Posted on 08/28/2008 12:30:30 PM PDT by repubmom
SYLMAR, CA Philip Long’s words were urgent, “Terry, I think they are going to hand down a ruling against homeschooling and it will set a bad precedent for the State of California!” I asked him how can I help. “Talk to my lawyer, Christopher Blake,” Philip said.
I called Christopher and identified myself as Terry Neven, the principal of Sunland Christian School, the homeschool program where the Long family was enrolled. Sunland had served the Long family for almost 10 years, knew about their challenges, and embraced helping them. I asked Christopher what could be done. He told me it was too late to take any further action. Responses had been filed in the California Court of Appeals, and the case was closed to any new evidence or amicus briefs. Now all we could do was wait for the ruling.
On the morning of Friday, February 28, 2008, when Philip called to let me know they had handed down a ruling declaring homeschooling illegal in California, I knew in my heart God had orchestrated this situation for His purposes. No missteps had occurred. No one could have created this scenario. No one could have predicted this was coming. There was no need to panic, but a need to call to arms those involved and ask others to pray. The scripture, “The King’s heart is in the hand of the Lord,.. He turns it wherever He wishes” (Proverbs 21:1), came rushing to my heart. My wife, Laura Neven, and I agreed this was totally in the hands of the Lord. All we could do now was cooperate with Him, ask for prayers, and He would direct our steps. I had learned through my previous 17 years as a pastor that things happen outside of our control and if we trust the Lord, “…it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure” (Philippians 2:13).
California homeschoolers had long lived under the uncertainty of unclear legislation, which has no definition concerning homeschooling. Some older court cases had ruled against homeschooling, while other lower courts had ruled in favor. No one felt completely safe. Homeschoolers vacillated between “going it on their own,” filing an affidavit with the state, or joining an “independent study program,” where a school provided guidance, maintained your records and provided you with a sense of security. Homeschool legal defense memberships were encouraged as a prepaid legal way to provide you with protection if you were ever challenged. Families would avoid letting neighbors know they were homeschooling to keep from being called upon by “truant officers” from the Department of Education. And you were never to let a Department of Children Service worker come in your house to look at your curriculum. This was how homeschoolers had lived since the early 1980s, when my family had also become involved in homeschooling.
By Monday the story was all over the news and a panic among homeschoolers was in full swing. Some were calling our office to see if we would advise them to move out of state, or become vagabonds, living in RVs, camping or otherwise, to avoid prosecution. Many called for reassurance that everything was alright, while others called to give us their support. Statements declaring California like Nazi Germany and the government’s desire to control our children were being whispered everywhere. We reassured our callers and told them there was no need to panic, there were still many steps that could be taken to avoid this ruling from becoming law, and to trust the Lord had His plans.
By that afternoon Sunland Christian School had been contacted by four major Christian rights legal organizations, offering to represent us. Newspaper reporters, radio and television stations were calling, asking for interviews. Our board began the process of interviewing each of the legal organizations to determine which would be the best match for this California case. We decided to have Pacific Justice Institute represent us. Brad Dacus, their president had been a long time colleague. We knew PJI would give us the personal care, godly advice and work side-by-side with us in this case. We felt they were equipped with the greater knowledge of California education law and homeschooling and were the best fit for handling this situation.
Laura and I knew in our hearts this could be a landmark case for California, helping to confirm the legality of homeschooling, once and for all. We prayed each step of the way, asking for God’s guidance and direction in the midst of what had now become a nationally profiled crisis. Scam artists and “chicken little” hypes were beginning to use the panic, trying to gain donations and memberships in light of the ruling, only to further feed the panic. We knew regardless of how things looked or what others were saying, we just needed to move forward with the proper legal action and trust God. We realized with the combined strength of faith, devotion and commitment of homeschool parents, the heart of parental choice to homeschool could prevail.
By the second week following the ruling, we had participated in a myriad of interviews and handled thousands of phone calls. It was time to fly to Sacramento and meet with Kevin Snyder, our lawyer from Pacific Justice Institute, to prepare a petition to the Court of Appeals requesting they rehear the case. What had started out as a juvenile case involving a family and their parenting behavior, which was eventually closed by the court, turned into a homeschool case. We knew this ruling wasn’t right, because we had not been given an opportunity to represent our school or defend homeschooling in California. The courts needed to give that opportunity before handing down a decision of this magnitude. The court granted us a rehearing and vacated their ruling. We interpreted this decision as divine providence and intervention.
Laura and I knew that “faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:6). We were up against a court that had labeled Sunland Christian School as a “ruse,” but the Lord had given us an unlikely opportunity to present who we were, a legal private homeschool program. The homeschool community, and both state and national homeschool organizations, along with numerous government agencies, including Governor Schwarzenegger, Attorney General Ed Brown, and the Superintendent of Public Instruction for the State of California, Jack O’Connell, were pulling together to help us win this case. The chatter among the lawyers showed their uncertain of the motives and thought processes of the three judges of the California Second Court of Appeals, Division Three. This was one of the most publicized and intense cases the judges had faced.
The courtroom, on Monday, June 23, 2008, was large in structure but only held about 100 people. Fifty-five of them present were lawyers, of which only twelve of them would speak. The briefs and responses had been filed, the court spelled out the timeframes allowed each side to present their oral arguments, and the atmosphere in the court was both respectful and serene. As each lawyer approached the bench and gave their presentation, the judges would ask questions, looking for clarity and a response to their perspective on each point. Two and one-half hours later, the judges thanked us for our time and declared, “This is a monumental case.” Lawyers were rehearsing how they had done and were not clear what position the judges would take. Laura and I knew the outcome was in the Lord’s hand. We knew this case could possibly be a landmark case for California, or else we would need to petition the California Supreme Court for a hearing. But we had to continue our stand for the hundreds of thousands of homeschoolers in our state.
We had just begun our weeklong vacation at the lake when I checked email through my phone and discovered the court had handed down a favorable ruling! What a way to start a vacation! A landmark case in California with a favorable ruling! Calls came in congratulating us for standing up for what we believed. But Laura and I felt we had no choice. We had only stood in faith for what we believed. It was like the Lord stretching His hand across the waters and calming the sea. We knew in our hearts this was how it had to turn out, and we were so thankful for those who believed in us, stood by us and gave us their prayerful support. We weren’t just walking in faith alone, but with the faith of many, whom we will never meet.
Families in California can now, for the first time in our state history, continue to homeschool with a great confidence and faith, also knowing that the courts in California support the choice to homeschool!
Thank you for your prayers and support! Where would we be without you and the Lord?
Terry and Laura Neven
SCSandCHE@aol.com
www.home-schooling.org
1-800-525-4419
13216 Leach St., Sylmar, CA 91342
FIght, Fight, Fight!!! This is how we are going to take back our towns, cities, counties, states, and America! What a fine and inspiring example. Thank you for posting.
...we formerly lived in a state where home schoolers were under attack constantly....here’s how it works:
1.teachers unions fear home schoolers as a threat to their dominance.
2. teachers unions give big bucks to Dem legislators at the state house.
3. Dem legislators craft legislation aimed at crippling home schoolers.
4. home schoolers have to spend valuable resources fighting in court for their right to educate their kids.
....in spite of all, home schooling increased by 15% a year.
INTREP
I would no longer raise children in Kalifornia. Christians who do are not trusting the Bible in the education and training of their kids. When the government goes against the Bible, the Christian is to defy government, not cower to it and accept governmental limitations on what parents can or cannot do.
Amen to that! As I posted earlier, Christ was no wimp, and neither should we be. Check my tag line FRiend.
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