By David Fleet
Editor
Goodrich—  Donna Kirby has been homeschooling for 20 years and has been active in the local homeschool community. Over those years she has met and interacted with countless homeschool families across Genesee and Oakland counties.
“Our local co-op, Hometeam, which brings people together from Ortonville, Goodrich, Grand Blanc, Davison, and beyond, is representative of the loving, law-abiding families that are using their own time and resources to protect and educate their children,” said Kirby. “We are making a positive impact in our local communities and our state as a whole.”
Kirby is a parent representing some of an estimated 50,000 homeschooled students statewide that are now responding to a recent flurry of debate over a proposed mandatory registration. Michigan is just one of 11 states nationwide that make registration optional.
In January, State Superintendent of Schools Micheal Rice signaled his intent to make homeschool registration mandatory in a letter to lawmakers.
“Currently, Michigan enrolls students in traditional public school academies. In recent years, our understanding of private and parochial school student enrollments has grown, depending on the interaction of private and parochial schools with particular state-funded programs. For the safety of all students, it is important to enroll students in the public schools, private schools, parochial schools and home schools. Having a record of all children enrolled in these four buckets would provide an understanding of the children not currently enrolled in any learning environment. The issue of ‘missing children is a national problem with potential negative consequences for too many children.”
“Parents should be able to choose the best educational system for their children,” he said. “However, there is a history in Michigan and across the nation of some children not receiving any education at all, in particularly egregious cases in abusive or neglected environments. Knowing where all children are enrolled in an educational setting is an issue of student safety, neither more nor less.”
The potential bill is being touted as a response to cases of abuse, said Kirby.
“Child abuse is a reprehensible crime,” she said.  “The laws and policies already in place in Michigan should absolutely be utilized to identify, report, and address abuses.  There is no evidence that homeschooled children are more at risk for abuse if they are not regulated.  The correlation between homeschooling and child abuse simply is not supported.”
State Rep. David Martin (R-68th District), who represents Atlas and Groveland townships along with the Village of Goodrich, responded to Rice’s letter.
“The Michigan Constitution puts it on the parents to educate their children,” said Martin. “The counting of the heads of homeschoolers and using the excuse to prevent abuse, came from a fraudulent claim of a foster family in DeWitt. It’s not true. There was no abuse, and the Child Protective Services is required to monitor the education of students in foster care. And homeschooling is not even an option for foster children, since they are not the parent. So CPS failed in that place. They are using that as impetus now to put agents into the homeschoolers homes for a head count. Totally wrong. This is government control to no end and that’s not me with an over conspiracy.”
No legislation has been proposed so far, said Martin.
Senator Ruth Johnson (R-Groveland Township) 24th District which encompasses parts of Genesee, Oakland, Lapeer and Macomb counties also responded.
“This is a big government trying to infringe on the rights of people to educate their own children,” said Johnson, who has a degree in K-9 education and completed her student teaching and taught a first/second grade split in Clarkston.
“There’s no evidence this is needed. It isn’t about safety. How does filling out a piece of paper saying a child is homeschooled protect them from abuse? It simply doesn’t. They want a foot in the door to regulate what people are teaching their own children in their own home and I don’t think the government belongs there.”
Homeschool parent Kirby agrees with Johnson and Martian.
“Registration of homeschool students, essentially creating a database of homeschool names, does not make any of those homeschooled students safer,” said Kirby.
“It simply creates more bureaucratic red tape, takes resources away from following up on known instances of abuse and neglect (such as the cases supposedly prompting this potential bill).
“This would likely only be the first step to chip away at the right and responsibility that parents have, according to Michigan law, to protect and educate their children.”