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
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.
Declaration of Intent to Utilize a Home Study Program - gif format
This is a Georgia Department of Education form. This form is in gif format. Provided by HEIR. This is a scanned in copy and the quality is very poor.
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.
20-2-150. Compulsory Attendance for Early Entrants into Public Schools
(a) Except as otherwise provided by subsection (b) of this Code section, all children and youth who have attained the age of five years by September 1 shall be eligible for enrollment in the appropriate general education programs authorized in this part unless they attain the age of 20 by September 1 or they have received high school diplomas or the equivalent. This shall specifically include students who have reenrolled after dropping out and who are married, parents, or pregnant. Special educa...
Georgia Homeschool Law and Commentary
A summary of the homeschooling laws in Georgia provided by GeorgiaHomeschool.com, along with comments.
Awarding Units of Credit and Acceptance of Transfer Credit and/or Grades
This is a copy of the law regarding transferring credits furnished by the Georgia Department of Education.
Past Attempts to Change GA Law
A short list of some of the legal issues homeschooling parents in Georgia have faced in the past.
Declaration of Intent to Utilize a Home Study Program
Sample Declation of Intent. A Declaration of Intent must be submitted to your local school district within 30 days after the establishment of a home study program and by September 1 annually thereafter.
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.
Homeschool Opposition: Who Are They and What Do They Want?
Homeschooling in Georgia has come under concerted attack by those who would reduce the access to homeschooling and control both the content and method of home study instruction. Who are the opponents to homeschooling, and what do they want to accomplish?
Georgia Homeschool Law 101
This is a great, informative video covering all the issue regarding the legality of homeschooling in Georgia.
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...
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.
Georgia Home School Laws from HSLDA
The Home School Legal Defense Association provides a brief summary of the homeschooling laws in Georgia. Includes a link to a legal analysis of laws relating to homeschooling in Georgia.
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 ...
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Featured Resources
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