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The Utah Home Education Association is established primarily to
support the education of children in the home as a viable alternative
to the existing public and private educational system. We stand
in agreement with the decision of the United States Supreme Court in
Pierce v. Society of Sisters , 268 U. S. 510 (1925) that 'the
fundamental theory of liberty upon which all governments of this union
repose excludes any general power of the state to standardize its
children by forcing them to accept instruction from public teachers
only. The child is not the creature of the state. We believe
that all branches and forms of education should be maintained primarily
for the benefit of the child, the protection of a free society, and
support and strengthening of the family, and that it is the right of
all parents to choose, according to individual need and desire, the
most beneficial form of education for their children. We believe
that home education is neither an escape from responsibility nor a
simplistic alternative to a child's education, but requires careful
consideration of each child's needs, critical self-analysis on the part
of the parents, and a mature commitment to each child's continuing
education. We neither approve of nor support radical education
and extreme attitudes and behavior regarding education, but choose
instead to maintain a responsible viewpoint. We cannot support families
who withdraw their children from public or private schools for any
other purpose than to properly educate them in the home.
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