Michael "Mike" P. Farris
(born August 27, 1951) is a United States constitutional lawyer. He is a founder of the Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA) and Patrick Henry College.
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Personal life and education
Farris graduated
magna cum laude, with a degree in
political science, from
Western Washington University (formerly Western Washington State College). He received his
Juris Doctor and was an honors graduate of
Gonzaga University School of Law in
Spokane,
Washington.
He married in 1971 and has ten children and ten grandchildren.
[1] He and his wife Vickie began
home schooling in 1982, leading him to establish the
Home School Legal Defense Association in 1983.
He was also ordained as a
Baptist minister in 1983.
Career and achievements
In 1983 Farris founded the
Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA), for which he is
chairman and
general counsel as of 2005. His efforts resulted in a number of court rulings and changes in law involving home schooling.
He also founded
Patrick Henry College, which opened its doors in 2000, specifically for home-schooled Christian students. He held the positions of
president and professor of Government from 2000 to 2006. Farris resigned his position as president of HSLDA to take on these new roles. In March 2006, Farris stepped down from the position of president to become
chancellor of the college.
[2]
He has been appointed by the
Governor of Virginia to serve on the Board of Visitors for
Mount Vernon (the home of
George Washington).
Farris is also the author of several books on homeschooling and family as well as the book
From Tyndale to Madison
, published in 2007. He has also written a few
novels, including
Guilt by Association
(ISBN 978-0805401516), and
Forbid them Not
(ISBN 978-0805424331). All of Farris' novels deal with Christian themes.
Education Week
named Farris one of the most significant 100 "Faces of the Century."
Legal and political career
As a lawyer, Farris's cases include over 40 reported decisions as lead counsel. These decisions were given by the
United States Supreme Court, five U.S. circuit courts of Appeal, seven state Supreme Courts, and five state Courts of Appeal. Farris successfully argued for the petitioner in a religious freedom case, the
Supreme Court case
Witters v. Washington Department of Services For the Blind
in 1985-1986.
In 1993, Farris ran unsuccessfully for
lieutenant governor of
Virginia and was defeated by
Democrat Don Beyer — 54-46 percent. However, fellow
Republicans
George Allen, Jr., and
James Gilmore were elected on the same ballot as
governor and
attorney general, respectively. Farris' close connection to conservative leaders like
Jerry Falwell of the
Moral Majority,
Pat Robertson of the
Christian Coalition, and
Phyllis Schlafly of the
Eagle Forum, stirred deep-seated feelings about religion and politics. These concerns inflamed by negative ads by Beyer to portray him even more radically, likely caused alienation of enough moderate voters to lose him the election.
[3] There was also soreness among Virginia Republicans for
U.S. Senator John Warner's lack of support for Farris.
Farris was the founder and chairman of the
Madison Project, a
political action committee. He is also the founder of
Generation Joshua, an organization for the mobilization of
Christian youth to participate in politics and get out the vote. In 2007, he founded
ParentalRights.org, a
parental rights advocacy group.
References
- Michael_P._Farris
- ''Farris Assumes New Responsibility'' - Patrick Henry College news 2/28/06
- ''Don Beyer, Mike Farris, and the Wizard of Oz; how the election for Lt. Governor of Virginia became a testing ground for the Christian right'' - Campaigns & Elections Dec-Jan 1993