Poetry in motion: The tale of one homeschool family using the PEP scholarship

TAMPA – The poem is a father’s message to his son, that everything they do together will be a memory someday.

I’m going to love and hold you until you’re grown

for in a blink you'll be on your own.

Barbara Hamilton wrote the poem for her son, Ronald, when he was in the seventh grade. He recited it at the end-of-the-school-year celebration for homeschoolers. It’s based on Ronald’s interactions with his dad, Ron Sr. Everything the Hamiltons have done for their only son has been to prepare him for the time he will be off on his own, and that included his education.

Unhappy with his treatment by a classmate and what Barbara said was a lack of concern from administrators at his assigned district school near the family’s Tampa home, Barbara began homeschooling Ronald when he was in the second grade.

“Homeschooling wasn't good only for him, it was great for us because it exposed us to a totally different world and allowed us to think outside of the box,” Barbara said. “We don't have to go with the status quo. Yes, the government says your child must be educated, but there's another way you can do it.

“It just opened up a different world for us, and I have no regrets.”

Now a high school senior, Ronald, 17, uses a Personal Education Program (PEP) scholarship that comes with the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship (FTC), managed by Step Up For Students.

The scholarship is an education savings account (ESA) for students who are not enrolled full-time in a public or private school. It allows parents to customize their children’s education by allowing them to spend their scholarship funds on various approved, education-related expenses.

Barbara is thankful for the scholarship, which was created in time for the 2023-24 school year. But, like many parents who have homeschooled their children for years, she wishes it had been created a few years earlier.

“(Homeschooling) can pinch your wallet,” she said.

Yet, she is 100% confident that homeschooling was the right educational choice for Ronald. They tried traditional schools for kindergarten and first grade, but Ronald was bullied.

He also had a hearing impairment that went undetected until the fifth grade, when a homeschool evaluator raised her suspicion to Barbara. Barbara and Ron Sr. had suspected this for years, but doctors couldn’t find a defect. A hearing specialist in Colorado did, and Ronald now wears an ear filter that buffers loud sounds.

“Ronald’s hearing developed a little differently,” Barbara said. “Sound to him was extra loud. I noticed he covered his ears every time there was a loud noise.”

This made it difficult for Ronald to correctly hear what was being said in class. Barbara said the teacher, in a sign of indifference to Ronald’s struggle, moved his seat away from the other students, isolating him from his classmates, and adding to his trauma.

“He would come home, and his spirit would be downtrodden,” Barbara said. “So, I took it upon myself and pulled him out of that school. The Lord didn’t give him to you. He gave him to me, so I took the chance of educating him myself.

“We started on our journey, and it was peaceful. The house was happy. Ronald was happy.”

“Well,” Ronald said. “I'm going to be honest, it was kind of hard at times, but I got through it, and long term, it was actually beneficial.”

The hard times, Ronald said, came from the textbook Barbara initially used for her lessons. It was big and somewhat intimidating.

“It was gruesome,” Ronald said.

Barbara made the switch to Florida Virtual School. Ronald enjoyed the interaction with other homeschoolers. In the fifth grade, Ronald was introduced to the world of robotics.

“That motivated me to learn more about technology,” he said.

Ronald joined Tampa Bay HEAT (Homeschool Education Activities Team), where he met fellow homeschoolers and participated in sports and extracurricular activities.

He also became a member of a storytelling group in Hillsborough County. Barbara and Ron Sr. saw that as another step in their son’s development, because it allowed him to build the confidence that comes with speaking in front of groups.

So, when the Tampa Bay HEAT was looking for a student to speak at the end-of-year event, the coordinator, aware of Ronald’s storytelling ability, asked Ronald to be the guest speaker. After looking through family photos that reminded her of the interactions between Ron Sr. and Ronald, Barbara decided to write the poem, "A Father's Eyes."

“It dawned on me that Ronald is going to be mimicking with his children everything he does with his dad, and I was like, ‘Man, I need to capture that.’ So, I captured it,” Barbara said.

Ronald can still hear the reaction of those at the event.

“Everyone cheered,” he said.

And he can still recite some of the lines.

Now, catch the ball. Run, jump, laugh, & play

for this will be a memory one day.

Ron Sr. said the extra time he spent with Ronald is one of the benefits of homeschooling. For the physical education requirement, Ron Sr. taught Ronald how to play golf and tennis. In their spare time, the two searched the ponds, lakes, and streams near their home for the perfect fishing spot.

“We haven’t found it yet,” Ronald said.

“I can say this,” Ron Sr. said, “the more time with his family gave us more time to teach him family values and the in-between things about school, how to live, how to treat other people.”

PEP allowed Ronald to dual enroll at Hillsborough Community College. He will explore further education options once he completes his liberal arts degree. Right now, Ronald is leaning toward a career as an electrician. Ron Sr. thinks his son will one day own his own business.

Ronald said it’s possible that he could start his own business as a side hustle.

“That way I’ll have active and passive income,” he said.

James Herbert, Ronald’s eighth-grade science teacher from the Florida Virtual School, wrote a recommendation for Ronald to receive the Super Senior Award at Step Up For Students’ annual Rising Star event.

He wrote that Ronald has an “exemplary work ethic,” “high moral character,” and is “driven to succeed.”

“I am confident Ronald will continue to uphold these values as he takes on new challenges and opportunities,” he wrote.

This is what the Hamiltons wanted when Barbara exercised her right to education choice and homeschooled Ronald.

I’m amazed at whom you’ve become,

Simply viewing life from the eyes of my son.

Roger Mooney, manager, communications, can be reached at [email protected].