Texas is known as a very pro-homeschooling state.
In fact, many would argue that it’s a state with the least amount of restrictions or regulations of any state in the country.
It’s not uncommon for me to talk to families who have moved to the great state of Texas because of the freedom that homeschoolers have to raise their children as they see fit without the interference of the state.
Why is that the case? Has it always been so?
In the early 1980s, Texas was prosecuting families simply because they chose to homeschool their children. The Attorney General of Texas said that he did not believe that parents were even qualified to raise their children, much less educate them at home.
The state of Texas actually prosecuted over 100 families, and about half of those families lost their cases in local Justice of the Peace Courts because the state argued that homeschooling violated the truancy laws of Texas.
Texas was one of the most difficult states to homeschool in as a result of this environment, and many homeschool families left the state as a result. How did we get from that environment to the one we enjoy today?
In the 1980s, the battle to homeschool was a legal one, and Texas homeschoolers coalesced and sued the state of Texas in what would become a landmark case called Leeper v Arlington ISD. After a victory in the local court, we would spend almost a decade in appeals until the Supreme Court of Texas upheld the lower court decision in 1994.
After that legal victory, homeschoolers in 1995 were told by local school districts that they must present their curriculum for approval to the local school district. THSC would pursue an administrative fix through the Texas Education Agency (TEA) to clarify that homeschoolers were not required to present curriculum or get approval from public school officials.
Later, the Texas Home School Coalition (THSC) representing Texas homeschoolers would work to address discrimination issues from driver education to college admission and Child Protective Services (CPS) through the legislative process, changing the laws to accommodate homeschool families and end discrimination.
In the course of legislative battles, we saw the need to educate legislators and other elected officials on our issues during political campaigns while they were running for office which became a critical element in our defense of homeschooling and parental rights.
In 2010 THSC went to court to defend a homeschool family in Fort Worth in a custody case in which the issue was the dad’s decision to homeschool his daughter. Later we would also represent families in CPS cases as well. We fought this litigation battle in the courts to clarify the law regarding the fundamental rights of parents to raise their children as they saw fit because that is the basis for our right to homeschool our children.
Slowly, over almost four decades of working in political campaigns, lobbying in legislative efforts, challenging agency policies administratively and litigation in the courts, the fundamental rights of parents and homeschoolers have become clear, and homeschoolers of Texas continue that work today with THSC and our sister brand the Family Freedom Project.
A woman reportedly asked Ben Franklin after the drafting of the U.S. Constitution, “What kind of government have you given us?” He replied, “A republic, madam, if you can keep it.”
In the same way, we enjoy our freedom, but we must always be vigilant and ready to do what is necessary to defend it so that our children and grandchildren will have the same freedom we enjoy today.
Thank you for standing with THSC and FFP in this ongoing effort politically, legislatively, administratively, and legally to defend this sacred freedom. God Bless You and Keep You!
Read the rest of The Family Freedom Caller
Listen and Subscribe Today to the Family Freedom Caller Podcast!
Tim Lambert, THSC President
Tim Lambert, has been the president of the Texas Home School Coalition since 1990 and involved in homeschool leadership since 1984. He and his wife Lyndsay taught their four now-grown children at home for 16 years, graduating the last two in 2000. As the head of the organization for the leading home school state in the country, he is recognized as an authority on home education issues.
Tim has testified before numerous Texas legislative committees on issues related to homeschooling and often deals with state government agencies, including the Texas Education Agency and the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. He has also addressed such conferences as the Texas Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers on the topic. He holds a B.A. in political science from Texas Tech University and is active in the political arena, serving eight years as Republican National Committeeman for Texas. Tim is committed to serving the homeschooling community and to protecting parents’ right to choose the method of education of their children.
Texas is known as a very pro-homeschooling state.
In fact, many would argue that it’s a state with the least amount of restrictions or regulations of any state in the country.
It’s not uncommon for me to talk to families who have moved to the great state of Texas because of the freedom that homeschoolers have to raise their children as they see fit without the interference of the state.
Why is that the case? Has it always been so?
In the early 1980s, Texas was prosecuting families simply because they chose to homeschool their children. The Attorney General of Texas said that he did not believe that parents were even qualified to raise their children, much less educate them at home.
The state of Texas actually prosecuted over 100 families, and about half of those families lost their cases in local Justice of the Peace Courts because the state argued that homeschooling violated the truancy laws of Texas.
Texas was one of the most difficult states to homeschool in as a result of this environment, and many homeschool families left the state as a result. How did we get from that environment to the one we enjoy today?
In the 1980s, the battle to homeschool was a legal one, and Texas homeschoolers coalesced and sued the state of Texas in what would become a landmark case called Leeper v Arlington ISD. After a victory in the local court, we would spend almost a decade in appeals until the Supreme Court of Texas upheld the lower court decision in 1994.
After that legal victory, homeschoolers in 1995 were told by local school districts that they must present their curriculum for approval to the local school district. THSC would pursue an administrative fix through the Texas Education Agency (TEA) to clarify that homeschoolers were not required to present curriculum or get approval from public school officials.
Later, the Texas Home School Coalition (THSC) representing Texas homeschoolers would work to address discrimination issues from driver education to college admission and Child Protective Services (CPS) through the legislative process, changing the laws to accommodate homeschool families and end discrimination.
In the course of legislative battles, we saw the need to educate legislators and other elected officials on our issues during political campaigns while they were running for office which became a critical element in our defense of homeschooling and parental rights.
In 2010 THSC went to court to defend a homeschool family in Fort Worth in a custody case in which the issue was the dad’s decision to homeschool his daughter. Later we would also represent families in CPS cases as well. We fought this litigation battle in the courts to clarify the law regarding the fundamental rights of parents to raise their children as they saw fit because that is the basis for our right to homeschool our children.
Slowly, over almost four decades of working in political campaigns, lobbying in legislative efforts, challenging agency policies administratively and litigation in the courts, the fundamental rights of parents and homeschoolers have become clear, and homeschoolers of Texas continue that work today with THSC and our sister brand the Family Freedom Project.
A woman reportedly asked Ben Franklin after the drafting of the U.S. Constitution, “What kind of government have you given us?” He replied, “A republic, madam, if you can keep it.”
In the same way, we enjoy our freedom, but we must always be vigilant and ready to do what is necessary to defend it so that our children and grandchildren will have the same freedom we enjoy today.
Thank you for standing with THSC and FFP in this ongoing effort politically, legislatively, administratively, and legally to defend this sacred freedom. God Bless You and Keep You!
Read the rest of The Family Freedom Caller
Listen and Subscribe Today to the Family Freedom Caller Podcast!
Tim Lambert, THSC President
Tim Lambert, has been the president of the Texas Home School Coalition since 1990 and involved in homeschool leadership since 1984. He and his wife Lyndsay taught their four now-grown children at home for 16 years, graduating the last two in 2000. As the head of the organization for the leading home school state in the country, he is recognized as an authority on home education issues.
Tim has testified before numerous Texas legislative committees on issues related to homeschooling and often deals with state government agencies, including the Texas Education Agency and the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. He has also addressed such conferences as the Texas Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers on the topic. He holds a B.A. in political science from Texas Tech University and is active in the political arena, serving eight years as Republican National Committeeman for Texas. Tim is committed to serving the homeschooling community and to protecting parents’ right to choose the method of education of their children.
