From today’s Spartanburg Herald-Journal…
A federal district court ruled last week that a lawsuit involving two local parents and Spartanburg School District 7 will move forward, despite motions for dismissal by the district.
The plaintiffs argue that a religious education course offered to Spartanburg High students is unconstitutional, not because of the course itself, but because of credit offered. The course, offered for the past two years, is held next door to the high school at St. Christopher’s Episcopal Church. Spartanburg County Bible Education in School Time (SCBEST) teaches the course, and credit is transferred to Spartanburg High from Oakbrook Preparatory School, a private school in Spartanburg.
Robert Moss and Ellen Tillett, both parents of students at Spartanburg High School, along with the Wisconsin-based Freedom from Religion Foundation filed suit against the district in June. The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, a Washington-based law firm, is representing the district.
I’m sure others will disagree, but in my opinion the course in question is a clear violation of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. Granting credit for a release time course that, according to the original Herald-Journal article, in part “aids students in examining how to live as Christians” sounds an awful lot like granting credit for religious teaching that would be more at home in Sunday School.
Try as I might, I don’t see the compelling educational reason for granting school credit for a religious lesson. It would be one thing to teach a secular course on bible history for credit, and it also wouldn’t be a problem if the release time for a course studying “how to live as a Christian” didn’t give school credit. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with a religious education, but that education should take place in the proper forum. Our public schools are not that forum.
The fact that this lawsuit is moving forward is probably a good indicator of the court’s thinking on this issue. Here’s hoping we can keep the theology in the religious schools and Sunday schools, and let the public schools stick to educating our children.
Christopher George
Arguably, the way this course would violate the Establishment Clause would be if a similar, non-Christian group (such that it existed…say like a “Spartanburg Hebrew Education group”) followed the exact same procedure (as laid out by D7, I assume) that SCBEST did to establish a course for credit in Judaism and Jewish life–but was denied by D7 from offering the Jewish course for elective credit that otherwise met the district’s criteria. Then there would be a First Amendment issue. Oh, and if the Christian course was a mandatory part of the curriculum as opposed to an elective course, then there would be another First Amendment issue.
I agree, Chris. Issuing an elective unit of credit is what makes this questionable. Would a program provided by a Catholic priest or a Jewish rabbi be given equal consideration? Better to leave religious instruction, other than biblical history, out of public education. I wouldn’t want my own child enrolled in this course, knowing the differences among all the myriad Christian churches in our area. Not all denominations are made to feel welcome or comfortable even in the extra-curricular Fellowship of Christian Students organizations.