Rep. Koehler Introduces Bill Expanding Access to College Credits for Home-Educated Students

COLUMBUS—State Representative Kyle Koehler (R-Springfield) has introduced legislation that will provide greater access to the College Credit Plus Program for home-educated students.

House Bill 399 seeks to address a funding issue in the program for those students in order to meet the growing demand for state support by home-educated families. Under a recent restructuring of College Credit Plus and because of limited funds, many home-educated students were left out of the opportunity to receive state funding to take college level classes. Because of the lack of funds, only home-educated seniors received assistance this year, while their public school counterparts received funding for all students in high school and junior high school (grades 7-12).

"The home-educated students of taxpaying families in Ohio deserve similar access to funds for college classes as their public school counterparts. By repurposing state dollars already intended for the education of Ohio students, home-educated students will have the same opportunities to earn college credit while still in high school," Koehler said.  "Most home-educating families, while paying the same taxes as other families, forego the idea of a two-income household to give their children the benefit of one-on-one instruction.  This will definitely help as they prepare for college."

Based on the estimated number of requests for next year, the Ohio Department of Education says that additional funding will be needed to satisfy the demand for students’ requests for the College Credit Plus Program. HB 399 addresses this funding need, but will not increase line-item spending or create a new appropriation. Rather, it repurposes state dollars that have already been appropriated.

House Bill 399 will be referred to a committee in the coming weeks.