Legal/Homeschool Laws
Laws that regulate home education vary from state to state. It is important to understand the legal requirements in your state and to be aware of legislative and other legal issues that affect homeschoolers in your community. We've compiled resources that will help you become informed. Although homeschooling is legal in all 50 states, and the vast majority of homeschoolers face no problems, you may find that you need legal assistance at some point in your homeschooling career. We've compiled a list of resources to help you find the support you need. And if you'd like to become more involved in working towards homeschooling freedoms, we discuss some of the issues facing homeschoolers that we hope you find compelling.
State Laws
Read the laws regulating home education in Georgia and browse through the case law and legal opinions relating to those laws, along with government publications relating to homeschooling and summaries of the laws.
Forms
Which forms do you need to fill out? Where can you get them? Here is a list of useful forms for homeschooling in Georgia.
Legal Support
If you need legal information or have run into a legal situation regarding your decision to homeschool, these resources will be helpful.
Lobbying Groups
A listing of local and national lobbying groups and information on how you can become involved in the political process to ensure the freedom to homeschool is protected.
Attorneys
When searching for an attorney, it is helpful to know whether he or she has experience working with homeschoolers and is interested in protecting the right to homeschool.
Legal Issues
Is homeschooling legal? Which laws pertain to homeschoolers and which don't? How do homeschoolers protect their rights to freely educate their children and to preserve their privacy?
Government Resources
A listing of local and state government resources, including your state's Department of Education, school districts, and Senate and House of Representative information.
What's Popular
Roemhild v. Georgia (251 Ga. 569, 308 S.E.2d 154 (Ga. 1983))
This case concerns the constitutionality of OCGA 20-2-690 (Code Ann. 32-2104), the Georgia compulsory school attendance law, which provides that every parent having control of a child between the ages of seven and sixteen shall enroll the child in and send the child to a public or private school. The appellants, Terry and Vickie Roemhild, are the parents of three school-age children. In late September of 1981 they were arrested for violating the compulsory attendance law by allegedly failing to ...
HEIR's Initial Statement to the Committee
The Home Education Information Resource provided the House Education Committee with a three ring binder of "resource materials" that may be of interest. A summary of the binder's content has been provided to each Committee member, along with a copy of this prepared statement.
Certificate of Attendance
Georgia Department of Public Safety Certificate of Attendance form, for use in submission to a License Examination Facility.
Georgia Department of Education: Home Schools
A discussion of the homeschooling laws in Georgia provided by the Georgia Department of Education.
Just Who Is Accountable for My Child's Education? Or Accreditation Rears Its Ugly Head Again
At the recent Georgia Home Education Association (GHEA) conference, Dr. Starr Miller, a retired member of the Georgia Accrediting Commission (GAC) proposed a system by which home schools could receive some form of accreditation or certification. Centers for Independent Study would be set up to supervise home study. Along with approving curriculum, establishing a record of "clock" hours on independent study for each student, and setting standards for "passing" performance, these centers would als...
Georgia General Assembly
Official home of the Georgia General Assembly. Look up Georgia Code, find your legislator, and check on current legislation.
Home Education Honored in Georgia
To declare the first week in February of each year as "Home Education Week" in Georgia, HB1450 was passed by the 1997-1998 General Assembly and signed by Governor Zel Miller on 4/20/98.
Home Study Program Monthly Attendance Report - Word format
This is a Georgia Department of Education form. It is in MS Word format. Provided by HEIR.
20-2-701. Reporting of Failure to Comply.
(a) Local school superintendents as applied to private schools and home study programs or visiting teachers and attendance officers as applied to public schools, after written notice to the parent or guardian of a child, shall report to the juvenile or other court having jurisdiction under Chapter 11 of Title 15 any child who is absent from a public or private school or a home study program in violation of this subpart. If the judge of the court places such child in a home or in a public or priv...
Home Study Program Monthly Attendance Report - pdf format with reset button
Printable monthly attendance report provided by the Georgia Department of Education. This form has an enabled reset button to clear the form.
Declaration of Intent Letter
Your DOI with the 36 unique characters on the parental signature line is the official document of the Georgia Home Study Program. This document should be used to obtain Driver's license/permits, work permits, post-secondary admission, military enlistment, and for all other entities that require proof of educational enrollment. This letter can be accessed here.
Home Study Program Monthly Attendance Report - gif format
This is a Georgia Department of Education form, provided by HEIR. It is in gif format, but the quality is very poor.
Homeschool Attorneys in Georgia
These attorneys have indicated that they are willing to provide legal information, consult with or represent homeschoolers on homeschooling or other legal issues they may have in their states. Most of these attorneys homeschool or have homeschooled their own children.
Home Education Information Resource (HEIR)
A non-partisan, non-sectarian, volunteer-only organization working to ensure that the people of Georgia and their government recognize home study, freely practiced in its diverse forms, as a legitimate choice and value it as a positive force for improving the quality of education.
Underage Youth Application for Program Enrollment and Permission to Take the GED
If you wish to withdraw from home school to obtain your GED, this is one of the required forms.
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Featured Resources
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Discover Your Children's Gifts
This comprehensive work on children's learning styles and creativity expression is a tremendous help to parents as they begin homeschooling. The authors discuss how God gifts children in different ways with different ways of learning and expression. ...
Taking Charge of Your Child's Education: A Guide to Becoming the Primary Influence in Your Child's Life
Every parent wants to give their child the best start in life. The best way to do that is to get fully involved in their educational process as their primary influence. This book is full of helpful information, resources, and tools that will lead you...
Montessori: A Modern Approach
Montessori: A Modern Approach has been called the single best book for anyone -- educator, childcare professional, and especially parent -- seeking answers to the questions: What is the Montessori method? Are its revolutionary ideas about early child...
A Little Way of Homeschooling
This book is a compilation of the experiences of 13 different homeschoolers and how they incorporated an unschooling style of teaching in their homes. This book addresses the question of whether a Catholic can happily and successfully unschool. This ...
Tomorrows Child
Tomorrow's Child magazine offers insights and information that helps parents to feel confident that Montessori will prepare their children for the real world. It will help you understand and appreciate Montessori and apply it in your home.