Family · Utica, NY Metro · August 19, 2026
NY School District Blocks Parents From Administering Homeschool Tests
Parents in the Edmeston Central School District in New York are protesting a new policy that bars them from serving as test administrators for their homeschooled children's annual assessments, according to Spectrum News 1. Superintendent Christine Nichols told families that assessment administrators must now be state-certified and unrelated to the student — a requirement not found in New York's homeschool statute but imposed as district policy. Mom Andrea Denekamp says hiring an outside administrator could cost close to $100 per hour, and because young children's tests are often split across multiple sessions, the expense compounds quickly. Her son Warren, entering his senior year, noted that without the district's letter of equivalence, employment opportunities become harder to secure. Denekamp and other parents have filed an appeal with the state education commissioner, which may not be resolved until spring. New York already requires homeschool families to submit seven pieces of documentation annually plus the assessment — and is described by researchers as the most regulated state in the nation for homeschooling, even as homeschool enrollment there has grown 178% over the past decade.
Source: Heartlander News
Why Bible-Believing Christians Should Care
Scripture assigns the primary duty of a child's instruction to parents, not the state (Deuteronomy 6:6-7). When a school district adds requirements beyond what state law demands — effectively pricing some families out of compliance — it quietly expands government control over an authority God gave to parents. This is not a case of secular hostility to religion explicitly, but it illustrates how administrative policy, unchecked, can erode parental rights that Christian homeschooling families depend on. Believers raising children according to biblical conviction should watch such district-level policy changes closely, since these local decisions — often made without legislative scrutiny — can quietly redefine the terms under which families are permitted to educate their own children at home.
And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children — Deuteronomy 6:6-7
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From the book
Parents have to regain control over what their children receive. Whether a family uses a Christian school, homeschools, or engages defensively inside the public system, the parent is the principal and the school is the delegate. Reject the expert wedge. Audit the curriculum. If a system denies the Imago Dei or the nature of truth at a foundational level, the parent has the sovereignty to remove the child or reform the system. We do not ask the state for permission to raise our children. We assert our jurisdiction.
— Chapter 18, “From Fortress to Base of Operations”
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