From the HSLDA E-lert Service...

Missouri--Act Now to Prevent Expansion of Compulsory School Attendance

Dear HSLDA Members and Friends:

Representative Sara Lampe is working to lower the age of compulsory school attendance from age 7 to 5, and we need your help to stop her.
House Bill 1543 will come to the floor of the House of Representatives in the very near future, and Lampe says she will try to amend it to lower the compulsory attendance age. Her strategy is to tack her amendment on and let it piggyback into law with the rest of the bill.
The bill itself is likely to pass because of its significance on several educational issues, so it is vital that we work to prevent it from being amended to expand compulsory attendance.

ACTION REQUESTED

Today send a letter or email to your representative asking him or her to oppose any amendment lowering the age of compulsory attendance. Express your views in your own words, but feel free to make use of the points below. To find contact information for your representative, go to our Legislative Toolbox http://www.hslda.org/toolbox.

When HB 1543 comes to the floor of the House, other amendments could be offered that are harmful to freedom. Having a big crowd of homeschoolers at the Capitol could help keep lawmakers "honest." The date has not yet been scheduled, but please plan to come to the capitol when we know the date. We may have 24 hours notice or less, so please stay flexible!

Also please plan to attend a major homeschool rally at the Capitol in Jefferson City on March 2. A large turnout by homeschool families will convince lawmakers that we remain highly interested in what they do. Families for Home Education will distribute more information about the rally as the day grows closer.

BACKGROUND

Many education experts have concluded that beginning a child's formal education too early may actually result in burnout and poor scholastic performance later.

Lowering the compulsory attendance age erodes the authority of parents who are in the best position to determine when their child's formal education should begin. The bill would restrict parents' freedom to decide if their children are ready for school.

Another significant impact of expanding the compulsory attendance age would be an inevitable tax increase to pay for more classroom space and teachers to accommodate the additional students compelled to attend public school.

For more information on compulsory attendance, please see our memorandum at http://www.hslda.org/elink.asp?ID=2051.

Thank you for standing with us for freedom!

Scott A. Woodruff, Esq.,
HSLDA Senior Counsel



The HSLDA E-lert Service is a service of:

Home School Legal Defense Association
P.O. Box 3000
Purcellville, Virginia 20134
Phone: (540) 338-5600
Fax: (540) 338-2733
Email: info@hslda.org
Web: http://www.hslda.org


Dr. Inge Auerbacher (A survivor of the Holocaust) Beyond the Yellow Star

Submitted by Tina B.

Thursday, February 4
11 a.m., Clara Thompson Hall
Drury University, Springfield Missouri
FREE and open to the public

Dr. Inge Auerbacher was the last Jewish child born in Kippenheim, a village in Germany located near the Black Forest and close to the borders of France and Switzerland. Both of her parents came from observant Jewish families who had lived for many generations in Germany. Inge’s father was a soldier in the German Army during World War I; he was awarded the Iron Cross for his service.

Christians and Jews lived peacefully together until the Kristallnacht riots against the Jews in Germany and Austria on Nov. 9-10, 1938. Her family was dispersed among several concentration camps.

Auerbacher is among the one percent who survived the holding center at Terezin. She and her parents moved to America in 1946. Her award-winning books—I Am a Star: Child of the Holocaust; Beyond the Yellow Star to America; and Running Against the Wind—are read in schools worldwide

The event is free and open to the public. It is part of Drurys 2009-10 convocation series Spirituality and Justice which honors the connection between spirituality and intellectual pursuit and values interfaith dialogue.


National Association of Women in Construction Block Kids Competition, 2-4 p.m. Nixa Inman Elementary, 1300 N Nicholas Road, Nixa on Saturday, February 6, 2010.  This is a building block contest using interlocking building blocks (lego type) and is open to all children grades 1-6.  Free entry and admission.  Call (417)887-6177 or visit www.nawic-sw-mo.org.