He also proposed permitting parents to put aside up to $500, free of tax, to pay for primary and secondary education in parochial and other private schools.

Lobbied successfully for "V-chip" technology in television sets, permitting parents to block shows deemed too violent or sexually explicit.

The Arkansas Department of Human Services refused, citing a policy against permitting foster parents to adopt.

"I just don't permit parents to in effect wash their hands of their responsibility," Judge Conese said.

Permitting parents to exclude their children will not derail the plan, he conceded.

The school has tried to prevent some teen-age angst by not permitting parents and their children in the same classroom.

The Runyon ruling permitted black parents to sue a private school for denying their children admission on the basis of race.

The Early Church permitted and encouraged parents to present their children to receive communion.

Alternatively, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania permits parents to home school their children or they may attend a private school.

The school system offers another clue: Since 2004, the Ministry of Education has issued 39,554 letters permitting parents to take their children's academic records abroad.