There is no other congressional topic that makes the average constituent’s eyes glaze over more than “appropriations.” Even we policy wonks would rather watch ice melt than comb through any kind of appropriations bill.
But control over appropriations, otherwise known as “the power of the purse,” is the power to decide how much money each federal agency gets, and what exactly they spend it on . . . and the power of the purse is Congress’s most essential job.
It’s up to Congress to use that power to hold federal agencies accountable—like the Department of Education, when they start pushing detrimental policies.
A Report Card for the DOE
One agency that has its own designated appropriations bill is the Department of Education (DOE). While the DOE’s policies do not directly impact homeschooling, the department is funded with our tax dollars. So, this is a good time to highlight the latest project that the DOE has spent those tax dollars on.
This spring, the Department of Education released four facts sheets to offer guidance to schools for “supporting students’ social, emotional, behavioral, and academic well-being and success.” That’s a worthy goal, but unfortunately, the DOE’s guidance is unlikely to actually do that.
One issue is that the fact sheets suggest using a system of discipline polices based upon race and gender identity. The Guiding Principles for Creating Safe, Inclusive, Supportive, and Fair School Guiding Principles for Creating Safe, Inclusive, Supportive, and Fair School Climates document suggest that “punishment-based” disciplines, such as suspensions and detention, “disproportionately affect students of color, students from low-income backgrounds, English learners, students with disabilities, and students who identify as LGBTQ.” Instead, schools should implement “restorative discipline.” Instead of using punishment as a means to correct bad behavior, restorative systems use staff-led mediation sessions to address conflicts or issues with the students.
If you’re skeptical about whether these sessions can actually reduce behavioral problems in schools, you’re right to doubt: school districts that followed the DOE’s advice and implemented restorative discipline saw an increase—not a decrease—in violent in-school conflicts.
Another one of the documents discusses how schools should handle family relationships and refers to parents as “partners, co-producers, and co-creators of excellent education for all students.” This is in line with what many politicians have said out loud in recent years, from former VA Governor Terry McAuliffe to President Joe Biden: parents should not have sole control over the upbringing of their children, especially when it comes to education. They can be “co-creators” of the children, but that’s where their influence should end.
Homeschooling families are, fortunately, not directly affected by these policies and what happens within the walls of the public schools. Parents know their kids better than anyone. Homeschool families don’t have to worry about being reduced to mere “partners” with the government when it comes to raising their children.
But our tax dollars directly fund these policies, and until that changes, we all have a vested interest in making sure that money is being spent wisely, rather than on policies that seek to remove parents from the equation. As legislators discuss how to fund the government next year, voters have an obligation to make sure they are crafting appropriations in a way that best serves the country and the next generation.