#Education
Target:
FL House and Senate education committees
Region:
United States of America

Florida has passed a law that will provide a full-time K-8 virtual instruction program beginning in the 2009-10 school year.

In looking at this law, it is a great tool for those parents that would choose to homeschool. This program includes on line teacher help and other assistance for parents. The problem that we see with the new law is that it states you must attend public school for a year in order to qualify. Families that make the personal choice to home school should not be forced to put their child in public school just to turn around and pull them out the next year in order to qualify. Children of parents that would have to leave private school for whatever reason would also not be eligible to use this program the way the law is written.

The issue with this law is not whether or not you are an advocate of homeschool or not, but an issue of equal rights for all children. The state should not be able to tell one set of kids that they can do this program and tell another set of kids that they can not.

See all of the related news articles:
http://www.baynews9.com/content/36/2009/4/24/464685.html

http://www.tampabay.com/news/politics/stateroundup/article994524.ece

http://www.wtxl.tv/global/story.asp?s=10236870

http://www.tampabay.com/news/education/k12/article978259.ece

We, the undersigned, call on the FL representatives to change the portion of House Bill 7067 that states a child must attend public school for one year to qualify for this program.

We feel that this discriminates against children that previously home school or that would have to come out of private school that would want to use this program. Parents of all children should have the option to use this if they so chose.

"Treat all children fair."

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The Change FL on line education law to treat all children fair petition to FL House and Senate education committees was written by Wendy Howard and is in the category Education at GoPetition.