Education

By Hemant Mehta A week after Mike Pence delivers a commencement address at Liberty University (where else?), he’ll be giving another one at Taylor University, a small Christian school in Upland, Indiana. That doesn’t sit well with everyone at the school, though. They have no problem with an evangelical Christian speaker, of course, but unlike Liberty, they have …

By Jennifer Pignolet A national group that advocates for the separation of church and state in schools is threatening legal action over a morality clause in a lease agreement between a group of Memphis charter schools and the Catholic Church. The clause, agreed to by charter schools operating on Catholic Church property, would prohibit any …

By Alex Bollinger A Catholic school in Ohio is suing over a municipal law that bans discrimination against LGBTQ people. South Euclid, a suburb of Cleveland, passed an ordinance last year that banned discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in employment, housing, and public accommodations. The ordinance has an exemption for any “religious …

By Hemant Mehta There’s a bill currently making its way through the Washington state legislature that seems sensible on the surface but could open the door to a lot of problems. SB 5166 is basically meant to give “religious accommodations” for postsecondary students. For example, they shouldn’t be punished for missing an exam that falls on a religious …

By Hemant Mehta South Dakota will require all public schools to display “In God We Trust” signs in a prominent place beginning next school year, after Republican Governor Kristi Noem signed Senate Bill 55 yesterday. Whether to require the display was a sticking point between the Senate and the House during the legislative session. The Senate Education Committee changed the bill’s …

By David G. McAfee A bill sponsored by a Missouri legislator would allow public school districts to offer elective Bible classes to students. HB 267 wouldn’t force districts to offer the classes like a similar bill in Florida, but it still opens the schools up to possible legal troubles if the classes aren’t taught objectively. The legislation — …

By David G. McAfee A judge in New York has ruled against anti-vaxxer parents who want to send their unvaccinated kids to school during a measles outbreak. More than 40 unvaccinated students were banned from the private Green Meadow Waldorf School in Rockland County, where local residents are currently experiencing a measles outbreak. Several parents …

By Moriah Balingit and Morgan Smith Education Secretary Betsy DeVos announced this week she would no longer enforce a rule that bars religious institutions from providing certain taxpayer-funded services in private schools, saying the restriction ran afoul of a recent high-court decision. Under the federal education law, private schools are entitled to many of the …

By Curt Anderson TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Legislation that would require all Florida public high schools to offer elective courses on the study of the Bible won approval Thursday in a House committee but still faces many hurdles and constitutional questions before it could become law. The bill sponsored by Democratic Rep. Kimberly Daniels of …

By Michael Stone Destroying public education: Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos is demanding $5 billion in taxpayer money go to fund private, religious schools. The New York Times reports: Education Secretary Betsy DeVos on Thursday pitched a $5 billion federal tax credit that would fund scholarships to private schools and other educational programs… And Common Dreams reports: The …

By Hannah Brashers Last month, self-described “exvangelical” and writer Chris Stroop coined the hashtag #ExposeChristianSchools. The hashtag was in direct response to the news that Karen Pence had taken a job at a Christian school infamous for its discrimination against LGBTQ students. #ExposeChristianSchools quickly exploded on Twitter into a collection of personal stories, highlighting the dangers posed …

By Hemant Mehta A high school pre-AP Biology teacher in Kentucky has been accused of promoting Christianity in the classroom, and you don’t have to take my word for it, because there’s video evidence. Where there are apparently multiple instances of this happening, one particular incident was caught on tape. It began when the teacher …