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I got an interesting letter from our county school superintendent today...


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I probably would actually answer it, though I get the mistrust. I could even be wrong for answering it but personally don't see any harm in responding. Of course he has a vested interest in his own district---which is fine, since all kids deserve a great education regardless of the method used. I don't see anything wrong with them trying to advertise themselves better or anything else... I am suspicious by nature with some things, but this wouldn't bother me. Of course my area is very "meh" about education period and I am in an easy state for homeschooling.

 

They can market and advertise all the want, and I won't change my mind. LIke it or not the public school system is here to stay and is very much needed by many families, and not all public or private schools are horrible evil messes. If they want to improve themselves or improve their advertising, so be it. If it is a real concern, call him up and chat him up. Ask him why he wants to know. I'd be very curious but not hostile.

Edited by thefragile7393
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Oh, please. However is a letter that is cautious in tone and makes clear a response is optional invading one's territory, even "in a sense?" Hostility? Nakia is under no obligation, real or implied, to send a response, so what is the big deal? You know what? I want our public schools to succeed. My kids aren't going to be living in a vacuum, but as part if a larger community which is comprised primarily of publicly schooled individuals. If you live in an area hostile (real or perceived) to homeschoolers, by all means, keep your cards close to your chest, but the idea we have to run to HSLDA if one of "them" even dares to contact us is paranoid at worst and silly at best. I have seen letters that misrepresent the obligations of homeschoolers wrt information gathering, etc. This does not fall into that category.

:iagree::iagree:

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No need for snark, ridicule, or judgement. He sounds genuine, if not a bit illiterate, and seems sincere in wanting to learn about the homeschooling community. No need to be mean; why not show the homeschooling world at it's best? Let him know why you home school and that there is nothing a school district could do to intrigue or entice you to participate. Help him to gain a better knowledge of your local home school climate and how groups are organized, etc. Be a representative of what is good about homeschooling and the parents involved.

 

All public schools (especially her in California) are suffering financially and desire to increase enrollments. With that scenario, they are willing to make concessions to niche populations to gain their enrollment. It is not an insidious ploy, just a desire for information to help make decisions regarding program. His tone sounds as if he's dealt with some ugliness from the home school community. It doesn't have to continue in that vein. This is a great time to be the bigger person and respond with grace.

 

Choose to act, not react.

 

:iagree:

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It does sound fairly harmless (though I'd snark about needing a proofreader too), but I'd probably ignore it, simply on principle. I feel that home educators should be as separate from the school district as possible.

 

:iagree: Although, now that I think about it, the government is usually not harmless.

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I disagree. This letter is no different from a phishing scam. If they want to know why people homeschool, they should get a computer and google it. I would send the letter to HSLDA and let them address it. I get hostile because the public schools treat us with hostility. The minute they have your info, they WILL use it against you. I don't trust them and I never will.

 

I feel so lucky to live in a very nice place with a friendly school. I'm sorry you've had bad experiences. However, I hope you are never on a jury I appear before as a defendant. :)

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It would bother me since I know I'd be on the defensive. I am a former resident of NC, and I am not a fan of the extralegal requests DNPE has made to meet your children and look at your curriculum. It drives me crazy that people comply with that. So while this letter may not be hostile, I'd rather not get involved with providing information that goes above and beyond the law.

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I think it sounds as nice and harmless as can be. It's obviously just a bit of marketing and/or market research, which is nice initiative on the part of a educational bureaucrat who doesn't get a sales commission per student enrolled!

 

This is how I would have taken it. They know they are in competition with private schools and home schools. They may want to know if there are any factors that relate particularly to your community that influence educational choices.

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Here's what it says:

 

Dear Home School,

 

We hope you are having a good summer. We begin by saying that the last thing we want to do is offend anyone who home schools. While we are committed public school people, there are days when we would love to have fewer regulations, more local control and more freedom in serving students.

 

This letter was mailed to all known home schools in the county. We suspect the data base is a little old and some of you may no longer be home schooling due to graduation of your children or the return of your children to public school. We apologize up front if you received this letter inadvertently or if you do not want to be contacted by the public schools. If either applies, please disregard this letter.

 

The purpose of this letter is two-fold. First, we want to gather a little information about the reasons you chose to home school. That will help do a better job of serving the children of the community in the future. While public schools have a number of regulatory limitations, there may be some things we can do to serve children who might otherwise home school. If you are willing to provide us with this information, please fax (xxx-xxxx) or email (...@...) the form on the back of this letter. If you email, please put "home school" in the subject line. We need three pieces of information to process your feedback (1) the name of your home school (2) if you school is still in operation and (3) the reason(s) you chose to home school.

 

Second, I want to let you know how successful our public schools are in Haywood County. Many home school families plan to return to public school during the middle school or high school years and some never plan to attend public school. If public school is in your future plans, our publics schools are some of the best in the state. While most of this is covered in the media, we want you to know that all of our schools rank well in the state. Last year several schools were the top 6% of similar schools in the state. Our SAT scores are 32 points above the national average and 56 points above the NC average. We strongly believe that students should be well rounded in order to be successful in college and/or work. That is why we have over 100 student clubs, organizations, and teams.

 

We hope this letter finds you well. Any feedback that you choose to provide wold be appreciated. We want to wish you all the best as you move into the new school year.

 

Sincerely,

(Name)

 

 

 

 

So...I have a few thoughts. Oh, here are our NC requirements. My first snarky comment is that he needed a proofreader. Also, I want to point out that if you being something with "I don't want to offend you, but..." then you are probably going to offend, lol. I wonder if the schools feel threatened. I know a lot of people who have pulled their kids out of the public schools over the last year or so. Another part of me thinks this is harmless. Or is it possible he has good intentions? Should I ignore it? Should I encourage people to ignore it? Should I respond?

 

Thoughts???

 

I received a letter just like the one above a few years ago in NC. (I'm a native Carolinian, recently moved to the Midwest.) I ignored it. It is of no value to you. By law they don't need anything from you.

 

I'd ignore it and move on.

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Here's what it says:

 

Dear Home School,

 

We hope you are having a good summer. We begin by saying that the last thing we want to do is offend anyone who home schools. While we are committed public school people, there are days when we would love to have fewer regulations, more local control and more freedom in serving students.

 

They should love this EVERY day!

 

This letter was mailed to all known home schools in the county. We suspect the data base is a little old and some of you may no longer be home schooling due to graduation of your children or the return of your children to public school. We apologize up front if you received this letter inadvertently or if you do not want to be contacted by the public schools. If either applies, please disregard this letter.

 

The purpose of this letter is two-fold. First, we want to gather a little information about the reasons you chose to home school. That will help do a better job of serving the children of the community in the future.

 

How about now?

 

While public schools have a number of regulatory limitations, there may be some things we can do to serve children who might otherwise home school.

 

We're telling you that we suck and we'd like to keep the money in the school system if you don't mind.

 

If you are willing to provide us with this information, please fax (xxx-xxxx) or email (...@...) the form on the back of this letter. If you email, please put "home school" in the subject line. We need three pieces of information to process your feedback (1) the name of your home school (2) if you school is still in operation and (3) the reason(s) you chose to home school.

 

Second, I want to let you know how successful our public schools are in Haywood County. Many home school families plan to return to public school during the middle school or high school years

 

How would he know this if the database is old?

 

and some never plan to attend public school. If public school is in your future plans, our publics schools are some of the best in the state. While most of this is covered in the media, we want you to know that all of our schools rank well in the state. Last year several schools were the top 6% of similar schools in the state. Our SAT scores are 32 points above the national average and 56 points above the NC average. We strongly believe that students should be well rounded in order to be successful in college and/or work. That is why we have over 100 student clubs, organizations, and teams.

 

Sorry, but clubs and teams does not make a well rounded student.

 

We hope this letter finds you well. Any feedback that you choose to provide wold be appreciated. We want to wish you all the best as you move into the new school year.

 

Sincerely,

(Name)

 

 

 

 

So...I have a few thoughts. Oh, here are our NC requirements. My first snarky comment is that he needed a proofreader. Also, I want to point out that if you being something with "I don't want to offend you, but..." then you are probably going to offend, lol. I wonder if the schools feel threatened. I know a lot of people who have pulled their kids out of the public schools over the last year or so. Another part of me thinks this is harmless. Or is it possible he has good intentions? Should I ignore it? Should I encourage people to ignore it? Should I respond?

 

Thoughts???

 

:)

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I'm replying without reading through the whole thread; however, a similiar letter came from another NC district a few years ago. HSLDA advises against overcomplying with the law because it essentially gives legislators and PS administrators an inroad for demanding additional information from all.

 

From my understanding, it's sorta like a fence line. If your fence is on your neighbors property line, and it goes uncontested for several years, the neighbor is viewed as having deeded the land to you - defacto. When enough people give information that isn't mandated, the weight shifts and now is seen as "missing information" from those who were never required to give it anyway. A case can be made for policy/legal change.

 

Giving additional personal information, reporting test scores, or reasons why you homeschool adds leverage to the side that will always want more, more, and more information. Then what happens when the information is obtained? It must be evaluated, and in order to evaluate a standard must be applied. Who makes the standard? Presto - you have lost some rights.

 

I believe the motivation of your district is exactly as stated/implied. They want to know why parents don't choose the public system. However, complying with their request has ramifications unrelated to their motives.

 

Toss it and advise all the homeschoolers in your area to do the same.

Edited by bookfiend
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I'm replying without reading through the whole thread; however, a similiar letter came from another NC district a few years ago. HSLDA advises against overcomplying with the law because it essentially gives legislators and PS administrators an inroad for demanding additional information from all.

 

 

 

And HSLDA's schtick is to create paranoia.

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I have to wonder if the situation with the K12 charter school that was supposed to open this fall (but now isn't) could be fueling this. I know that there was a lot coverage in the N&O about how the charter school would funnel money away from local counties if current homeschoolers decided to sign up for the K12 charter school instead of homeschooling independently. If I were a public school administrator looking at how many homeschoolers there were in my county, then I would be worried. It only takes a few homeschoolers switching to the K12 charter to seriously affect budgeting.

 

 

I think it is largely this, and I wouldn't be surprised to see a lot of this kind of thing in the next couple of years. To give context for those outside of NC, we are totally separate from the public school system here---no funding, no tax credits, no participating in any classes, no participating in any extracurriculars. We also have pretty easy regulations, from my perspective---register, yearly test (don't have to submit the results unless specifically asked), attendance and immunization records, parent/teacher must have at least a GED or high school diploma. We are not under the oversight of the public schools in any way. Even the department dealing with us at the state level is separate from the one dealing with public schools (we are put together with private schools).

 

Last year, the legislature lifted the cap on charter schools (from a former cap of 100 schools in the state), so a flood of applications for new charters has been submitted. Charters are considered their own systems, so they get the funding for the students who choose to switch (I don't know if that's the case in other states). We also have no virtual charter or separate virtual public school options in NC, yet. After the cap was lifted, k12 has been trying to come in as a statewide virtual charter, as referenced above, which would pull students (and funding) from potentially all school districts. There was a legislative struggle, with the NC School Boards Association soliciting school boards to join them in filing against the virtual charter opening (89 of the 115 boards joined).

 

IMO, the various school boards have now seen the writing on the wall about virtual schools and other alternatives, and they are scrambling for ways to keep funding within their districts. The Iredell-Statesville schools are certainly recruiting: http://triangle.news14.com/content/school_news/660010/iredell-statesville-school-system-offers-virtual-courses-to-home-schoolers and http://nche.com/resources/virtual_public_school. There is a NC Virtual Public School set up to offer online courses to public school students in NC, but homeschoolers can only access them by paying $500-$900 plus books per course (and are prohibited from taking core courses, as well as limited to one course at a time). Unlike a virtual charter, the NCVPS is supposed to offer access to courses for students in schools that don't offer some of the middle/high school courses available, so it isn't a stand-alone school. Statesville/Iredell is now looking to set up their own, in-district, virtual offering using this NCVPS to, IMO, forestall their students wanting to switch to a future statewide virtual charter. I think we will see more and more NC schools doing something like this.

 

Personally, I don't see additional options for education a threat to homeschooling, just an expansion of choices for families. The reality is that there is no free lunch, so in order to get services from the state, it's not surprising that one would come further under the control of that state. I think that letter is an example of market research and advertising preparatory to developing some additional ways to entice students to stay with or return to your district's public schools.

Edited by KarenNC
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I find the letter that you received to be disingenuous. NC law does not allow homeschoolers to participate in PS programs. This means that they are looking for ways to draw homeschoolers back into PS, not looking for ways to support or provide programs to homeschoolers.

 

:iagree: I would ignore it. They can find the information they are requesting by visiting the NCDNPE website. NCHE will give them reasons why people in NC are homeschooling.

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Very poorly written, very good intentions.

 

I would provide feedback. Funny, I almost offered something similar in my notice of intent I sent off today. Here I am, a former teacher, homeschooling my kids. I think the district could benefit from hearing and learning about homeschooling. Most people in the system know noting about homeschooling.

 

The letter truly sounds sincere and respectful. I think they are just trying to understand homeschooling and how they can be a better resource for families. Think about what they could do, knowing that SO many of us leave because of special education. When the information is truly desired, it will get analyzed, and maybe change will slowly start to happen.

 

Good for your district!

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Why should the HSLDA get a copy of the letter? Is it threatening? Is it attmepting to deceive? Is it part of an attempt to deny homeschoolers their rights? Honestly, the HSLDA is not a nanny. We are not children. If a person doesn't want to respond they can throw out the letter. If a person objects to the letter being sent they can call up the sender themselves and complain.

 

The letter is not hostile at all. It's just a request for some information and an offering of other information.

 

I know others don't care for HSLDA, and see them in a different light, but I don't and that's what I would do. Like I said before, if you've never lived in a hostile school district, you probably won't get it. I live in a district that has made it us against them and that's why I would react in this way.

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Red line edit it and mail it back. "This is why we homeschool, you idiot."

 

I probably wouldn't bother giving him the information he asked, and honestly would probably just file it in the recycle bin and not think about it anymore.

 

I'm sure the nasty approach would be quite effective and leave a great impression of homeschoolers. :tongue_smilie:

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I'm sure the nasty approach would be quite effective and leave a great impression of homeschoolers. :tongue_smilie:

 

 

Exactly. I cannot for the life of me understand what that would accomplish, other than perpetuating stereotypes of homeschoolers as paranoid and insular.

 

Also, they have no responsibility to determine if your school is open or not, that responsibility lies with DNPE. I would suspect that they are going to try to target individuals based on their responses. Gah.

 

See, I read this entirely differently. I assumed:

 

1. They are looking for current information about homeschoolers in their district. Opinions from parents who are no longer homeschooling aren't helpful or relevant to their questions.

 

2. They need to know who is responding so they can tally results in a meaningful way. If everyone answers anonymously, how would they know how many people really responded? Would it mean anything if 10 families sent 10 letters each? How about one family sending 100?

 

3. In case they want do any kind of follow-up, they want to be able to strike from their list the families who either aren't homeschooling any longer or who chose not to respond.

 

It doesn't seem nefarious to me. I don't really get the paranoia or hostility?

 

(And, frankly, I'd be a whole lot more upset to find myself on a mailing list from the HSLDA than from my local public school.)

Edited by Jenny in Florida
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I've gotten similar ones in the past and I just trash them.

 

But then I'm dealing with a school system who had my child arrested for a manifestation of his disability, reported me to DSS for medical neglect (despite the kids having a pediatrician, a neuropsych, a cognitive therapist, private OT, Speech, etc.

 

So they aren't an option and they know why we left. I don't see any need to go over it with them again. They seem to think IEP's and IDEA don't apply to them. And ADA - Yes, a friend of mine had a principal tell her they weren't required to follow that law. :tongue_smilie:

 

I might feel differently if I thought the inquiry was genuine. But I suspect it has to do with the lifting of the charter cap. The public schools have fought it tooth and nail.

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I probably wouldn't answer it, but I don't see it as offensive or intrusive.

 

There are a growing number of homeschoolers who never pictured themselves homeschooling and still don't really want to homeschool. Many of these parents lack the desire or confidence to educate their children, but don't want them in the schools for whatever reason. I have a friend who uses all computer-based curriculum because she doesn't want to teach. I have another friend a few counties south of here whose daughter will be attending "school" 2 days a week and will work on assignments independently at home on the other days. Why? Because she doesn't feel she has the time to really teach her and she still wants her "me" time. We probably all know homeschoolers like this.

 

I think those are the types of homeschoolers the districts are trying to woo back into the public schools. If the districts want those students back (and the funding that comes with them), what better way to get them back than to ask what it is they would like to see in the public schools? Truthfully, I think the districts will be hard pressed to offer the things these parents really need/want, but I can't blame them for trying to figure it out.

 

Again though, I wouldn't be responding because it would just be 1 more thing for me to do.

 

:) Beachy

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I'd be inclined to send a reply anonymously to the superintendent stating that I appreciate the freedoms in our country that allow us options in education. I would state that although I recognize the need for public schools in the community, they cannot possibly meet the needs of every student and family. To have the choice of home education, private or public school is a basic right that we prefer to exercise. I'm not sure if I would go beyond that or not, but I believe this would be my main point.

 

Blessings,

Lucinda

 

Perfect!

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I am always wary of anyone collecting gratuitous data on myself or my family. However, his intentions may be what he says they are. If that's the case, I also find it interesting. Is he really surveying homeschoolers to see how he can improve his county schools? If so, for what reason? .

 

I don't give anything to anyone, unless I have to do so. I would not put anything in writing. Anything you say can and will be used against you.

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I would respond. It seems as if they made a genuine effort and really tried to be non offensive, and if they want to know why I homeschool, I would be more than happy to explain it to them.

 

I don't get the hostility.

 

:iagree:

 

Honestly, homeschooling is a threat to their funding from a business point of view. Maybe he is seeing how the district can better serve families who choose homeschool due to bad experiences in the district.

 

I would give the information and thank him for his interest.

 

It helps the district and homeschoolers if we all play nice. We can gain a lot from eachother.

 

(Homeschool mama of seven and Dance Team coach at the local high school were my children will play sports :) )

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I would respond. While you are not "legally" required to provide any information, I would say anything rude or openly hostile is just... well, rude and openly hostile.

 

I think that "playing nice" could mean more opportunities for kids down the road, and a better environment for both public school kids and more opportunities for homeschool kids!

 

I would seriously think about replying.

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Well what a lively discussion, lol.

 

I haven't decided whether to respond or not. I did post a very general, "Did you get the letter and what do you think?" on my county's homeschool page (I haven't been an official member in years but still know a lot of them) and got a good berating for my time from someone I've never met. Ugh.

 

I guess I'm going to ignore it.

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Hmmm... "We'd love for you to have a Homeschool Program like Colorado's"? I hear that Colorado has elective classes for homeschoolers that you can take and still retain homeschool status. There are some REALLY cool things that you could get if you could use your tax $$$..... Hmmm :)

:iagree: I am often jealous of the support other states appear to give home schools vrs. ours. MT is pretty hands-off from what I can see. A little hand-holding would be nice (standardized testing at the end of the year) just for my sanity...

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I think those are the types of homeschoolers the districts are trying to woo back into the public schools. If the districts want those students back (and the funding that comes with them), what better way to get them back than to ask what it is they would like to see in the public schools? Truthfully, I think the districts will be hard pressed to offer the things these parents really need/want, but I can't blame them for trying to figure it out.

 

Again though, I wouldn't be responding because it would just be 1 more thing for me to do.

 

:) Beachy

 

:iagree:

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:iagree: I am often jealous of the support other states appear to give home schools vrs. ours. MT is pretty hands-off from what I can see. A little hand-holding would be nice (standardized testing at the end of the year) just for my sanity...

 

 

NC is also hands-off. The yearly standardized testing is a legal requirement, but we have to arrange and pay for it ourselves, and we aren't required to turn in the results, just hold onto them for a specified period of time in case we are audited. I am also often a bit jealous of those in states who have access to extracurriculars, part-time enrollment, virtual charters, tax credits or funding.

 

You could easily order a standardized test from an online supplier and give it on your own. If you have a bachelor's, you can administer the Iowa Test of Basic Skills. If you don't, then you should still be able to do the California Achievement Test. I don't know about requirements for the Stanford, the PASS or any others. I tested for two years before my daughter was old enough to be legally required to be tested. We did the Woodcock-Johnson (which requires a professional tester) in K and 1st for our own peace of mind, since she wasn't 7 (our compulsory education age) until she started 2nd. No one other than us has ever looked at the scores. The prices for ordering the tests are not terribly high and vary depending on the test.

Edited by KarenNC
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I disagree. This letter is no different from a phishing scam. If they want to know why people homeschool, they should get a computer and google it. I would send the letter to HSLDA and let them address it. I get hostile because the public schools treat us with hostility. The minute they have your info, they WILL use it against you. I don't trust them and I never will.

Exactly. It is merely data mining.

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I'm replying without reading through the whole thread; however, a similiar letter came from another NC district a few years ago. HSLDA advises against overcomplying with the law because it essentially gives legislators and PS administrators an inroad for demanding additional information from all.

 

From my understanding, it's sorta like a fence line. If your fence is on your neighbors property line, and it goes uncontested for several years, the neighbor is viewed as having deeded the land to you - defacto. When enough people give information that isn't mandated, the weight shifts and now is seen as "missing information" from those who were never required to give it anyway. A case can be made for policy/legal change.

 

Giving additional personal information, reporting test scores, or reasons why you homeschool adds leverage to the side that will always want more, more, and more information. Then what happens when the information is obtained? It must be evaluated, and in order to evaluate a standard must be applied. Who makes the standard? Presto - you have lost some rights.

 

I believe the motivation of your district is exactly as stated/implied. They want to know why parents don't choose the public system. However, complying with their request has ramifications unrelated to their motives.

 

Toss it and advise all the homeschoolers in your area to do the same.

 

Totally.

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