Attorney Michael P. Donnelly, Esq.:  Homeschool Conference Speaker and Workshop Leader Details

• College: Alternatives and Application
• Family: Advice to Fathers/Men
• Homeschooling: Legal Issues
• Homeschooling: Single-Parent Homes

For You, Dad: Leading Your Homeschool Family
In most homeschooling families, Mom carries the biggest burden. How can we influence our families as God intends when we are gone all day earning a living, as well as being asked to serve in our churches and communities. In this session, we will discuss how to keep Kingdom priorities in home schooling and offer practical ideas to balance the increasing demands on our time and resources.

Homeschooling as a Single Parent
Homeschooling can be challenging even when Mom and Dad are pulling together with a common vision. How is it possible for single parents to manage the demands of providing for, protecting and educating a homeschooling family? Mike was raised in a singleparent home and will share his research and thoughts on how hundreds of single moms and dads are able to keep homeschooling on their own.

Knock, Knock! There’s a Social Worker at the Door—What Are You Going to Do?
There is no need to fear if you understand your rights, the law and how to manage the interaction with these government workers. They have a job to do—and so do you! Come hear an HSLDA attorney and homeschooling father discuss the most frequent issues homeschoolers face when dealing with school superintendents, principals and social workers.

Juggling on a Tightrope
Today’s father has precious few waking hours that are spent going in countless directions to address seemingly great causes—not the least of which is his family. Our children have only one earthly father and our wives but one husband. How can we best invest this most precious resource? And where should we be investing for the most eternal value? Come hear thoughts on answering these and many more questions from Mike as he shares insights gained from his experiences as a father of six and as an army officer, entrepreneur, company executive and attorney.

Leaders' Conference: Elites to Homeschoolers: “You’re Next!”
Increasing numbers of intellectual elites are calling for dramatic regulation and even eradication of private and home education. Although the U.S. Supreme Court has recognized parents’ rights to direct the education and upbringing of their children, American homeschoolers need to prepare to confront growing resistance to freedom in education—especially homeschooling. Come hear Mike Donnelly, HSLDA attorney, director of international relations and homeschooling father, as he examines this growing threat and what American homeschoolers need to do to meet it.

Why Homeschool?
Homeschooling works. Studies show that homeschooled children perform 20–30 points higher than their peers on standardized tests, and that homeschoolers are more civic-minded and socially prepared to deal with the “real world.” Homeschooling also protects children from negative cultural influences rampant in public schools. These are all valid reasons to homeschool, but there is one reason more important than any of them. Come hear more in this talk by HSLDA attorney and homeschooling father Michael Donnelly.

Parents’ Rights—A Crisis Is Coming
In 1923, the United States Supreme Court ruled that parents have the fundamental right to direct the education and upbringing of their children. So why are parental rights suddenly endangered? Come hear HSLDA attorney and homeschooling father Michael Donnelly discuss the next biggest threat to homeschool freedom and what you can do about it.

Forging Ahead—Apprenticeships in the 21st Century
College? Homeschoolers may be better prepared for it than many other college-bound teens, but that doesn’t mean they should automatically get sucked into the “college conveyor belt.” But if not college, what do we do with our bright, well-educated, well-socialized homeschooled students? And where do we find resources and apprenticeships to help guide homeschoolers through this process of vocational preparation and calling? Get practical tips and insightful advice in this talk by HSLDA attorney and homeschooling father Michael Donnelly.

Is Today’s Military Right for my Child?
Serving in the United States Military is generally considered patriotic and an honorable profession. Is it still? Changes in society are reflected in the military. How can this impact a parents view of service in the military today? What is involved in serving in the military and how should parents mentor their children in viewing service in today’s military? Michael Donnelly is an HSLDA Attorney and homeschooling father of seven who served as a platoon leader in combat during Desert Storm with the US Army’s Third Armored Cavalry Regiment.

A Hitlerian Legacy? Germany’s Treatment of Homeschooling
German homeschoolers are threatened with fines, jail and worse. If homeschooling is a human right, why does a civilized nation treat homeschoolers like this? What are parallel societies and why are German judges and policy makers so afraid of them? Is the German homeschool experience the edge of night for America? Could this pernicious German philosophy make its way across the Atlantic to America and re-impose the difficult early days of American homeschooling? What is HSLDA doing to support positive change for our brother and sister homeschoolers in Germany, and what can you do to help?

• Homeschooling father, with seven children
• HSLDA representative for Colorado, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Hampshire, Ohio, Utah, Vermont, West Virginia, Wyoming, and the District of Columbia.
• Helps support persecuted homeschoolers in the Federal Republic of Germany through his position as director of international relations for HSLDA.
• Adjunct professor of government at Patrick Henry College
• juris doctorate from Boston University School of Law, and graduated with with honors, as a Paul J. Liacos Scholar
• Former United States Army cavalry officer