By Michael P. Donnelly
Ohio’s HSLDA lawyer
Homeschooling in the Buckeye State is regulated by Ohio Administrative Code (OAC) 3301-34, which went into effect in 1989. [PLEASE NOTE: NOTHING in Ohio's homeschool code/law has changed since 1989...no matter what any superintendent or district representative may try to tell you!! ~KW] This regulation provides Ohio residents with a notification approach in which the school district does NOT approve a homeschool plan but is rather informed of it. [Emphasis mine ~KW]
Prior to this regualtion, some Ohio citizens educated their children at home under the provisions of OAC 3301-35-08. These famlies formed non-chartered, non-tax supported schools by filing a minimal "Report to Parents" form with the Ohio Department of Eduication (ODE). Even after the passage of the homeschool regulation (in 1989), many families continued to educate their children under the 08 regulation. This regulation offers the opportunity for parents who qualify under the regulation to have less contact with local school distircts and fewer reporting and assessment requirements.
Until recently, the 08 option was not challenged by the ODE. Last year, Home School Legal Defense Association, working with Ohio homeschoolers, reformed an intrusive attempt by the ODE to require additional information from individuals filing Report to Parents forms under OAC 3301-35-08. HSLDA negotiated the additional information down to 3 items that the ODE said were required under the "child find" provisions of federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) regulations.
The ODE appears to be attempting to prevent the use of the 08 school approach by single families or those who operate them with numbers of students in a single-family home. We think the ODE is taking this action in large part because it disagress with what it considers the use of the 08 school maneuver by students whom the department believes are more properly categorized as homeschooled to qualify for funding through the Post Secondary Enrollment Options Program (PSEOP).
HSLDA has revised it online Ohio legal analysis and has created a memo that discusses this situation in more detail. Both can be found at www.hslda.org/OH.
[ALSO NOTE: This DOES NOT EFFECT the vast majority of homeschool families who simply file a Notification Form with their local superintendents. ~KW]
Blessings from Ohio, Kim Wolf<><
Homeschool Nations - Ohio