New Jersey families protest homeschool regulation bills – including requirements to teach DEI, gender identity

Families are protesting legislation requiring New Jersey homeschoolers to use curriculum aligned with state learning standards – including subjects such as diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), gender identity, sexual orientation and climate studies.

“Our family is not going to teach anything that directly opposes the Word of God,” Michele Latour, one of the state’s homeschool moms, told Fox News regarding Assembly Bill 5825. “And we’re pretty firm on that.”

As previously reported by The Lion, no other state currently mandates homeschool curricula to follow public-school standards.

Additionally, A.B. 5796 would require New Jersey homeschoolers to meet annually with public-school officials for a child welfare check.

Since the bill doesn’t include funding for hiring additional staff to perform such inspections, this “would be an extra burden on public schools,” said Will Estrada, senior counsel at the Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA). 

“Public schools are there to educate children enrolled in the public school, not to do health and wellness checks on children in the community at large,” he said. 

Differing degrees of state oversight 

Because homeschool laws vary at the state level, the degree of required oversight can change drastically based on a family’s residence.

“Across the country, states have taken very different approaches to homeschool parameters,” notes Fox News, adding politics can play a role.

“Texas and Missouri, which are both red states, have some of the loosest requirements, while New York, run by Democrats, enforces some of the strictest regulations.” 

Traditionally, New Jersey also belonged to the group of states with few restrictions on homeschooling. The HSLDA website categorizes it as a “no notice, low regulation” state.

“When parent/guardian educate [sic] a child elsewhere than at school, they are responsible for the educational outcomes of the child,” the state’s department of education website states in its frequently asked questions. “The local board of education is not required or authorized to monitor the outcomes of the child.”

Supporters of A.B. 5796, such as New Jersey State Sen. Paul Moriarty, argue for more homeschool oversight to prevent child abuse. 

“We need to put some parameters around what is homeschooling and how can we check in to find out whether someone is actually getting an education and whether they’re safe,” he told the local NBC affiliate. 

However, multiple studies show homeschooled children do not face higher abuse and neglect rates than conventionally schooled children. 

“A 2022 peer-reviewed study … found that the type of school students go to ‘is a non-issue’ in determining the likelihood of abuse ‘after considering the role played by demographics’ such as family structure, years in foster care, large family size, and household poverty,” writes Sophia Mandt in a Reason news article. 

Another study in 2017 concluded “legally homeschooled students are 40% less likely to die by child abuse or neglect than the average student nationally,” Mandt noted. 

So far Moriarty has received about 500 calls from homeschool parents protesting the legislation, according to NBC.