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I got a letter from my school district asking for information

Posted on by whpa-webadmin

You do not have to provide any information in answer to requests about “services for homeschoolers,” programs the district wants to provide, screening, “registering” your child, or information for a school census. You never have to give the names, birth dates, or other personal information about your children.

The information on the PI-1206 Homeschool Report form is a report of enrollment. Use of information from PI-1206 Homeschool Report forms for purposes other than record keeping is a violation of the federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act.

School Census requests:  It is a state law that school districts keep records.  The law does not require schools to send out census requests nor does it require anyone to respond to such requests.  Each school district receives the information from the PI-1206 Homeschool Report forms filed for their district. That information is all that is needed by the district.

If you receive requests like these, please do two things:

1) Forward the information to WHPA so we know where this is happening.

2) Please take the time to write a letter to your school district politely reminding them that the PI-1206 Homeschool Report is the only information a district is authorized to have from a homeschool. Here is a SAMPLE LETTER to offer some guidance. (Google Doc: SAMPLELETTER-DocRequest-08-2021) to offer some guidance.

View a flowchart (Google Doc: RespondingToContactFromSchoolDistrictFlowchart-08-2021) to help you make a decision about when to respond to school district contact.

WHPA provides information about homeschooling in Wisconsin. WHPA does not provide specific legal advice to any specific individuals in the context of any specific matters. It is the responsibility of each homeschool administrator/parent or guardian to read original source material and make decisions on compliance for themselves. When you file the PI-1206 Homeschool Report with the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, you take full responsibility for understanding and complying with the laws outlined on that form. WHPA does not endorse or provide curriculum suggestions or specific materials for any particular educational approach.