Since the public school district must document that they have sent the information to every school, they like to receive information back from everyone, whether or not they will not be participating. Again, Kentucky homeschool programs are not legally required to respond to the forms.
What is new this year is that the Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) has provided some incorrect information to all of the public school districts. The KDE also included this information in the forms they have revised for this year. The incorrect information is that “Home schools, by their nature, are considered non-profit.” While most of us are homeschooling without any expectation of seeing a financial profit within our homeschool program (unless it is in the lives and character of our children), this information is not technically accurate. In order to be considered non profit under Kentucky law you must file as an appropriate organization with the Kentucky Secretary of State. Private homeschool programs that are made up of parents teaching their children at home do not need to file articles of incorporation or do anything to attempt to establish a non profit entity.
HSLDA is contacting the KDE about the incorrect information in their letter and forms. We hope they will immediately take action to correct the misunderstanding they have created across the state. We expect to put this information and the resolution up on our website in the coming days. In the meantime, Kentucky parents don't need to do anything different than they have done in the past. They are free to complete or not complete the “Declaration of Participation” forms they receive from their local school district.
Although I understand the benefits of homeschooling I didn’t do it as I know I wouldn’t have had the patience. I think that all homeschoolers should file the “declaration of intent” so that everyone knows what’s going on and no child falls between the cracks. As not all families abide by the principles of a proper education I think stringent monitoring should be placed on all homeschools.
Some states do require testing each year just as in mainstream schools. However, children get promoted and passed over even in that setting. Statistics show that homeschoolers score well above national averages on all national tests.
I did not have the commitment to home school. Kudos to anyone who does!