Character Begins at Home
January 2008 Edition
Bill & Mardy Freeman
Please note: To the best of our knowledge, this information is accurate. Each year the Florida legislature can change laws regarding education. In addition, high schools, community colleges, private or public universities, or accredited programs can change admissions policies from one district to the next or from one year to the next. It is important that parents and students stay in contact with the school the student is considering so he will not miss any changes.
Our family leans toward the follow-your-calling-with-all-of-your-heart-but-get-a-solid-general-understanding-of-whatever-else-you-need-along-the-way-to-get-you-to-your-goal-mentality. That may not work for everyone, and I share it only as a testimony that, so far, it has worked for our children.
For which of you, intending to build a tower (or prepare a son or daughter for adulthood), does not sit down first and count the cost (figure out your student’s options), whether you have sufficient to finish it (whether your student is going in the best direction for his desired goals)? Based on Luke 14
The most efficient way we have found to help our students plan for high school is by planning with the end in mind from:
Exploring future career/ministry ideas with our children by age 12 or 13 can be very helpful – as long as they don't feel they're being pressured to make a decision or that they would not be allowed to change their minds later – several times! A worst-case scenario would be that a student prepare vigorously for a specific field, change his mind mid-stream and have to make up a certain amount of courses, or even miss out on some opportunities. But, there is the same chance that a student who works very hard to be excellent in every subject (or many subjects) may not have enough time, energy or passion left over to propel him to the top of the one field he truly wishes to pursue.
We usually ask our children to begin praying about their future around age 12 or 13, asking them to ask the Lord to direct them to His will for them. The teen years is a time for them to begin learning how to “hear the Shepherd’s Voice” (My sheep know My Voice, Jn 10). Sometimes the answer is clear and they realize they have been drawn to a certain area of service or need; sometimes it is, Wait. Those are both valid answers.
We also begin to ask them questions like, "If you could change anything in the world, what would you change? Why? " In other words, we ask them to begin thinking about themselves in a new way – as people who might one day make a difference in the lives of those around them. This mindset opens an unlimited potential of career and ministry options, while a mindset of, "What can I do that will support a family/make me rich/ bring me fame/make me happy, etc." closes many potentially-fulfilling doors that could have been doors of financial provision as well. There will be careers and fields open in 5 years that do not even exist today, but if our students can develop strong character and work ethics along with an, “I can make a difference in the world” mindset, there will be no limit to the things they might accomplish for the Lord as adults.
By doing this, one of our teens felt led to attend two colleges at once, while another teen bypassed traditional college and entered the workforce and apprenticeship training. Another took a year off before college to complete an internship. Some have dual-enrolled, some attended private colleges, some state colleges, some did both.
Seek first the Kingdom of God, and all these things will be added to you. Matt 6
Following a college-prep program (at a speed and level that is challenging but not overwhelming) will prepare most home educated students for any direction until they feel they have more clear direction.
Just because a student is very good at something, do not assume (and do not encourage him to assume) that is what he should naturally do as a career. In other words, just because they can doesn’t mean they should. How many stories have we heard from adults who regretted being stuck in what looked like the natural path in high school, only to wish years down the road they had stretched out of their comfort zones or considered other options. Encourage your children to pray about their own future, and to consider their place in the world.
Under Florida law, a home educated student can be very hard to recognize! That’s because a “home educated student” who registers with the superintendent, and either part-time enrolls in a high school and/or dual-enrolls in a public college classroom, can spend a majority, if not all of his classroom time on a public school campus. Because of his registration status, however, he is legally a “home educated” student.
Students registered with a 607, 617 or 623 Private School are considered “private school students” and not home education students by the state of Florida, but private school students, even though all of their education may take place within the home, due to their registration status.
Because registration under the superintendent allows a student more flexibility, more time at home in the high school years, and has fewer restrictions and fewer requirements, as well as easier access to community colleges and Bright Futures Scholarships, we recommend this option. It also affords more schedule time to focus on a single topic for a season if so desired.
Students registered with the Superintendent of Schools[1]
Private school students must:
High School Transfer of Credit see www.flhef.org for the latest info.
There is no provision in the law for students registered with a private school to participate in public school programs.
Dual Enrollment allows your high school junior or senior to take college classes for free.
Santa Fe College www.sfc.edu A student should be 16 years of age and have minimum score of 83 on Reading and 72 on Math on the CPT (Computerized Placement Test – see Tests below) to be admitted into Dual Enrollment. College-level scores on the SAT or ACT may be used in place of the CPT.
International Baccalaureate Program Eastside High School, Gainesville: College credit accepted for many of the courses taken through the IB program, depending on student’s score and the college. www.sbac.edu/~wpops/highschool/ibprogram/ehs2.html
High School Credit – Distance Learning – Accredited
High School Credit – Distance Learning – Unaccredited
At this writing, we are not aware of any public or private colleges that still discriminate against home educated students. They may be out there; we just do not know about them. Below is only limited information on area Florida colleges.
Students who are educated for 2 years (registered with the Superintendent of Schools) need only a notarized affidavit stating that the student has completed a home education program. No transcripts, no proof of credit, no test scores are needed. Students are then eligible to take the CPT (Computerized Placement Test – see CPT under Tests in this document). Scoring on the CPT determines placement. Contact your Community College for details.
Students registered with a 607, 617 or 623 Private School must meet the graduation requirements of that school.
Private 607/617/623 schools must have an articulation agreement with the college for the student to participate in dual-enrollment.
Santa Fe College Distance Learning (certain courses available online): www2.santafe.cc.fl.us/~OpenCampus or (352) 395-7344 or opencampus@santafe.cc.fl.us
University of Florida (certain courses available online): : www.fcd.ufl.edu or (352) 392-2137
Listing of all Florida Community Colleges Distance Learning Courses and Programs www.distancelearn.org/main.htm
Clip below taken from Florida Gulf Coast University website: www.fgcu.edu/DL/index.html
College Credit (4-Year) – Distance Learning – after High School Graduation
Complete 4-Year Bachelor of Science Degree – Distance Learning :
Our family has never known anyone who did any of the three options below, but here they are:
Requires high SAT and SAT II’s scores and permission from UF. www.reg.ufl.edu
All Community Colleges in Florida must now accept home education students who provide an affidavit stating that a homeschool program has been completed in lieu of a high school diploma. CPT required (or sufficient SAT or ACT scores may be accepted in lieu of the CPT). Thank you to Brenda Dickinson for that piece of legislative work!
Free state college catalogs are available from all ten state universities' websites. UF's website www.ufl.edu has links to the other colleges, where each school's catalog can be found.
Students who are home educated for 2 years (registered with the Superintendent of Schools) may apply to a State University
University of Florida: www.ufl.edu
Florida A & M University: www.famu.edu
Florida State University: www.fsu.edu
University of South Florida: www.usf.edu
Florida Atlantic University: www.fau.edu
University of West Florida: www.uwf.edu
University of Central Florida: www.ucf.edu
Florida International University: www.fiu.edu
University of North Florida: www.unf.edu
Florida Gulf Coast University: www.fgcu.edu
New College of Florida: www.ncf.edu
UF requires an SAT and five SAT-II's, including two years of foreign language. (352) 392-3261 or www.ufl.edu
ACT www.act.org
College Level Examination Program (CLEP)
Computerized Placement Test (CPT)
GED
PSAT
SAT
SAT-II
Air Force ROTC at University of Florida (352) 392-1355
Army ROTC at Santa Fe College: http://admin.sfcc.edu/~catalog/aaarotc.htm
The following service academies all accept home educated students:
Note: Scholarships can be merit-based or need-based, as well as race, gender, religion, ethnic or culture-based, or awarded due to affiliation with certain businesses or associations. There are thousands of scholarships available by searching the Internet. Two free Scholarship Search Engines are:
Four commonly known scholarship programs in Florida:
Auto Insurance - Many auto insurance companies discount to high school students for driver's ed class and good grades. Contact your insurance company to determine what is needed to document good grades. Note: Our insurance company’s discount (Florida Farm Bureau) was better for good grades than for driver’s training. A copy of our student’s year-end evaluation faxed to our insurance company was enough.
Congressional Award (202) 226-0130 or www.congressionalaward.org
Driver's License http://www.hsmv.state.fl.us/html/dlnew.html
Driver’s Education National Driver Training Institute (800) 942-2050
First-Time Driver Required Drug and Alcohol Class Online (approved for Florida) http://www.first-time-driver.com/
Traffic Safety Center (352) 955‑6959 is a division of the Alachua County Public Schools, and offers driver’s training courses at various times throughout the year. Students who pass this course do not have to take either the driving or written portion of the driver’s exam.
Local companies that teach Driver Ed can be found in the Yellow Pages.
High School Planning Site http://www.mapping-your-future.org/MHSS/
National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) accepts home education students who apply through an NCAA college. Details by contacting NCAA, 6201 College Blvd, Overland Park, KS 66221 or (913) 339-1905.
Selective Service - Young men are required by law to register with the Selective Service System within 30 days of their 18th birthday. Early registration in Florida included in driver’s license registration or register online at www.sss.gov
A wealth of information for special needs students of all ages at Homeschool Central http://homeschoolcentral.com/special
Home Education Foundation www.flhef.org
Q: If you have some insight into umbrella schools, dual enrollment, Florida Virtual School, college entrance, etc., would you mind sharing it with me?
A: As your student prepares for college in the state of Florida, there is a huge difference between being registered as a homeschooler under the superintendent and being in a private (umbrella) school.
A student registered with the superintendent has the easiest route because of the opportunities that homeschool lobbyist, Brenda Dickinson, www.flhef.org has forged for us.
We have graduated one son from UF, transferring with his AA from SFCC. It was very easy for him to get into SFCC. As a homeschool grad, he needed no transcripts and no diploma. All we needed to do was sign an affidavit showing proof he was registered with the superintendent. An applicant to SFCC takes the CPT (Computerized Placement Test). SFCC is very open to homeschoolers.
You’ll also find the dual enrollment dept at SFCC incredibly supportive of and helpful to homeschoolers. Our oldest two didn’t dual enroll, but the three next have, and all have had very positive experiences with the dual enrollment office. One tip we give parents before the dual enrollment appointment with their student is to make sure the student himself can carry on the conversation with the counselor about what classes he is wants to take, what his goals, etc. The counselor is entering into a relationship with your student where they are supposed to be assessing whether they think they will do well on campus, and helping them to make choices that will ensure their success, so they will be interviewing your student, rather than you, even though you are in the office with them.
Most homeschoolers are academically ready by 11th grade for junior college work and do well. But, we do give strong cautions about putting teens on any college campus before they are spiritually or emotionally ready. Good kids can and do crash and burn, so to speak, once they go from a very sheltered environment to no sheltering. Or from the opposite extreme of no sheltering at home to no sheltering on campus. They'll deal with 20-somethings sitting next to them who will be talking about who they slept with, etc. They will also have new access to drugs or alcohol – if they want to find them. We prayed that the Lord would give His personal direction to each of our kids. That direction turned out a little different for each one (some dual-enrolled, some didn't, one took CLEPS and passed, one tried CLEPS and failed, some took online college classes, some took online high school classes, one didn't go on campus until after high school graduation, one bypassed traditional college and did apprenticeship classes and work, one took an internship, etc.). But each one sensed they were following God's path - for them.
And then there is the material they have to study. If they attend any public college they will have to study objectionable material. They’ll be taught that homosexuality and sex outside marriage are normal, and if they have a different view, they'll be seen as homophobic and fringe. They'll also have to read some pretty sleazy stuff in ENC1101 and ENC1102, both required to get their AA. One of our students had a reading assignment in which the text was superimposed over a nude woman, so they were forced to see the nude in order to read the material. If they take psychology, they'll have to study Freud and his beliefs about the role of sex in every area of one's life. When one son was still 17, he was required to take part in class discussion in ENC1101 in which the reading was about a guy who had a sex change. If he didn't participate, his grade would have been marked down. He did, and did a good job, but he was definitely in the minority in his view and felt it. That can be good stretching, good training for our young people going out into a very dark culture that they are unfortunately inheriting in this age. If they can stand alone with a respectful attitude in a college classroom, they should be better equipped to handle the rest of the darkness they'll encounter in this age. But you need to know your student and know if they will be stretched and strengthened, or whether they’ll stumble and fall.
A couple of our kids delayed the campus environment by taking online courses while dual enrolled, so they earned the college credits, but got to stay home. The material was still objectionable, and it is harder to learn alone than having a classroom teacher give instruction, but it can work. We had two students who did well dual enrolling online, and one that never did well with online courses, and needed classroom instruction.
Another option is letting your student sit for CLEP tests where they can earn the college credit. Our oldest earned 18 college credits in one day, taking CLEPS. However, SFCC would only accept 3 of the math credits in the math department. The other 15 were accepted only as electives. In a way, we were actually were glad they didn’t accept them. It meant that Jon had to sit through 15 hours of classes he’s already CLEPPED, so they were an absolute breeze, which helped him to maintain a 4.0. And he didn’t have to take an additional 15 hours of new material to get his AA.
As far as FLVS, we’ve had 3 students take the SAT prep class and computer classes with them. We recommend the SAT prep course (excellent) and the computer course was very good, too.
I heard someone on Focus on the Family a few months ago talk about when to put a son or daughter into a secular school, and he gave a great measuring tool (I hope I can remember it!). He said to make sure their “GPA” was high enough. G is for their relationship with God – it has to be solid. P is for their relationship with their peers. They should be able to already stand alone under pressure, or they probably won’t handle the additional pressure along with additional temptations well. And A – hmmm, I can’t remember the word he used for A, but it had to do with their own self-image. They have to have a healthy view of themselves and feel loved and accepted by God and the people who love them to face the ones that don’t.
Needless to say, we stay a little nervous, quite on our toes (and knees), with each of our kids who attend public colleges. Our best advice is that we seek the Lord about their readiness for such an environment, and then we’re prepared to remove them from it their spiritual health or attitudes begin to slip. We almost did that with one of our most easily-influenced kids, but God helped him to rally, and learn to stand, so we let him continue and he did well. We also ask our teens to begin praying and hearing the Lord’s voice on his/her own, so they can discern God's direction for themselves, and then learn to stand on their own as they begin to leave the shelter of our homes.
If you find errors in this document or would like to add resources to it, please contact us at Bill@thefreemans.org or Mardy@thefreemans.org.
Special Thanks To ~ Brenda Dickinson of the Home Education Foundation for her tireless efforts in the Florida Legislature on behalf of Florida home education students, so much of which is reflected in the laws guaranteeing equal access for home education students, and for taking the time to proof-read, edit and comments to this hand-out. From all of us – Thank You! Stephanie Walker, Angie Priest and Joanna Priest for proofing all of the website addresses in an accurate and timely manner. The following individuals contributed information for this hand-out: Deborah Bahrs, Patti Ballard, Wanda Duchien, Jennifer Jacobs, Danielle Williams, and The Guide to Homeschooling in Alachua County, by Kathy Muni.
Admission to State University for Home education students
Home Ed. student not required to document 19 credits
Community colleges; admissions of students.
See www.flhef.org for more information.
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