By Linda Murphy

Oklahoma is the only state that has complete freedom for parents to homeschool their children without reporting to the government or being monitored by the government. If Democrat State Representative Amanda Swope is successful in passing her legislation for homeschool in the upcoming session, the state will have a process for controlling homeschool.

Representative Swope held an Interim Study in the Common Education Committee on October 2, 2024, entitled “Wraparound Services for At Home Learning.” Swope started the study by acknowledging she had a bill last session which failed to pass and said it was recommended that she hold this study. She said she works in juvenile justice where she sees truant students. Swope said she and Representative Ronny Johns (R-Ada) want to “make sure that there is actual action taking place (in a homeschool) to educate kids and not just nothing happening.”

David Blatt, Director of Research and Strategic Impact for the Oklahoma Appleseed Center for Law & Justice, focused on truancy (due to unexcused absences); compulsory education laws in Oklahoma and current homeschool over-sight, or lack thereof, that addresses attendance or “access.” He wants more funding for programs to provide services for families that will help them over-come barriers that affect school attendance. Blatt declined to support legislation to control homeschool. He said he was asked to present the findings he provided.

Samantha Fields, Director of Government Relations for the Coalition for Responsible Home Education, whose organization is a national non-profit, began her presentation “Updating Oklahoma Homeschool Policy” by referencing a 67-year-old, 1957 court case on “truancy.” She then referenced a 1973 Attorney General’s opinion that homeschool must be provided “in good faith” and be “equivalent to that provided by the state.” That unfortunate “opinion” from 50 years ago is not law and is not backed by Oklahoma law or the state Constitution, but it has been quoted in efforts to force state oversight, authority, or control into homeschools. This opinion has been used to cause fear in homeschool parents and urge them to believe they must comply with a state determined “equivalency” in curriculum and/or testing or other regulations. Who would decide the definition of good faith?

Fields said Oklahoma is one of only 11 states that do not have a “universal enrollment” policy, which would include homeschool. She said “Oklahoma is very much kind of a wild west when it comes to homeschool policy. It does not have anything…. I am here to point out the ways people who are acting in bad faith, who have no intention of homeschooling their children or being home educators can abuse the current policy landscape.” She proceeded to describe all the abuses and neglect that can occur if a person is isolated from society and/or social networks. She did not provide any proof used to come to these conclusions.

Fields said “In my opinion the Oklahoma Legislature has an obligation to make sure homeschool children are at least enrolled…. And the Legislature has the legal authority to update homeschool policy.” She is not an attorney, and David Blatt had already addressed what is in the state law and the Constitution. Blatt found there is no legal authority for state government involvement in homeschool, which is consistent with opinions from lawyers since statehood. Samantha Fields made so many extreme statements, without documented proof, that I cannot list them here. You can watch the entire study on YouTube: “10-2-24 House Study on Home School Freedom -Wraparound Services at Home Learning” on the YouTube channel - “Oklahoma Education.”

Joe Dorman is the CEO of the Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy (OICA) and is a former State Representative. Dorman made a presentation entitled “Ensuring Children are Educated and Safe in Home School Settings.” He said OICA is approaching this from the “Health and Well-Being” standpoint. He spoke about abuses, sex trafficking and other serious concerns about safety, health, and well-being of some homeschool children. He said the vast majority of home school parents are doing things the right way. He wants to make sure no child “falls through the cracks.” He gave a list of recommendations to Increase Identification of Abuse: Promote the Use of a Homeschooling Hotline; Have Child Welfare (DHS – Department of Human Services) perform home visits; Create or Tap into a Database of kids who have dropped out of school and have not signed up for another school; An annual assessment of what was studied (curriculum) in the home in the last 12 months; and a standard form used statewide by schools for parents to sign when they withdraw children for homeschool. Dorman said “If we could find a way to isolate the probably 1% of bad faith actors from the 99% of good in the homeschool, we wouldn’t even have this conversation. We would already know who the bad people are.”

Melissa Coats, a homeschool mom, said she wants a working relationship with the public school. She said “I understand that to be able to do that you do have to have some regulations. You do have to have some rules and laws set in place to make that work and make it safe.” Melissa said that she does not have a problem with most of the recommendations that have been made in the study. She said, “I like the idea of if you are going to homeschool your kids you should probably pass a background check.”

Representative Amanda Swope’s bill, HB 4130, in the last session failed in Committee and no votes were taken. I hear the same core recommendations in this study as the mandates in last year’s bill. Here is a Summary of the bill’s content: “requiring parents to submit letter of intent when requesting a change in educational instruction; requiring certain information in letter of intent; requiring submission of letter of intent when changing school districts; directing the Department of Human Services to perform background check; directing the Department to maintain system; directing the Department to conduct biannual checks; prohibiting instruction in the home if there is abuse, neglect, or violence; directing the Department to explain reason for denial; and providing an effective date.”

Wraparound Services – Health, Mental Health, and Vaccines – “Wraparound Services for At Home Learning” was the title of Representative Swope’s study. These “Wraparound Services” include services in the State Department of Mental Health which provides programs through the Muti-Tiered Service System (MTSS). You can find that exact wording on their website to learn more about it. I wrote about the MTSS state law in the July 2021 edition of the Oklahoma Constitution: “Parents Beware Mental Health Testing and Training for All.” The author of the MTSS bill said the data-driven model would be used “to identify students at risk for negative academic or even non-academic outcomes.” This multi-tiered system is being implemented in public schools. It is fully implemented only in Tulsa Public Schools according to the report, presenter David Blatt referenced. You can download a free copy at www.OKappleseed.org – click on projects and open “Truancy and Chronic Absenteeism in Oklahoma.”

A press release from the Coalition for Responsible Home Education demonstrates one of their goals is to make sure all children, including home schooled children, are vaccinated. The title speaks for itself “School Health Requirements’ Homeschooling Loophole – For Immediate Release: Group warns that vaccine exemptions for homeschooled children lead to troubling results.”

Swope’s legislation, if made law, would give the state legal authority to intervene in homeschool families. Right now… legislators and many citizens are calling for a Department of Human Services (DHS) investigation due to significant numbers of serious allegations about harm they have caused. Commissioner Allie Friesen said “the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services desperately needs change. From where I stand, our patient care has not been a priority in many, many, many years.” So, these State Agencies, which would administer the mandates for a Homeschool law are themselves in need of investigation. Folks …. I don’t know about you, but I hope we have enough legislators who will apply common sense and leave these ideas on the table in the committee.

Linda Murphy was Oklahoma Governor Keating’s Education Advisor, Deputy Commissioner of Labor for Workforce Education and Training, Administrator of the Eastern Oklahoma Department of Labor, Member of the State Job Training Coordinating Council, and the Governor’s School-to-Work Council. She was a candidate for State Superintendent of Public Instruction in 1994, 1998 and 2018. Murphy was appointed by Governor Keating as Secretary of Education but was denied confirmation by the majority Democrat Education Committee, following her 49.5% statewide vote in 1994. She also served on the Governor’s Commission on the Status of Women. More recently, she has served as chairman of the Oklahoma Republican Party’s Committee on Education. She is chairman of the OK Educators Network. You may contact Linda at: lindalearn1@yahoo.com