NHEG EDGuide December 2016

NHEG’s Volunteer of the Month program recognizes the dedication and work of some of our most active volunteers. NHEG relies on volunteers to help with our education programs, our special events, public outreach, and other activities that help fulfill our mission of supporting literacy for children and adults by offering a range of educational support services. Contact us to learn more about volunteering. This month we recognize a special group of volunteers: those that have gone above and beyond what is needed in their everyday duties. NHEG is an all-volunteer organization. We have volunteers from all around the world! Ginnefine Jalloh Jenni Schreiber Aditi Chopra Marina Klimi Mike Anderson Sam Custer Roberta Perkins Brittany Brzezinski Daniela Silva Sheila Wright Shannon Williamson Kaden Behan Victoria Lowery Briana Dincher Priscilena Shearon Vanh Vue Savleen Grewal Jon Aitken William Naugle Enjoli Baker Robert Hall Kevin Adusei Tanu Tiwari Jyoti Dave Katie Gerken Kiyoko Green Pamela Unruh Julian Beck Alen Omeragic Nisha Zachariah Beth Barger Sathiyan Sivakumaran 14

Okay. So, like most experienced political people from all across the spectrum, I didn’t forecast the dramatic Trump victory. In defense of my prognostication abilities, I did tell my wife about two weeks before the election that I thought that Trump actually had a chance to win. That was the first time I had thought or said such a thing. So what does this mean for issues of concern to homeschooling families and related communities? 1. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and related treaties most likely will not see the light of day. The person leading the State Department’s transition team is Steven Groves, a long-term ally from the Heritage Foundation. Steve and I were the only two witnesses allowed to testify against the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. This is a strong signal that the State Department will move in a good direction on protecting American sovereignty. 2. We will need to exercise special diligence on judicial appointments. Historically, Republican appointments for federal judges are good in many sectors of constitutional law. However, GOP-appointed justices have been very unreliable on issues of parental rights and religious freedom. HSLDA will join with other religious freedom–oriented groups to ensure that these issues are given appropriate consideration in the process of vetting federal judges. 3. We cannot just assume that all will be well on education issues. Donald Trump has no experience or track record with education policy. There is some very early talk about an effort to actually close the United States Department of Education. That would be a wonderful miracle. It is fair to expect Trump’s team to take away any federal program that will promote the Common Core. This does not mean that states will automatically stop this program. But the federal financial incentives to do so should be halted. We can and must insist that the prohibitions on any federal role in homeschooling (which we first won in 1994) will be extended and hopefully put into permanent law. (Continued next page) 15