The first compulsory attendance laws in America were introduced by Horace Mann in Massachusetts in 1852. This created a shift from what I consider to be true “public schools,” which were open to the public, but controlled by parents in local communities, to “government schools,” which we have had ever since. Today’s schools are funded by the government, regulated, and controlled by the government, and all of the standards are set and enforced by government dictates. By 1900, the U.S. government had an almost complete monopoly on education in our country, as virtually every state in the union had adopted compulsory school laws. If your child did not show up at these schools, you could be prosecuted as truant under these laws.

While most people were compliant and went along with the new government monopoly created by Mann, religious Catholics began looking for a way to give their students a religious education, rather than the “non-sectarian” version offered by the new government model. In 1925, in a U.S. Supreme Court case called, Pierce v. Society of Sisters, Catholics gained legal permission to opt-out of compulsory attendance laws and create their own parochial schools. In this landmark decision, the SCOTUS declared that a child is “no mere creature of the state,” and recognized that parents have a compelling interest in the education and upbringing of their own children.

In 1972, another pivotal case, Wisconsin v. Yoder, opened the door for the Amish to opt-out their children from government schools and form their own Amish schools. This enabled them to hire their own teachers and choose their own (religious) curriculum. In the 1970s, there was an explosion of Christian schools being started by Protestants.

Brave pastors in places like Kansas and Nebraska had begun using the classrooms in their church buildings not merely for religious instruction on Sunday, but to teach subjects like Math, Science and History on Monday through Friday as well. Not knowing they were in violation of Mann’s compulsory attendance laws, many of these pastors found themselves handcuffed and arrested while the doors of the church buildings were chained and padlocked. Thankfully, legal organizations like the Rutherford Institute and Christian Law Association began representing these church schools and winning in court. Publishing houses like ACE School of Tomorrow, Bob Jones Press and A BEKA started creating K-12 curriculum for the Christian school classroom and a new movement was underway.

On the heels of the Christian school movement came the modern-day homeschooling movement which began in 1983 when Homeschool Legal Defense Association (HSLDA) was formed as well as about twenty-six state homeschooling organizations, many of whom created their own homeschooling conferences.

The primary reason all these efforts were made from 1925 through today was to create an alternative system of schooling and education that was not controlled and regulated by the state or federal government. The way the courts have always seen these scenarios is that they are totally separate from, and free from control by, the government because they are privately funded.

With Shekels Come Shackles

There has been a massive push on the part of many conservatives in recent years to create legislation that would enable tax-dollars to “follow the student.” There are many variations of this: ESAs, vouchers, virtual charter schools, and many other public school / private school / homeschool hybrids. The mentality behind this, on the part of some conservatives is, “We pay our taxes, but we aren’t getting any benefit from our tax dollars. We have to pay to educate everyone else’s children, and we should be entitled to get some of our tax money back for the education of our children, even if we choose to send them to a private school or homeschool them.”

This sounds good on paper, but many liberty-minded skeptics of this plan have warned that whatever the government funds it controls. There is no free lunch. If the government pays for the schooling, they can dictate policy regarding how it gets used. Many school choice advocates have derided such views as being mere conspiracy theories and even referred to such theories as being akin to Chicken Little falsely telling his friends “The sky is falling,” when everything was just fine.

Because most states have not yet adopted voucher systems or other such school choice options that fund private schools and homeschools (in fact many state constitutions strictly forbid it), we don’t have a lot of test cases to look at and prove definitively whether such predictions are accurate.

Alberta, Canada and Private School Vouchers

One case we have observed in recent years regarding this matter took place in Alberta, Canada in 2016 where the Canadian government ordered that all private schools in the province that accepted government funds would need to become LGBTQ-complaint (including curriculum compliance and transgender bathroom accommodations) in all their school policies. It turns out almost all private schools DID indeed receive such funds and were susceptible to this order. In Alberta, there is not a separate homeschool exemption (you either homeschool through a private school or directly through the government), so all homeschoolers become impacted by this mandate as well.

Cases like this eventually find their way to courts where judges decide on the constitutionality of such cases, but it demonstrates the intent of government officials to bring private schools (and any homeschooling families connected to them) under their control through the use of tax dollars.

New York’s Hasidic Schools

In New York, there is a system of schools called “yeshivas.” They are institutions for the religious training of Jewish youth. In America, these schools for elementary-age students are called cheder, yeshiva ketana for post bar-mitzvah students and yeshiva gedola for high school students. These schools focus on teach the Talmud (Jewish religious writings) and the Torah (Old Testament scriptures). The intent of these schools is to pass on their religious heritage to the next generation.

For many years these schools operated as a class of private schools separate from the government system. In recent years, however, huge amounts of state funds became available to them, and they readily accepted them. In fact, over the course of four years, these schools received over one billion dollars in government money. This has now opened an investigation of their entire system by the New York government. This situation is likely to go through the courts for some time and it will be interesting to see the outcome.

Standardized Testing

The first regulation that came attached to receiving government funds was a requirement for standardized testing. This did not go well for these schools. Because government schools operate on pre-set government standards, their schools teach to the test. This was one of the objections many had to Common Core standards. The government can create a set of standards that they alone use, encourage employers to reject any students who do not utilize those standards, and penalize students who do not comply with the monopoly.

Regulating the Curriculum

Because the scope and intent of these Hasidic schools are different than the government schools, their students failed to perform well on the standardized tests. This has led to a push from the state government to regulate the curriculum. As a homeschooling parent myself, we often choose to focus on content that is not taught in most government schools (things like Logic, Constitutional Law, the Christian basis for our founding documents, free market enterprise (rather than socialism), ethics, Bible, and many other topics ignored by the government system). My boys are not taught that they can be menstruating persons and my girls are not encouraged to become transgender. We have a completely different approach to education than students in government schools. Our methods and content are radically different. So, it would not surprise me that students taught with different materials, that have a different intent, would fail to do well on a standardized test created by a government school.

I’d love to see government school students tested on their knowledge of the topics taught in our homeschool. Most would completely fail. It is true that most teenagers who attend government schools can list off the top ten rappers and best-selling video games, but few could list ten American presidents or explain the uniqueness of our representative constitutional republic (in fact, most are wrongly taught in government schools that we live in a democracy).

So, which set of standards should be used? The one by the government, or the ones set by private religious schools and homeschools? Most people, even conservatives, would say we should all abide by government standards. I would suggest that is because most Americans have attended government schools and have been brainwashed into believing the government should control education rather than parents. This really is the pivotal issue. No one wants to see students who do not excel academically, but ultimately, that is really a subjective issue. If you believe in forced universal conformity to a set of beliefs and ideologies pushed by the government, you will believe that all students should be forced to learn the same things, in the same way, at the same time as all other children.

If you believe in liberty, you will allow for diversity and freedom for students to be taught in unique ways, even if you personally don’t approve of the methods or content used for those students. I personally, as a Christian, do not agree with Wiccan ideology. But I fully support the right of parents to teach those values to their children if that is their sincere belief. Do I want my tax dollars going to teach Wicca? No, I do not. And most people don’t want their tax dollars going to support Muslim instruction or Christian instruction if they don’t hold to those views. So, what is the solution? All private education should remain truly private. If you pay for your own child’s education out of your own pocket, you can teach whatever you like to your child (or pay a teacher to do so). I can disagree with you, but I’m not going to be a fascist and force you to teach my beliefs, values, and ideologies. I’m not like the government. I believe parents are the best educators for their own children and should decide what they learn and when.

The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is slated to hear a case regarding the use of tax-payer dollars for private education. It seems that the more conservative judges will support this concept. Interestingly, although it grows the tax burden and increases government reach not merely over public school, but extends it over private schools as well, Republicans and Christians are two groups that almost always support this kind of legislation / ruling.

Espinoza vs. Montana Department of Revenue centers on the Montana Supreme Court’s decision to end a state program giving students scholarship aid to attend private schools. The court based its decision on the state’s constitutional provision barring government money from going to religious schools. The SCOTUS is scheduled to hear the case in the Summer of 2020.

President Donald Trump and Education Secretary, Betsy DeVos, have both previously expressed their desire to see not only state funds, but federal funds allocated for private school and homeschooling programs. While there is a desire on the part of many conservative taxpayers to see their tax money going to something that would support their own beliefs and values, I suggest we should step back for a moment and look before we leap at the offer of government money.

Here are some questions we should ask:

1.) Is it Constitutional?

Whatever is not explicitly directed as a role of the federal government in the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights is the responsibility of the individual states. The U.S. Constitution does not make a provision for the federal government to guide, oversee, and direct education. That means that any such decisions need to be handled on a state level. The U.S. Department of Education should be closed. We don’t need it because it isn’t Constitutional.

2.) Is it Biblical?

As Christians, the Bible gives us guidelines of what God expects from the civil government, the church and the family.

The Civil Government

First Peter 2 and Romans 13 tell us that God gave the power of the sword to the civil government for them to punish those who do what is evil. They are to protect the God-given rights of the individual, the family, the church, etc. They are not supposed to be involved in raising children. That is an assignment given exclusively to families.

The Church

While it surprises many who have never specifically studied the issue, there are no verses in the New Testament where the church is commanded by God to teach children as a segmented group. Children in the early church learned with the rest of the congregation but were never separated out by age or grade for specific instruction. That model is one that churches imported far later (often from the government school system).

The Family

Fathers and mothers (and in a couple of places grandparents) are the only people commanded by God in the Bible to teach and instruct children. Parents (with the help and instruction of Biblically qualified church elders and a loving Christian community) are the ones who are ultimately responsible for the education of their own children. While it is not forbidden in Scripture for children to be taught by people other than their parents (in a supplementary role), God does not allow parents to neglect their own duties in this matter.

3.) Is it Wise?

Even if we can get government funding for private schools or homeschools, do we truly want that? If there is one lesson that should be abundantly clear from history it is that whatever the government funds, it controls. If you want your children to receive an education that is free from leftist bias and propaganda, you are going to need to pay for that education yourself. I have written elsewhere about why I believe tax-funding for private education (especially religious instruction) has strings and should be avoided.

4.) It Makes Government Bigger

Spending tax dollars for private education not only compromises its own integrity and autonomy, it also increases the already crushing tax burden on working class Americans. Increasing government spending for private schools only makes government bigger, a concept that most conservatives claim to be against. We need to remember that the government doesn’t have any money. It only has what it takes by force from its citizens. Do we really want our private schools being funded by money taken by force from our neighbors who did not choose to give it? Is that the goal of privatized education?

5.) You Must Allow All Religious Schools Equal Access

Many Christians are inconsistent with their application of how tax funds could/should be used for private education. When I ask them if they like the idea of tax dollars being used to fund religious instruction in Christian schools, many say they favor it. But when I ask them if they are fine with their tax dollars going to fund Islamic instruction in a Muslim school, they suddenly get quiet, or oppose the idea outright. Fair is fair when it comes to public monies. You can’t encourage the idea of atheists paying for religious instruction for your children in your private schools, and then complain about a Wiccan school, or a transgender private school receiving the same funds.

Keep Private Education Truly Private

As conservatives, we should be looking for ways to decrease taxation for all schooling, and support tax incentives for businesses and individuals that allow them to keep their own money in their own pockets. Private education is successful because the private sector is always more efficient than the government. Given the opportunity (and adequate capital), privatized schools will always out-perform (on the average) government-controlled schools. There are many changes that can be made to the tax law that help encourage private education (privately funded savings accounts, tax deductions, etc.) that leave money in the pockets of the citizens/businesses, rather than take them away, and apportion some of it back with strings attached. I’d encourage you to consider strongly that what looks like a carrot dangling at the end of a rope may end up being a noose that kills the freedom of private schools to completely control what they teach.

IFI is hosting our annual Worldview Conference on March 7th at the Village Church of Barrington. This year’s conference is titled “Thinking Biblically About Our Corrosive Culture” and features Dr. Michael Brown and Dr. Rob Gagnon. For more information, please click HERE for a flyer or click the button below to register for the conference.

Illinois’ General Assembly failed to help failing students in the state’s worst schools on Wednesday afternoon.

Landmark school choice legislation was rejected by lawmakers from both parties Wednesday. This common sense bill would have allowed approximately 22,000 children from Chicago’s worst-performing and most-overcrowded elementary schools to transfer to private or parochial schools. Each student would have received approximately $3,700 in state money to specifically cover tuition costs at those schools. (Chicago public schools currently spend more than $11,000 per student.)

IFI’s Laurie Higgins says the vote came up short in the House despite a bipartisan effort. “It fell just 12 votes short of passing [and] we needed 60 votes. The vote was 48 in favor — 26 of whom were Republicans, 22 of whom were Democrats — and my understanding is that it was just vigorous pressure by the teachers unions that led to the defeat of this bill.”

But this does not mark the end of the road for this bill. State Rep. Kevin Joyce (D-Chicago), the House sponsor of SB 2494, requested that the bill be put on postponed consideration, which means that the bill can still come up for another vote in the House during this session — possibly after the November election. This would require some work on our part to sway 12 House members to support the bill allowing Chicago public school students in the lowest 10 percent failing schools to opt out to nearby private schools.

As expected, the Illinois General Assembly adjourned May 7 without passing a meaningful budget for the state for the upcoming fiscal year. It is likely that our sate lawmakers will return to Springfield to complete that task before a May 31 constitutional deadline.

Because SB 2494 was put on postponed consideration, no official House roll call is available. However, an “unofficial” tally was recorded by CapitolFax.com as the vote was taken on the House floor:

The Illinois General Assembly is winding up its work for this Spring session, and will try to adjourn for the summer by Friday of this week. That means that things will be moving very quickly this week. We will try to keep you posted on the issues that concern you and your family. (As a result, you may get multiple email alerts this week.)

One of those bills that we are working hard to see passed is a common sense bill that would create school choice for parents of grade school children in Chicago’s worst 49 schools. SB 2494 would allow families enrolled in one of these schools to receive a school voucher to cover qualified education expenses at a non-government school.

This bill has already passed the Illinois State Senate (33-20-3) and the Illinois House Executive Committee (10-1). We must get 60 votes to pass it on the House floor before it can be sent to Gov. Patrick Quinn for his signature to become law.

But as you can imagine, government bureaucrats, the Chicago Teacher’s Unions and the ACLU are fighting tooth-and-nail to keep their power over public schools despite what is in the best interest of the children! We can succeed if we have an outpouring of grassroots support. Our state lawmakers will have no choice but to pass the Illinois School Choice law.

We are making thousands of robo-calls to Illinois voters in an attempt to elicit a strong grassroots response. You can help by sending an email, fax or by making a phone call to your state representative today!

Take ACTION:  Contact your state representative to ask him/her to support or even co-sponsor this common sense piece of legislation. You can always call IFI’s office for your elected official’s name and phone number – 708-781-9328.

Read more:

Controversial Chicago School Voucher Bill to Be Voted on This Week
by Tera Williams, FOX Chicago News

Chicago – Four Republicans, one Democrat. Party lines aside, they all prayed together Sunday over a controversial bill that goes up for a vote this week.

School choice is such an important issue to Suburban Republican Legislators, Ed Sullivan, Mike Connelly, Dan Cronin, Matt Murphy and Dan Duffy, they spent their Sunday on Chicago’s Southside at the House of Hope. That’s the church of Democratic Senator, Reverend James Meeks. Meeks calls the school voucher bill his brainchild.

I think it’s going to be the best thing for failing schools that we have thought of in a long time.” Meeks, who was originally against the voucher program said he changed his mind on the issue last year. “I was an advocate of more school funding but it seems as if that is slow in coming.”

Here’s how the proposed voucher program would work. Kindergarten through 8th grade students in Chicago’s most overcrowded schools and poorest neighborhoods could get up to $3,700.00 in vouchers to help pay for tuition at their parents choice of a participating private or parochial school. The bill would apply to about 22,000 students.

If passed, the program would start next year. There is bi-partisan support for the bill, but there are major concerns too.

27th District Senator Matt Murphy says, “People are concerned that it will siphon money away from the current school system. Again, if the school system is producing 6 out of 100 college grads, that’s not good enough.”

The ACLU and the Chicago Teacher’s Union are against the bill. The CTU calls it unconstitutional and warns the program could rack up $100 million in new state costs, cause schools to close and teachers to lose their jobs.

CPS is staying neutral on the bill. It already passed the Senate and the House Executive Committee. The full House will vote on it this week, most likely on Tuesday. It’s expected to be very close.