No More Public School
(Page 6 of 7)
July/August 1972
By H. Bennett
• choosing a learning model, and establishing a curriculum for your child
• establishing the legality of your school
• conducting the business of the school
• relating to other parents, children, agencies, business types, and comrades.
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The frequency, complexity, and depth of your involvement with the above ranges from about zero if you just pull your kid out of school, then do nothing, to maybe overwhelming if you try to establish a large free school right away. * * *
If while you are doing all this planning you also have your child out of public school, remember that you will have to schedule time to spend with him.
* * *
Seek your own natural limits. Don't take on more responsibility than you can handle. Let other people share the load, or cut back your conception until it fits your natural limits.
GETTING STARTED
You'll need to familiarize yourself with the Compulsory Education Laws and with that section of your state's Education Code which deals with private education. The relationship between these two areas of law is relatively simple, explained as follows:
Although the Compulsory Education Laws generally state that all children between the ages of six and sixteen must attend a full-time day school, they do not specify which school the child must attend. You can satisfy the requirements of the law by having your child in a private school which meets the standards specified for private schools in the State Education Code.
So your first step will be to go to the nearest big city library and study exactly what your State Education Code says. The State code books are available to the public, and can be gotten at the reference desk of the bigger libraries. Ask to see the Education Codes, then study the index, tracing down anything that has "private school" or "private education" as part of its title. If you prefer, write to your State Department of Education and ask them to tell you what you must do to establish an approved private school. Do your letter like this:
State Department of Education
Capitol City, Your State
Gentlemen:
A group of parents and educators, of which I am one, are in the process of exploring the possibilities of setting up a private school for children between the ages of six and sixteen.
Could you send us, or direct us to, sections of the State Education Code which contain laws or guidelines pertaining to the establishment and maintenance of private schools? We would also like to receive whatever forms and documents we must fill out to be duly registered with you as an approved institution. We thank you for your assistance.
Yours truly,
(your signature)
My experience with the bureaucracy has been that if you are specific and talk their language, you'll get what you need. I sent three letters to the same office before I got everything that I needed from the State Department of Education in California. The first letter got me a reply directing me to the State Education Code. The second letter got me a printed summary of the private education section of the state code. The third letter got me duplicates of what they'd already sent me plus a set of the forms and documents necessary for registering our school with them. Conclusion? Use the third letter, which is the one printed above. Copy it verbatum, changing only names and addresses as necessary. The letter should be neatly typed. Call the Superintendent of Schools in your town to get the proper address and titles in your state.
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