Worth having HSLDA?

[LUV2EDU]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sleepymommy

I would not join for many of the same reasons others who posted wouldn't.

 

They lobby about more than just homeschooling and most of their stances do not sit well with me.

 

They represent a certain type of homeschooler and not all the wide varieties of homeschoolers in America.

 

They require a curriculum of sort to be listed with them on file- this is clearly not a pro-homeschooling thing to do. The less that we as homeschoolers have to provide to organizations about what we do at home then the less likely the gov't will ever mandate that we as homeschoolers must do xyz b/c this % of homeschoolers do xyz.

 

 

 

This is not true. I am a member and I never had to list any of my curriculum.

 

I have to agree with you. This is the kind of thing HSLDA fights against when the schools or school districts require this. I don't know about other states, but Texas schools can't ask to review your curriculum.

[Retired]

We are members

We have never been ask about our curriculum.

 

I happen to be a conservative Christian and do not have a problem with their lobby on other issues (since I agree with them;))

 

but

 

I can see someone who is not a political conservative having a real problems with the HSLDA

 

They probably should change their name to the The Conservative Parent Defense Association.

 

I see the HSLDA as a lobby for conservative parenting more than a home school advocacy group

[Mom In Missouri]

They pick-and-choose only the cases which advance their own agendum.)

 

 

This is not been my experience with HSLDA--nor is it how every situation is handled in every state. You must read and choose for yourself, taking the variable with your state and the oversight it has in your educational process.

 

 

 

How do you view your need for HSLDA and your family?

[rowan25]

This thread has been most enlightening. Thanks so much. We've made our decision.

[sleepymommy]

I'm sorry not correctly wording my thoughts in my previous post.

 

Dobela- thank you for posting the member agreement form.

 

That is the area in which *I* feel HSLDA encroaches a bit on how one should be homeschooling. It also bothered me that it states the the HSLDA has the right to revoke membership if information has been misrepresented. To me that is a gray area, b/c if you are an unschooler (which I'm not) and you agree to the term that you have a clearly organized program of instruction, they could revoke your membership.

 

I clearly misworded (I know not a word) when I said curriculum. But again, the less we have to report what we do at home and how much of our day is spent teaching, etc. the better.

 

Also, I don't like politics getting mixed in with homeschooling. Whether or not the gay couple up the street is married or not has no effect on our curriculum at home.

 

There are other political groups that can be joined to lobby for or against those matters.

 

I love the idea of having a legal entity to defend the rights of homeschoolers, but it would have to be solely about and for all homeschoolers.

[Orthodox6]

How do you view your need for HSLDA and your family?

 

Are you asking me? (O-6), or is this a general-readership question? (I can't tell.)

 

If you are asking me, we perceive that we have no need for HSLDA or for any other similar agency. Texas is one of the "safe states" for homeschoolers, although harrassment occurs in scattered pockets of this large state. The Metroplex (DFW) is crawling with homeschoolers. I've not yet heard of any harrassment cases in this area. The last big problem was the "Arlington case", which settled the question for Texas before we even moved back here.

 

We would not even move to a "difficult state" for homeschooling, if anything could prevent it.

[Mom In Missouri]

I was asking the original poster. I'm sure if I lived in TX, I wouldn't consider a membership essential either. :001_smile:

[Renee in NC]

Just from interest, not to stage combat, would you still wish to be a member if you understood that HSLDA membership is NOT "insurance" ? They are not obligated to represent you; they choose their cases. No matter how severe your circumstances may be, HSLDA calls all the shots.

 

This is true. I used to be a member for the "insurance" but when I called them about an issue I was having, I got ZERO help. I can read the law myself (all they did was read the law out loud over the phone to me.)

[ThatCyndiGirl]

Don't you all see that when HSLDA or any other organization pushes so hard on issues such as spanking, homosexuality, UNRotC, etc, that it protects homeschooling? Once you let the govt tell you how to run one part of your family life, it's only a short time before they tell you that you must send your children to a sub-par ps. To protect us as homeschool families, they must protect the rights of families/parents to make their own choices.

 

But, telling people how to run their sex lives is similar to telling them how to educate their children.

 

We can't have it both ways: "have sex only with the people we approve of, but give us freedoms when it comes to the education of our children."

[rowan25]

I was asking the original poster. I'm sure if I lived in TX, I wouldn't consider a membership essential either. :001_smile:

I don't really feel it's necessary. :001_smile:

[WishboneDawn]

I've often thought that even if we were unschoolers, we would have no trouble signing that statement as it is vague enough to include all styles.

 

Wait a minute. It's not a matter where you can get in through a loophole. It's a matter of the HSLDA choosing who they will fight for so whether you think it's vague enough is beside the point. If they think you don't fit their criteria and don't measure up to what they require they won't represent you regardless of whether you've been paying your dues for a decade.

 

I think it would be dangerous for an unschooler to assume, with the wording they use, that the HSLDA would ever represent them.

[WishboneDawn]

That is the area in which *I* feel HSLDA encroaches a bit on how one should be homeschooling. It also bothered me that it states the the HSLDA has the right to revoke membership if information has been misrepresented. To me that is a gray area, b/c if you are an unschooler (which I'm not) and you agree to the term that you have a clearly organized program of instruction, they could revoke your membership.

 

That's really a good point to consider. You are NOT buying insurance. You're dues guarantee nothing. It's not as if you can sort of fudge the membership requirements and get them to accept you as a member and therefore somehow be bound to represent you. They have every right to look at your unschooling journal and decide that's not proper record keeping or to look at your lapbooking and unit studies and decide that doesn't meet their standards for instruction.

 

Those lines are there to protect them and can only be defined by them.

[WishboneDawn]

But don't you see that they are protecting your choice to spank/not spank, be gay/straight, teach Christianity/Catholicism/Hinduism/Islam? They protect your right to choose.

 

A group that specifically excludes gays from membership and fights against gay marriage is not a group that protects the choice of people to "be" gay.

 

Look, what the HSLDA fights for isn't, in itself, the issue. It's the disconnect between what they claim they are there for and what they actually do. It's unethical, plain and simple.

[Word Nerd]

I don't think HSLDA should be thought of as insurance because it ISN'T.

 

From the application:

HSLDA is not an insurance company and cannot guarantee legal representation in every situation.

[MOM24WONDERS]

There has always been a lot of "hype" about HSLDA, but I think they are an awesome organization. We've been involved with them for years, have met and sat under (in conferences) the founder and many of the other members of their team.

 

Our children have been involved in Generation Joshua for the past two years and it's AMAZING. They will help anyone, anytime with any problem related to homeschooling.

 

It's so unfortunate when lies are spread about such a good, Christian organization that fights for our right to home educate our children.

 

And in my opinion, for ten bucks a month it's MORE than worth it. I love HSLDA!

 

FWIW, we live in Mississippi - THE easiest state to homeschool in in America. Our state actually has a 'Homeschooling Week' each year, that was signed into law by our governor. We are SUPER homeschooling friendly. However, I'll never be without a membership. I've just seen what kind of awesome people they are and that they truly fight for our rights. I think shame on all the people who criticize them. It's so easy for some to be judgemental, yet so hard for them to think that an organization could actually be GOOD and protecting our rights.

Edited July 17, 2009 by MOM24WONDERS

[rowan25]

There has always been a lot of "hype" about HSLDA, but I think they are an awesome organization. We've been involved with them for years, have met and sat under (in conferences) the founder and many of the other members of their team.

 

Our children have been involved in Generation Joshua for the past two years and it's AMAZING. They will help anyone, anytime with any problem related to homeschooling.

 

It's so unfortunate when lies are spread about such a good, Christian organization that fights for our right to home educate our children.

 

And in my opinion, for ten bucks a month it's MORE than worth it. I love HSLDA!

 

FWIW, we live in Mississippi - THE easiest state to homeschool in in America. Our state actually has a 'Homeschooling Week' each year, that was signed into law by our governor. We are SUPER homeschooling friendly. However, I'll never be without a membership. I've just seen what kind of awesome people they are and that they truly fight for our rights. I think shame on all the people who criticize them. It's so easy for some to be judgemental, yet so hard for them to think that an organization could actually be GOOD and protecting our rights.

I don't doubt that they are good people or have others best interests at heart. I just wish there was more focus on homeschooling and less politics. I disagree that some of the issues that they support have anything to do with protecting our rights to homeschool.

 

For the record, I am Christian (though, I'm sure not by some standards) and I am a conservative (again, not by some standards). :tongue_smilie: Basically I just want everybody to keep their nose out of all of my business. That goes for governments and organizations. :lol:

[Dirtroad]

Our State is a "safe state" and very little call for HSLDA... HOWEVER.. many families chose to be members to support the families who fight to survive in the HOSTILE states! It is a way of uniting together and helping each other through such cases.

 

I think things like the gay issue are smoke screens and just things to get the "dust up". It is a Christian organization. Very few come down on the side of homesexual groups.... most Christian organizations still define marriage as between a man & a woman... and support the traditional family structure (father, mother, sister, brother, etc).

[stripe]

I have speculated that HSLDA opposes divorce, as part of their outlook, and that is their real reason for staying out of such cases.

They won't cover families where the parents aren't married, from what I understand from their website. Are single-parent homeschoolers (including widow(er)s) allowed to join?

 

Also, notice this:

Young children are provided adequate adult supervision whenever parents are out of the home.

http://www.hslda.org/join/qualifications.asp

(Apparently that means under 13.)

Edited July 17, 2009 by stripe

[Dobela]

They won't cover families where the parents aren't married, from what I understand from their website. Are single-parent homeschoolers (including widow(er)s) allowed to join?

 

Also, notice this:

Young children are provided adequate adult supervision whenever parents are out of the home.

http://www.hslda.org/join/qualifications.asp

(Apparently that means under 13.)

Yes, they do allow single parents (by whatever means) join.

[Word Nerd]

 

It's so unfortunate when lies are spread about such a good, Christian organization that fights for our right to home educate our children.

 

 

Lies such as...?

[ciyates]

We live in the one of the most homeschool friendly states in the union and I belong. Here is my personal experience with them.

 

We have a family that is in dire financial need. They are basically living in an RV on a large piece of property while they attempt to build a home. They have been in this position for a while. The community has tried to help and unfortunately things have not worked due to many unfortunate circumstances. They homeschool. Someone decided that because they were in such shabby living conditions that there is no way the child could be getting an adequate education. They called CPS. If you have dealt with them in this area you know how horrible it can be. They called HSLDA for support. Even though the family was not a member they still sent support. They even went so far as to have a lawyer come out to their home. They may pick and chose which cases they take (I am not sure of this) but when our friends needed them where there for them.

[Tenaj]

Wait a minute. It's not a matter where you can get in through a loophole. It's a matter of the HSLDA choosing who they will fight for so whether you think it's vague enough is beside the point. If they think you don't fit their criteria and don't measure up to what they require they won't represent you regardless of whether you've been paying your dues for a decade.

 

I think it would be dangerous for an unschooler to assume, with the wording they use, that the HSLDA would ever represent them.

 

It comes down to the fact that if they are going to be able to defend you against an accusation involving neglect in a homeschool environment, they have to have something to work with. If you keep no records of anykind, they have nothing to work with. Even an unschooler should keep a minimum of records (maybe just a calendar) to show that they are making an effort to educate their children. How in the world could any lawyer defend you with no effort on your part to document against the charges?

[LUV2EDU]

They won't cover families where the parents aren't married, from what I understand from their website. Are single-parent homeschoolers (including widow(er)s) allowed to join?

 

Also, notice this:

Young children are provided adequate adult supervision whenever parents are out of the home.

http://www.hslda.org/join/qualifications.asp

(Apparently that means under 13.)

 

Their application ask for your name in the form of Mr., Mrs., Miss, and Ms. Since Miss indicates a person who has never been married, it is safe to say that they do accept unmarried applicants. However, if you are divorced they may want assurance that the other parent is not against your children being homeschooled.

 

 

 

This is the reason they don't represent members in custody cases.

 

 

Quote:

 

7. Why doesn’t HSLDA represent the parent seeking to homeschool in divorce cases?

 

HSLDA’s primary mission is to protect the legal right of parents to homeschool from agents of the state. In truancy and educational neglect cases it is the state versus the parents. In divorce cases, however, it is father versus mother. As a general rule, homeschooling only becomes an issue in a divorce case when the parents cannot agree with each other about the children’s education.

Because they cannot agree, the judge must decide what’s best for the children based on the evidence before him.

Also, divorce cases involve many issues besides education and are often protracted and bitter. And they are very costly. After careful consideration, we long ago determined that we simply do not have the resources to represent parents in divorce cases. Additionally, on many occasions, the breakup of the marriage comes after the parents joined HSLDA as husband and wife. Because both parents either are or have been HSLDA members we cannot represent an interest contrary to either spouse, even though one may be trying to keep the other from homeschooling.

We do provide a free information packet containing briefs and expert witness referrals and we will consult with the member’s attorney where there is no conflict of interest. One exception to our basic rule is if a judge rules that homeschooling is illegal, which would have consequences statewide and not just for the parties to the divorce case. In those cases we will defend the legality of home education in that state.

http://www.hslda.org/join/protect.asp?m=do

[pqr]

A group that specifically excludes gays from membership and fights against gay marriage is not a group that protects the choice of people to "be" gay.

 

Look, what the HSLDA fights for isn't, in itself, the issue. It's the disconnect between what they claim they are there for and what they actually do. It's unethical, plain and simple.

 

 

Well they seem to be fairly open on this issue and their logic.

 

From their web page:

 

 

Why HSLDA is Fighting Against Same-Sex Marriage

 

Parental rights are a recognized constitutional right despite the fact that they are not explicitly stated in the Constitution. It is a fair question to ask: if they are implied rights rather than explicit rights, what is the source of parental rights?

 

Here is what the Supreme Court said in 2000 in the case of Troxel v. Granville:

"Our jurisprudence historically has reflected Western civilization concepts of the family as a unit with broad parental authority over minor children. Our cases have consistently followed that course."

Thus, you can see that parental rights are based on "western civilization concepts of the family."

 

 

When those concepts are no longer the legal definition of the family in this nation, then the foundation upon which parental rights are based is completely removed.

 

In a world which widely embraces the notions of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, it is fanciful to believe that any other theory will arise to replace the traditions of western civilization as a basis for parental rights.

Therefore, HSLDA will continue to fight against same-sex marriage. Same-sex marriage attacks the traditions of the family in western civilization. This is an attack on parental rights. This is a battle the homeschooling movement cannot afford to lose.

 

 

.

[WishboneDawn]

It comes down to the fact that if they are going to be able to defend you against an accusation involving neglect in a homeschool environment, they have to have something to work with. If you keep no records of anykind, they have nothing to work with. Even an unschooler should keep a minimum of records (maybe just a calendar) to show that they are making an effort to educate their children. How in the world could any lawyer defend you with no effort on your part to document against the charges?

 

I'm not arguing that. That's why it would be dangerous for an unschooler to assume they could somehow get in through a loophole and have the HSLDA bound to represent them.