By Colleen Enos | Commentary, Christian Home Educators of Colorado (CHEC)
Colorado homeschool families fought for liberty and their rights in the 1980s and won. We continue to fight for your homeschool freedom all year long.
Homeschool families of today have a dizzying array of curriculum choices. So many, in fact, that it can be overwhelming. However, it was not always this way. In 1980, Colorado homeschool families had three options.
- Use a state-approved curriculum.
- Get permission from your local school district to use the curriculum you have chosen.
- Be a certified teacher to choose your own curriculum.
Independent-minded families were not okay with that. They knew that God had called them to disciple and homeschool their children. They rightly believed that this fundamental right came from God and later, from our Constitution. Tracing the authority back to the Bill of Rights’ freedom of religion clause, they believed that they were on solid Constitutional ground. The Supreme Court had upheld parental rights under the Fourteenth Amendment in the 1925 decision of Pierce vs. Society of Sisters.
Because of this fundamental truth, families homeschooled without “state approval.” Colorado school districts began to go after home educators with truancy charges and threatened to take away their children. One family, after being threatened by child protective services, escaped to another state in the middle of the night. It was clear that something needed to change.
Two homeschool mothers, Treon Goossen and Rory Schneeberger, led the effort to draft a homeschool bill in 1987 along with bill sponsors Senator Joe Winkler and Representative Bill Owens, later to become Governor Bill Owens. The bill failed in the House Education Committee. In 1988, the bill was introduced again by Senators Meiklejohn and Winkler and Representative Bond. There was intense opposition that was so strong, it included evidence of wiretapping Goossen’s phone line (p.14).
But this time, the Colorado Speaker of the House sent the bill to the State Affairs Committee, which was chaired by Representative Bill Owens, bypassing the school lobbying groups that controlled the Education Committee. It passed out of the committee, and after an extensive information campaign by homeschool families, it passed the Colorado House of Representatives as well. Governor Roy Romer allowed the bill to become law without signing it. The law has had some minor changes in 1994, 2000, 2006, and 2007, but continues to remain much the same as it was when it originally passed.
Now, there is a dangerous threat on Colorado’s horizon. The Coalition for Responsible Home Education (CRHE) is a pro-regulation organization that has been emboldened by recent success in other states. In Connecticut, lawmakers passed a bill forcing parents to endure a waiting period and submit to child-abuse registry checks just to withdraw their child from public school and homeschool them. In New Jersey, a dangerous bill seeks to create an official homeschool registry, tracking families like data points. CRHE is seeking to replicate legislative accomplishments like these throughout the entire United States.
In July 2024, CRHE released a model bill entitled the “Make Homeschool Safe Act.” This proposed legislation would expand government regulation and control over homeschool families and was designed to provide a template to incorporate more restrictions into law in various states. With the recent success in Connecticut, CRHE is redoubling its efforts.
CHEC’s focus is on keeping homeschool freedom intact for Colorado families. The Homeschool Freedom Team does just that. Now is the time to stand up for educational freedom and donate to the Homeschool Freedom Fund!
Together, with faith, courage, and united action, we will not only keep our freedoms — we will strengthen them for our children and our children’s children. Let’s guard the hard-won freedom of Colorado homeschool families together.
In Him,
Colleen Enos
CHEC Director of Government Relations
[email protected]
Read more commentary by Colleen Enos at chec.org.
Colleen is a homeschooling mom of eight who began her homeschool journey in 1994 and graduated her last two children in 2024, spanning 30 years. Her children range in age from 20 to 36 years old. She has been married to her husband, Mark, for 39 years, and they are now grandparents to five grandbabies. She has been a speech and debate coach for 17 years, pouring her time, effort, and energy into preparing the next generation to speak truth into our culture. Colleen serves homeschool families as the CHEC Director of Government Relations and is working hard to safeguard homeschool freedom through her work with the legislature. You can reach Colleen at [email protected].
Editor’s note: Opinions expressed in commentary pieces are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the management of the Rocky Mountain Voice, but even so we support the constitutional right of the author to express those opinions.