09/07/2026
๐๐๐๐๐ฟ๐ผ ๐๐จ ๐๐ก๐ค๐จ๐๐ก๐ฎ ๐ฌ๐๐ฉ๐๐๐๐ฃ๐ ๐จ๐๐ซ๐๐ง๐๐ก ๐ฅ๐๐๐๐๐จ ๐ค๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ง๐๐ก ๐ก๐๐๐๐จ๐ก๐๐ฉ๐๐ค๐ฃ ๐ฉ๐๐๐ฉ ๐ฌ๐ค๐ช๐ก๐ ๐ซ๐๐จ๐ฉ๐ก๐ฎ ๐๐ข๐ฅ๐ง๐ค๐ซ๐ ๐ก๐๐๐๐ก ๐ฅ๐ง๐ค๐ฉ๐๐๐ฉ๐๐ค๐ฃ๐จ ๐๐ค๐ง ๐๐ค๐ข๐๐จ๐๐๐ค๐ค๐ก๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐๐ข๐๐ก๐๐๐จ.
As you may know, weโve been working with lawmakers on the Home School Graduation Recognition Act and the COMPASS Act. The Home School Graduation Recognition Act seeks to ensure that homeschool high school diplomas are treated the same as public and private high school diplomas, and the COMPASS Act will safeguard military homeschooling families when they move to various states on military orders.
๐๐ฉ๐๐ฃ๐๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ช๐ฅ ๐๐ค๐ง ๐๐ง๐๐๐ช๐๐ฉ๐๐จ
The need to affirm the validity of homeschool diplomas arises from a long history of battling discrimination.
As homeschooling became more popular in the 1980s and 1990s, there were many questions about whether homeschool graduates could access federal student aid and attend colleges and universities.
To protect homeschool graduates from unfair treatment, HSLDA worked with our friends in Congress to amend the Higher Education Act in 1998. This groundbreaking amendment made it clear that homeschool high school graduates are eligible for federal student aid.
But there was a wrinkle: homeschooling was still viewed with suspicion even in 1998, and Congress placed the eligibility language for homeschool students under a heading intended for students โWho Are Not High School Graduates.โ This header language has caused confusion for decades, even though the underlying law and guidance from the US Department of Education make clear that homeschool high school graduates are eligible for federal student aid.
We have seen instances where institutions of higher educationโmost notably trade schools, cosmetology schools, and the University of Phoenixโrefuse to accept homeschool high school graduates, most often motivated by fear that homeschool graduates are not technically high school graduates under federal law.
The bill now before the Senate will simply change the header to โFrom Non-Traditional Settingsโ and clarify that homeschool graduates are high school graduates, deserving of the same treatment as graduates from public or private schools.
๐๐๐จ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐๐ง๐๐จ๐๐๐ฅ๐จ ๐๐ค๐ง ๐๐ช๐ง ๐๐๐ฉ๐๐ค๐ฃโ๐จ ๐ฟ๐๐๐๐ฃ๐๐๐ง๐จ
Likewise, the COMPASS Act seeks to alleviate some of the obstacles military families face when it comes to educating their children.
Our men and women in uniform move frequently, and with these moves come additional challenges. For military members with families, one of these complications is switching schools. Military homeschooling families must learn the homeschool laws of each new state while also setting up a new house and managing everything else that comes with a move.
The COMPASS Act would allow homeschooling families moving on military orders to choose whether to follow the homeschool laws of their state of permanent residence or those of the state they are moving to. This is optional, and families choosing to participate in classes or sports in their local district will likely need to comply with the homeschool laws of their new state.
For more information, check out this op-ed from HSLDA Director of Legal and Legislative Advocacy Kevin Boden, who is also a lieutenant colonel in the Alaska Air National Guard.
๐๐๐๐ง๐ ๐๐๐๐ฃ๐๐จ ๐๐ฉ๐๐ฃ๐
The Home School Graduation Recognition Act (H.R. 6392/S. 3747) has unanimously passed the US House of Representatives and the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee. All that remains is final passage by the full Senate before it is sent to the president to be signed into law.
The COMPASS Act (H.R. 9351/S. 4783) has been introduced in the House of Representatives and the US Senate but has not yet been attached to the annual military spending and policy bill, the National Defense Authorization Act.
We encourage advocates of homeschool freedom to contact their US senators to help advance these bills. Now is a good time to try to reach your senators in your state, as the Senate is in recess until mid-September.
๐Read the article here: ๐https://chaponline.com/2026/09/05/hslda-two-bills-boosting-homeschool-protection-now-in-us-senate/
