CURRENT GRADE: F
School choice opportunities are virtually non-existent.
Homeschooling requires basic reporting and time requirements.
Compulsory attendance is required for ages 7-17.
Education Options
- Low Income Students Scholarship
- An eligible student (has annual family income less than 250% of federal poverty guidelines) may be able to qualify for an educational scholarship to pay all or a portion of tuition to attend a qualified school in Kansas.
- Amount may not exceed $8,000 per eligible student per year.
- A tax credit for donations to the fund is equal to 70% of the contribution made. Total amount of credits made to the fund may not exceed $10 million per year and not more than $500,000 per contributor per year.
- There were 1,340 awards in 2022-23.
- Charter Schools
- Can only be authorized by local school districts.
- Currently only 9 schools in the state.
Homeschooling Laws
Here are state requirements on the topic of homeschooling:
- Law doesn’t recognize homeschooling.
- Homeschools are classified as non-accredited private schools.
- Parents must register a name and address of their school with the state board of education.
- Instruction hours must be equivalent to public school sessions, at least 186 days of at least 6 hours per day.
- Homeschool students may participate in public school extracurricular activities.
Religious Exemptions:
- There are no state specific religious exemption laws.
The First Amendment states “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” Many argue that a religious conviction to provide a home-based education is constitutionally protected and a state religious exemption law is not a requirement to be able to homeschool on religious grounds.
It should be noted that the U.S. Supreme Court in Wisconsin v. Yoder (1972) established that “Under the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment, a state law requiring that children attend school past eighth grade violates the parents’ constitutional right to direct the religious upbringing of their children.” (The case involved a challenge of a 16-year-old student to be exempt, so the scope was limited)
