EGERIA, WV (LOOTPRESS) – Seventeen years ago, Beckley native Jamie Buckland was encouraged by her son’s kindergarten teacher to reconsider homeschooling him in 1st grade.
Buckland says that it’s been her experience that some certified teachers have a really hard time trusting that someone without higher education is in a position to educate their own child.
“Looking back, she was right. I recall a mentor correcting me for using an objective pronoun in place of a nominative pronoun after I’d been homeschooling for 6 years. I realized I needed to be taught more than I needed encouragement,” Buckland said.
Over the next decade, Buckland helped launch a handful of academic communities in Raleigh County.
In 2016, Buckland teamed up with local author S.D. Smith to launch Appalachian Classical Academy, where she would serve as a tutor in Latin, logic, and literature, and as headmistress for 7 years.
“I learned a lot, right alongside my children. Families not only need the right to educate outside of conventional systems, they need the resources,” Buckland said.
“Hope Scholarship isn’t perfect, but it is a partial solution in that it provides a vehicle for many families to outsource academic instruction and experience unconventional education.”
Buckland came onto the policy scene in 2019 when she was appointed Legislative Liaison for R.E.A.C.H.
They were able to mobilize parents and get the initial sports access bill for homeschoolers passed in the 2020 session.
“Passing policies like sports access and Hope, that’s just the beginning. In the late summer 2020, my mother passed away. Days later, I got a text asking for help from a family whose son had been pulled off the field at practice and told he couldn’t wear a jersey or be allowed in the team photo. Initially, I said no, but then I learned this family was in a heated battle with an attendance director, had consulted an attorney, and had been told by everyone, including the WVSSAC, that the student was not eligible,” Buckland stated.
“So, I said yes. Within days, the decision was reversed, and the kid was back on the field. That kid is Caleb Young from Fairmont Senior High School.”
The work of helping families navigate sports access would become the foundation for the work of West Virginia Families United for Education, which helps families navigate their school options, including the Hope Scholarship.
The organization was founded two years ago by Buckland.
The passage of Education Savings Accounts in 2023 has gained a lot of attention nationally, but Buckland says no ESA is the same.
“It’s complicated. There are characteristics of ESAs, and those look very different from state to state, as they should. What works in AZ may not work in WV. WV’s program, although our dollar amount is considerably lower, has so much potential. With that in mind, I think the rest of the country has a lot to learn from WV’s experience,” Buckland said.
Apparently, Buckland isn’t the only one who thinks that. At The International School Choice and Reform Conference held in Madrid in early January, Buckland was a panelist for a session titled, “Navigating Challenges Caused by the Success of ESA Proposals.”
ISCRC says its goal is to connect scholars who engage in rigorous research about school choice in ways that can illuminate current policy debates.
“It was an honor, and I hope that my contributions did provide insight into current policy debates. A trend I’ve noticed nationally is that programs which restrict usage to only accredited private schools, like IA, have the ability to be more broad in eligibility, meaning no prior public school enrollment, but then states which go broad in usage may have a cap on eligibility, like UT,” Buckland explained.
“In comparison to national programs, WV’s Hope Scholarship is impressive; it’s considerably expansive on both eligibility and usage. But there is work to do, here and across the nation. If we keep passing policies where fraud prevention, politics, and government affairs are prioritized over families during implementation, I’m afraid this movement isn’t going to live up to its potential.”
The motivation to equip parents is why West Virginia Families United for Education is hosting the 2nd annual Beckley School Fair in collaboration with National School Choice Week at the Beckley Raleigh County Convention Center this Saturday, January 20th, from 11-2.
“We get dismissed a lot, those of us in southern WV. I want to flip that on its head and show that parents and grandparents here are looking to be more informed on their school options. Our role is just to make that easier for them to do.”
Saturday’s event will have something for everyone, over 70 exhibitors, including virtual schools, public schools, charter schools, private schools, homeschool organizations, and more.
There will be 2 gaming trailers, face painting, plenty of interactive games for students, free snacks, and workshops, including “Hope Scholarship 101” by Deputy Treasurer of Savings Programs Amy Willard.
They are also giving away over $3,000 in Amazon gift cards to students and teachers from public, private, and homeschools in addition to other prizes.
To see a complete list of what you can expect, and to reserve your free tickets, you can visit the registration page.
