PA - Homeschoolers may win access to school clubs

State Senate panel has OK'd bill to compel all districts to open up.

By Christina Gostomski
Call Harrisburg Bureau

HARRISBURG | Public school clubs may soon have to remove their ''No homeschoolers allowed'' shingles.

A bill barring school districts from keeping homeschoolers out of extracurricular activities passed the Senate Education Committee last week, jumping what some say was a longstanding hurdle that has derailed similar bills for years.

''In the past, our committee didn't have seven or even six votes [in favor of such a bill]. That's the reason it never came for a vote,'' said David Broderic, executive director of the Senate Education Committee.

Senate Bill 361 would require school districts to allow the state's 24,415 homeschooled children to participate in extracurricular activities. Only about half of Pennsylvania's 501 school districts allow homeschoolers to join public school clubs and sports teams.