Pennsylvania Gov. Edward G. Rendell has signed into law a bill that lets the state’s 25,000 students who are taught at home take part in extracurricular activities at public schools.
Before the Democratic governor signed the law, 221 of the state’s 501 school districts barred home-schooled children from such activities, according to a statement from the governor’s office.
The law, which became effective as soon as it was signed on Nov. 10, requires home schoolers to meet the same eligibility requirements that public school students meet in order to participate in activities such as sports, clubs, theatrical productions, and music ensembles.
Pennsylvania joins 14 other states that require public schools to give home schoolers access to classes, extracurricular activities, or sports, according to the Home School Legal Defense Association in Purcellville, Va.
