Thank you for your interest in HIS43:19. It is truly a blessing that we have so much freedom to educate our children in the very best way suited for them. We have prayed, looked at all the options and chosen an approach that we feel will best support the members of our group in their homeschooling journey. 

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Thereby, HIS 43:19 exists to support families who choose a parent-directed, home-based education for their children. We do not discount ESA families, but do require that families are following a parent-led educational approach, that keeps parents in charge of learning decisions for their children. 

 

Usage of the term "homeschooling" originated in the early 1980's and signifies an arrangement recognized by that name in Arizona law as one where the parent or guardian assumes the teaching responsibility in the required subject areas and where the cost of this instruction is borne by the parents and not the taxpayer. 

 

We classify a “Homeschooler” as someone who retains complete control of their child's primary level education. Delegation of control to either a public, charter, private school program or fee-based classes held outside the home for the majority of subjects does not fall within this classification for our purposes. Parents of secondary level students enrolled in community college classes, or utilizing other means of instruction, are still considered “Homeschoolers” as long as the parent or legal guardian remains the primary instructor and retains complete responsibility for their child/children's education.

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For further clarification, below we have included additional information taken from the AFHE website explaining why public, charter or private school is not the same as Homeschooling with an ESA.

  

WHY DO YOU CALL THE EDUCATIONAL CHOICES IN ARIZONA "CLASSIFICATIONS"?

ARS § 15-802 includes the word "classification" in the title and goes on to describe five distinct classifications in Arizona. ARS § 15-802(A) says, "A person who has custody of the child shall choose a public, private or charter school or a homeschool as defined in this section to provide instruction or shall sign a contract to participate in an Arizona empowerment scholarship account pursuant to section 15-2402" (emphasis added). The repeated "or" indicates that the parent or guardian must choose one of these classifications. (Virtual charter, described in ARS § 15-808, is a type of charter school.) (https://afhe.org/faq)

 

IS A STUDENT WITH AN ESA CONTRACT EDUCATING AT HOME ALSO A HOMESCHOOL STUDENT?   

Not according to the legal definition of homeschool in Arizona, and not according to the Arizona Department of Education (https://www.azed.gov/sites/default/files/2022/08/H.B.%202853%20FAQ.pdf Q8: Can ESA funds be used for homeschooling? From 8/17/2022 version). However, it is understandable that this may be confusing. In Arizona, students who attend private school must file an affidavit of intent with the county school superintendent (ARS § 15-802(B)(2)). A parent of a homeschool student must file an affidavit of intent with the county school superintendent (ARS § 15-802(B)(2)). Under ARS § 15-2402(B)(5), a student who enters an ESA contract must not have an affidavit of intent to homeschool filed with the county office. Therefore, a student must have either public school enrollment, or charter school enrollment, or a private school affidavit, or a homeschool affidavit, or an ESA contract. What makes this confusing is that ESA contract students who choose to attend private school fit into two classifications. However, the homeschool affidavit and the ESA contract are mutually exclusive, as seen above and in ARS § 15-2402(I). In many ways, homeschooling students and ESA contract students educating at home will look the same in practice. (https://afhe.org/faq)