Dr. W.A. Kritsonis, Dissertation Committee for La'Shonte Nechelle Iwundu
Religion, Public School Law, Dr. W.A. Kritsonis
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Transcript of Religion, Public School Law, Dr. W.A. Kritsonis
8/14/2019 Religion, Public School Law, Dr. W.A. Kritsonis
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Religion inReligion inthethe
SchoolsSchools
Comunicación y Gerencia
Public School LawPublic School Law
William Allan Kritsonis, PhDWilliam Allan Kritsonis, PhD
Prairie View A & M UniversityPrairie View A & M University
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•Religion in the public school system
becomes more and morecontroversial due to diversity in
today’s family backgrounds and
beliefs.•Contemporary issues make it even
more difficult to draw the line
between what is legal and what is
not.
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Legal Framework
• Since our US Constitution and Bill of Rights
were written by our forefathers of this country, it
was apparent that they took the relationship
between government and religion seriously.• The First Amendment to the US Constitution
began with “Congress shall make no law
respecting an establishment of religion, or
prohibiting the free exercise thereof…”
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Provisions through the Fourteenth
Amendment: two components• Establishment clause: states that
“Congress shall make no law respecting
an establishment of religion”• Free exercise clause: states that “or
prohibits the free exercise thereof”.
• These provisions are also know as the“Jeffersonian Principle of separation of
church and state”.
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Landmark cases:
• Everson v. Board of Education (1947)- first major case involving the establishment clause and education.
• McCollum v. Board of Education (1948)• Zorach v. Clauson (1952)
Judges in these cases did not agree and
sometimes switched sides. Much criticismis targeted towards Supreme Courtdecisions and continues today.
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1787 Northwest Ordinance, 1st
federal act to aid in education• States that “religion, morality, and
knowledge being essential to good
government and the happiness of mankind, schools and the means of
education shall forever be encouraged”.
• This federal act aided Justices to developand set up guidelines to resolve
complicated church-state issues.
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These guidelines were known as
the “Lemon guidelines” 1st guideline: the purpose of a challenged law or
practice must be secular (not sectarian)
2nd guideline: the primary effect of the law or practice must be one that neither advances nor inhibits religion
3rd guideline: the law or practice must not involveexcessive entanglement between state and
church (aids private schools)**For a law to be constitutional, it had to passall three guidelines; a law must be neutralregarding religion; neither promoting or retarding it.
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Landmark cases involving Lemon
guidelines:• Agular v. Felton (1985)
• Lee v. Weisman, (1992)
• Board of Education of Kryas Joel Village School
District v. Grument (1994)
• Rosenberger v. University of Virginia (1995)
• Agostini v. Felton (1997)
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Free Exercise of Religion
• Under the free exercise clause, it assuresthat people shall be free to exercise their religious beliefs without government
restraint or persecution.• This applies to states and their political
subdivisions, including public school
districts, under the Fourteenth Amendment.• Yet, there are limits to what courts will
allow under the free exercise clause.
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Examples of where religion has its
limitations by:• Beliefs accompanied by actions-
ex. In Reynolds v. United States (1878) Based
on their belief, Mormons believe to have a right to polygamy, Congress has a right to prohibit its
practice.
• Sacrifices
• Heresy (United States v. Ballard, 1944)
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Provisions that
protect religion:• Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights ActTitle VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act• Chapter 21 of the Texas Labor CodeChapter 21 of the Texas Labor Code• § 106.001 of Title 5 of the Civil Practices and106.001 of Title 5 of the Civil Practices and
Remedies CodeRemedies Code• Texas Education CodeTexas Education Code § 25.90125.901• Texas Religion Freedom Act, Texas Legislature 1999Texas Religion Freedom Act, Texas Legislature 1999• The 1993 U.S. Supreme ruling-The 1993 U.S. Supreme ruling- Lamb’s Chapel v.Lamb’s Chapel v.
Center Moriches Union Free School District Center Moriches Union Free School District (prohibits(prohibitsschool officials from denying religious groups theschool officials from denying religious groups thesame access to school facilities afforded to other same access to school facilities afforded to other community organizations.community organizations.
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Other cases involving the free
exercise clause:• Milford Central School of Milford, New
York v. U.S. Supreme Court (2001)
• Campbell v. St. Tammany Parish SchoolBoard (2003)
• Roe v. Klein ISD (1982)
• Torcaso v. Watkins (1961)
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ContemporarContemporary Issuesy Issues
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The Pledge of
Allegiance• The Texas Education Code, TEC § 25.082, requiresstudents to recite the pledge of allegiance to both theU.S. and Texas flag in all public school systems.
• In 1954, Congress added “under God” following “onenation”.• This addition has created public debate.(ex. Goetz v.
Ansell, 1973; Elk Grove Unified Scool District v,Newdow, 2004).
• TEC § 1.004, permits public schools and institutionsof higher education to post the national motto “In God We Trust”.
* Today, this motto has not been declared unconstitutional.
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School Prayer • School-sponsored or Employee led prayer-arguments have
been advanced that prohibiting state-mandated prayer programs in public schools inhibits the religious freedom of those who wish to say such prayers.
Landmark cases:• Engel v. Vitale (1962), School District of Abington v.
Schempp (1963), Meltzer v. Board of Public Instruction andKaren B. v. Treen (1981), Doe v. Duncanville ISD, (1995)
• Yet, the law is clear that neither the public school nor itsemployees may sponsor prayer at school or at extracurricular activities and athletic events.
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School Prayer
(con’t)• Trying to bring prayer back into school,“silent meditationsilent meditation” ” was ruled in 1997 by theUS Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
in the Bown v. Gwinett County School Bown v. Gwinett County School case..
• Silent meditation authorizes public schoolsto set aside time for meditation or prayer,
protecting every student’s right to engage involuntary prayer.
h l
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School Prayer
(con’t)• Invocations, benedictions, religious speeches atgraduation and baccalaureate ceremonies
– The US Department of Education has issued religiouspractices guidelines that provide that “where studentsor other private graduation speakers are selected onthe basis of genuinely neutral, evenhanded criteriaand retain control over the content of their expression..that expression is not attributable to the
school and therefore may not be restricted because of its religious content”.
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Landmark cases:
• Marsh v. Chambers (1983)
• Jones v. Clear Lake ISD (1994)
• Harris v. Joint School District (1994)
• Ingebretsen v. Jackson Public School District (1996)• Doe v Santa FE ISD (1999)
Summary: Both the federal courts and the TEC recognizethat students can engage in personal prayer at school andat school-sponsored extracurricular and athletic events
separate and apart from school involvement.
hi
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Teaching
Creation-Science• The US Supreme Court found absence of
a secular purpose and a neutral effect in
teaching evolution in the public school
system in the Epperson v. Arkansas case(1968).
• Would it be the same if a teacher taught
the biblical perspective of creation in apublic school?
C th t i t t t thi
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Cases that points out to this
theoretical question:• In Edwards v. Aguillard (1987),the courts
settled and entitled that there were to be a
balance in the teaching of both creation and
evolution through the Creation-Science and
Evolution-Science Act ; prohibiting anyonefrom discriminating the Evolution-Science
under the basis of religion.
• It is important to note that a school district isnot confined to teaching only evolution.
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• Yet, in the case Peloza v. Capistrano Unified
School District, the lower courts ruled in favor
of the districts to confine a teacher’s teaching
to evolution and cease attempting to influence
students toward personal religious beliefs.
• In Webster v. New Lenox, a social studiesteacher tried to also teach creation as a
means to balance views, but was ruled by the
Seventh Circuit that the teacher did not have aFirst Amendment right to teach creation-
science.
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Secular Humanism
and Pagan Religion• “To require the teaching of every theory of
human origin, as alternative suggested by
plaintiffs, would be an unwarranted intrusion into
the authority of public school systems to control the academic curriculum”, decision note on
Wright v. Houston ISD (1972).
• Other similar cases: Smith v. Board of School
Commissioners of Mobile County (1987), Brownv. Woodland Joint Unified ISD
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Religion in Classrooms,Choir Programs, and
Holiday Observances• Legally, teaching about religion requires a curriculumthat does not favor or denigrate any particular religionor religion in general and teachers who remainneutral.(Hall v. Board of School Commissioners,
1981)• Teaching religion is acceptable ultimately if it is used
for the purposes of comparing theories, for its historiccontent, and for “ the relationship to the advancementof civilization” and if it promotes religious tolerance.
• Other cases: Zorach v. Clauson (1952), Herdahl v.Pontotoc County School District (1996)
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Six guidelines for teaching about
religion in the public school system:1. The school’s approach to religion must be academic, not
devotional.
2. The school may strive for student awareness of religion butshould not press for student acceptance of any one religion.
3. The school may sponsor study about religion but may notsponsor the practice of religion.
4. The school may expose students to a diversity of religiousviews but may not impose any particular view.
5. The school may educate about all religions but may notpromote or denigrate any religion.
6. The school may inform the student about various beliefs butshould not seek to confine him or her to any particular belief.
(*developed by seventeen religious and educational organizations)
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Clergy in the School • TEC § 37.102 allows the district to
establish rules to protect the welfare of
students.
• TEC § 37.105 allows the district to require
identification of all persons and to refuse
entry to persons without legitimate
business.
• Schools cannot give the appearance of
endorsing religion (Oxford v. Beaumont
ISD, 2002)
Di t ib ti f R li i
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Distribution of ReligiousLiterature
• It is impermissible that school personnel or outside organizations to distribute Bibles and
other religious material to public school students
on school grounds.• Yet, it is permissible to provide a place in a public
school where adherents of any faith may deposit
religious literature for voluntary student pickup.
• In 1992,in the case Clark v. Dallas ISD, a federal
judge ruled that a student may distribute religious
material being that this is within the ambit of the
First Amendment free speech clause.
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Wearing Religious
Symbols• Under Title VII of the 1964 Civil RightsAct, the school district must accommodatereasonable a teacher’s wearing of
religious symbols and attire unless itwould be undue hardship to do so. (U.S. v.Board of Education for the School Districtof Philadelphia)
• Students also have limited personalgrooming rights under federal and statelaw. (Alabama and Coushatta Tribes of
Texas v. Big Sandy ISD)
Student Religious
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Student ReligiousGroups and the Equal
Access Act • In the case Widmar v. Vicent (1981), the US Supreme Court upheld the right to student
groups to hold religious services in buildings
on a public university campus.• In 1984, Congress passed the Equal Access
Act which gives non-curriculum-related
student groups access to public secondary
schools during non-instructional time to
engage in religious, political, philosophical,
or other types of expression.
li i
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Religious
Exemptions• West Virginia State Board of Education v.Barnette (1943)- most celebrated caseCourt ruled that the school board count not compel
Jehovah’s Witnesses to salute the flag.
This case asserted that the government may never compel a person to profess a belief.
TEC §26.010 gives parents the right to requestexemptions from school activities to which theyobject on religious or moral grounds.
other cases: Wisconsin v. Yoder (1972), Davisv.Page (1974), Mozert v. Hawkins County Board of Education (1987).
e g ous
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e g ousExemptions (con’t)Congress enacted legislation in 1993 with the
Religious Freedom Restoration Act to protectreligious rights. This act:
– Provided that government shall not substantially
burden a person’s exercise of religion. – This act did not last long; this act was declared
unconstitutional (City of Boerne V. Flores (1997)
– Later in 1999, the Texas legislature entitle a similar
measure called the Texas Religion Freedom Act
(TRFA)- it gives both employees and students new
support for religiously motivated behavior.
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. Other provisions that grant exemptions for religious
reasons from school related requirements are:
– TEC §26.010 which gives parents the right to request anexemption from classroom moral beliefs, provided the parent
presents a written request and the purpose is not to avoid a
test or prevent a child from taking a subject for an entire
semester. (in 1999, legislature eliminated the written
request)
– TEC §25.087 requires school districts to excuse a student
from school for religious observances.
– TEC §38.001 grants an exemption from immunizations
requirements for students entering elementary or secondary
schools upon presenting an affidavit stating that the student
“declines immunization for reasons of conscience, including
religious beliefs”.
A i t t
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Assistance to
Sectarian Schools• Efforts have been made to have all students attend
public school (Pierce v. Society of Sisters,1995)
• Despite the rise of public schools, efforts have also
been made to find ways to aid private schools directly,or by providing tuition vouchers or tax credit for
students who enroll in these private schools.
• Only 11 percent of the total US school enrollment
attends private schools.
• 30 percent of the private schools are religiously
affiliated to the Roman Catholic religion.
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Conclusion•
We cannot ignore the fact that there is a “thinline” in the relationship between education andreligion.
• It is also clear that the US Constitution doesmandate that the public school system remain
neutral regarding religion, yet at the same time,both the US and Texas constitutions providestrong support for individual freedom of religiousbelief and exercise.
• Endorsing or accommodating religion make it
difficult for all levels where decision making isinvolved.
Personal thought:
“It is not religion, but a relationship that
determines that connection in our spiritual life