by Zan Tyler
Editor’s Note: Zan Tyler will be one of the speakers at our last Leadership Conference of 2024 on Friday, August 23 in San Diego. We hope you will be able to join us to hear more she has to share with those who lead homeschool groups or are interested in doing so.
“Well, Mrs. Tyler, you know I can have you put in jail for truancy.” I was sitting across the desk from the state superintendent of education when he spoke these chilling words. And the sheer feeling of panic and fear that engulfed me and penetrated my soul are emblazoned in my memory as if it happened yesterday.
This was August of 1984 and the state superintendent was threatening me with jail for fighting for my right to homeschool our oldest son Ty. I had never even heard of homeschooling until five months earlier when a dear friend gave me Dr. Raymond Moore’s book Homegrown Kids.
I had resisted God’s leading to homeschool for three months—this was 1984 after all, and I didn’t know one person in the whole wide world who was actually homeschooling. But God literally backed me into a corner, and homeschooling became my only choice for Ty when I considered what was best for him—not for me, or the school district, or anybody else.
As I pondered this threat of jail, I kept thinking—This is America. I am a law-abiding citizen trying to do the best thing for my child, and I’m being threatened with jail for it. How can that be? How can this be happening in the land of the free? What did I do wrong?
My mind drifted back to a similar problem I encountered as a teen. I was a model high school student and citizen. And I even had the awards to prove it—one was Governor of Girls State and the other was the South Carolina Citizen of the Year. So when my name was called over the PA system one day to report to the principal’s office, I wasn’t concerned at all. Turns out, the principal had called me into his office to address a group of people from the community who had registered a complaint against me because I had offended them the night before.
As a cheerleader, I had been asked to give the invocation at the high school football game. This was a large school of about 3,000 students and the football games were huge events. When I prayed, I thanked God for Jesus—His life, death, and resurrection—and prayed in His name.
I had offended the group assembled in the principal’s office by speaking of Jesus and praying in His name, and they wanted an apology. I couldn’t give it. I told them I could not apologize for what I believed and how I prayed. The room was silent. I actually don’t remember what happened after the silence. I just remember, in that quiet moment, wondering how in the world they were going to punish me. In the end, they just let me go.
The situation with the state superintendent was similar, but had a different ending. It was like being called into the principal’s office, but this time he didn’t just want an apology, he demanded an action—I was to stop my homeschooling pursuit—to stop following my conscience and what I believed was best for my child—or else go to jail. Again, the answer was no. I could not apologize for what I believed God was calling me to do, nor would I stop because of his threat of jail. So I replied, “Well, you will just have to put me in jail then.” And I stood up and left.
After this confrontation, I didn’t go back to class as I had in high school; I went back to my car and sobbed hysterically. There were no support group leaders to call, no state homeschool organizations to go to. No HSLDA member’s number to call if you were threatened. I felt all alone. And what would happen to my kids when I went to jail?
God intervened for me through the actions of my father and U.S. Senator Strom Thurmond, and I never went to jail. But I did spend the next eight years of my life fighting for homeschool freedoms in South Carolina. And really, I have spent most of my adult life devoted to homeschooling—whether homeschooling my own children, lobbying at the state and national levels, or producing resources that encourage, empower, and equip homeschooling parents.
But it was my close encounter with jail that began a new journey for me forty years ago—that of studying in earnest the lives and writings of America’s Founding Fathers. All of a sudden, I understood their motivations, passions, and grievances more fully. I didn’t value my freedom until it was threatened. As corny and melodramatic as it sounds now and as scared as I was then, when I took my stand and told the state superintendent that he would just have to put me in jail, I felt a little like Patrick Henry when he said, “Give me liberty or give me death!” It was a defining moment in my life.
And then I met Mike Farris.
Mike was the founder of Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA) and Patrick Henry College. He is a powerful champion for freedom because he understands not only the passions and motivations of our Founding Fathers, but he understands America’s founding documents as well. His respect for and understanding of the Constitution have provided the foundation for his work to win and preserve homeschool freedom.
Mike’s life is dedicated to a revival of American liberty based on a true understanding of the U. S. Constitution. One of my favorite quotes of his is the following:
The Constitution is not a document whereby an all-powerful government grants certain rights and privileges to its citizens. No, it’s the other way around. The Constitution is a document whereby the citizens of the United States grant certain authorities and powers to their government. “We the people” aren’t passive recipients of rights granted in the Constitution. “We the people” are the actors, the initiators in this exchange.
I had to be threatened with jail before I committed to study and understand the powerful principles of freedom upheld by the Constitution. My hope is that you won’t be as slow as I was to understand the current threats to our freedoms and the importance of understanding the Constitution.
As Mike says, we need to train up a new generation of students ”who will stand up, speak up, and show up in the ordinary processes of political action to do something that is truly extraordinary—help return this nation to a constitutional government.”
Will you be part of the process of training a new generation of leaders?
Homeschooling is a remarkable way to help accomplish this task. If you are interested in knowing more about homeschooling, contact your statewide homeschool organization through homeschoolfreedom.com/resources.
About Zan
Zan Tyler is an inspirational speaker, author, and podcaster, as well as a consultant for BJU Press Homeschool, the founder of the South Carolina Association of Independent Home Schools (SCAIHS), and a relentless advocate for homeschool freedom. She considers the 21 years she and her husband, Joe, spent homeschooling their own three children from kindergarten through high school to be one of the greatest privileges of her life. Zan is the host of the Zan Tyler Podcast where each week she and a special guest share real encouragement, engaging stories, and practical wisdom for surviving and thriving on the homeschool journey.
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