HUB Weekly Update: [homeschoolhub] MI Senator responds to proposed homeschool bill

Open Letter to Michigan Parents

Posted on April 20, 2015

Dear Parents,

Stoni Ann Blair and Stephen Gage Berry were precious children with
limitless potential, and their senseless deaths at the hands of their
mother have shocked and saddened the entire state of Michigan.

Mitchelle Blair, the Detroit woman accused of killing Stoni and
Stephen and then hiding their bodies, is a murderer who deserves, at
best, to spend the rest of her life in prison.

This tragic situation is not, and never was, however, a homeschooling problem.

That's why I am so dismayed by the introduction of a new bill in the
state House of Representatives to exploit Stoni and Stephen's tragic
deaths as an excuse to impose new regulations on loving, committed,
and law-abiding Michigan families.

Let's be clear-this legislation would not have stopped Ms. Blair from
killing her children. Blair was willing to break every law on the
books, and routinely and effectively lied for years to hide her
crimes.

Instead, the new bill is a transparent attempt by some in Lansing to
bully, threaten, and intimidate parents who choose not to send their
children to traditional public schools. The legislation would force
every homeschooling family to register with local officials and to
open their homes twice yearly for police inspections, to prove that
they have not murdered their own children.

Parents have rights. Parents deserve choices. And parents deserve so
much better from Lansing.

As the Chairman of the Senate Education Committee I wanted to write
you today to assure you that this anti-parent legislation will not see
the light of day in my Committee.

Parents who choose homeschooling as the best education option for
their children lovingly pour themselves into their kids, and they get
great results. Homeschooled children are among the most successful in
the state, go on to attend colleges and universities, get and keep
great jobs, and help lead our communities.

Every child learns differently, and no one understands the needs of a
child like his or her parents. That's why when it comes to making
education decisions for their children, or for choosing the kind of
education that will work best, Lansing should trust parents, not bully
them.

Sincerely,

Senator Phil Pavlov

Chairman, Senate Education Committee