MODEL POLICY GOVERNING STUDENTS'
RELIGIOUS
EXPRESSION IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS
ARTICLE I
STUDENT EXPRESSION OF
RELIGIOUS VIEWPOINTS
The school district
shall treat a student's voluntary expression of a religious
viewpoint, if any, on an otherwise permissible subject in the same
manner the district treats a student's voluntary expression of a
secular or other viewpoint on an otherwise permissible subject and
may not discriminate against the student based on a religious
viewpoint expressed by the student on an otherwise permissible
subject.
ARTICLE II
STUDENT SPEAKERS AT
NONGRADUATION EVENTS
The school district
hereby creates a limited public forum for student speakers at all
school events at which a student is to publicly speak. For each
speaker, the district shall set a maximum time limit reasonable and
appropriate to the occasion. Student speakers shall introduce:
(1) football games;
(2) any other
athletic events designated by the district;
(3) opening
announcements and greetings for the school day; and
(4) any additional
events designated by the district, which may include, without
limitation, assemblies and pep rallies.
The forum shall be
limited in the manner provided by this article.
Only those students
in the highest two grade levels of the school and who hold one of
the following positions of honor based on neutral criteria are
eligible to use the limited public forum: student council officers,
class officers of the highest grade level in the school, captains of
the football team, and other students holding positions of honor as
the school district may designate.
An eligible student
shall be notified of the student's eligibility, and a student who
wishes to participate as an introducing speaker shall submit the
student's name to the student council or other designated body
during an announced period of not less than three days. The
announced period may be at the beginning of the school year, at the
end of the preceding school year so student speakers are in place
for the new year, or, if the selection process will be repeated each
semester, at the beginning of each semester or at the end of the
preceding semester so speakers are in place for the next semester.
The names of the volunteering student speakers shall be randomly
drawn until all names have been selected, and the names shall be
listed in the order drawn. Each selected student will be matched
chronologically to the event for which the student will be giving
the introduction. Each student may speak for one week at a time for
all introductions of events that week, or rotate after each speaking
event, or otherwise as determined by the district. The list of
student speakers shall be chronologically repeated as needed, in the
same order. The district may repeat the selection process each
semester rather than once a year.
The subject of the
student introductions must be related to the purpose of the event
and to the purpose of marking the opening of the event, honoring the
occasion, the participants, and those in attendance, bringing the
audience to order, and focusing the audience on the purpose of the
event. The subject must be designated, a student must stay on the
subject, and the student may not engage in obscene, vulgar,
offensively lewd, or indecent speech. The school district shall
treat a student's voluntary expression of a religious viewpoint, if
any, on an otherwise permissible subject in the same manner the
district treats a student's voluntary expression of a secular or
other viewpoint on an otherwise permissible subject and may not
discriminate against the student based on a religious viewpoint
expressed by the student on an otherwise permissible subject.
For as long as there
is a need to dispel confusion over the nonsponsorship of the
student's speech, at each event in which a student will deliver an
introduction, a disclaimer shall be stated in written or oral form,
or both, such as, "The student giving the introduction for this
event is a volunteering student selected on neutral criteria to
introduce the event. The content of the introduction is the private
expression of the student and does not reflect the endorsement,
sponsorship, position, or expression of the school district."
Certain students who
have attained special positions of honor in the school have
traditionally addressed school audiences from time to time as a
tangential component of their achieved positions of honor, such as
the captains of various sports teams, student council officers,
class officers, homecoming kings and queens, prom kings and queens,
and the like, and have attained their positions based on neutral
criteria. Nothing in this policy eliminates the continuation of the
practice of having these students, irrespective of grade level,
address school audiences in the normal course of their respective
positions. The school district shall create a limited public forum
for the speakers and shall treat a student's voluntary expression of
a religious viewpoint, if any, on an otherwise permissible subject
in the same manner the district treats a student's voluntary
expression of a secular or other viewpoint on an otherwise
permissible subject and may not discriminate against the student
based on a religious viewpoint expressed by the student on an
otherwise permissible subject.
ARTICLE III
STUDENT SPEAKERS AT
GRADUATION CEREMONIES
The school district
hereby creates a limited public forum consisting of an opportunity
for a student to speak to begin graduation ceremonies and another
student to speak to end graduation ceremonies. For each speaker,
the district shall set a maximum time limit reasonable and
appropriate to the occasion.
The forum shall be
limited in the manner provided by this article.
Only students who are
graduating and who hold one of the following neutral criteria
positions of honor shall be eligible to use the limited public
forum: student council officers, class officers of the graduating
class, the top three academically ranked graduates, or a shorter or
longer list of student leaders as the school district may
designate. A student who will otherwise have a speaking role in the
graduation ceremonies is ineligible to give the opening and closing
remarks. The names of the eligible volunteering students will be
randomly drawn. The first name drawn will give the opening and the
second name drawn will give the closing.
The topic of the
opening and closing remarks must be related to the purpose of the
graduation ceremony and to the purpose of marking the opening and
closing of the event, honoring the occasion, the participants, and
those in attendance, bringing the audience to order, and focusing
the audience on the purpose of the event.
In addition to the
students giving the opening and closing remarks, certain other
students who have attained special positions of honor based on
neutral criteria, including, without limitation, the valedictorian,
will have speaking roles at graduation ceremonies. For each
speaker, the school district shall set a maximum time limit
reasonable and appropriate to the occasion and to the position held
by the speaker. For this purpose, the district creates a limited
public forum for these students to deliver the addresses. The
subject of the addresses must be related to the purpose of the
graduation ceremony, marking and honoring the occasion, honoring the
participants and those in attendance, and the student's perspective
on purpose, achievement, life, school, graduation, and looking
forward to the future.
The subject must be
designated for each student speaker, the student must stay on the
subject, and the student may not engage in obscene, vulgar,
offensively lewd, or indecent speech. The school district shall
treat a student's voluntary expression of a religious viewpoint, if
any, on an otherwise permissible subject in the same manner the
district treats a student's voluntary expression of a secular or
other viewpoint on an otherwise permissible subject and may not
discriminate against the student based on a religious viewpoint
expressed by the student on an otherwise permissible subject.
A written disclaimer
shall be printed in the graduation program that states, "The
students who will be speaking at the graduation ceremony were
selected based on neutral criteria to deliver messages of the
students' own choices. The content of each student speaker's
message is the private expression of the individual student and does
not reflect any position or expression of the school district or the
board of trustees, or the district's administration, or employees of
the district, or the views of any other graduate. The contents of
these messages were prepared by the student volunteers, and the
district refrained from any interaction with student speakers
regarding the student speakers' viewpoints on permissible subjects."
ARTICLE IV
RELIGIOUS EXPRESSION
IN CLASS ASSIGNMENTS
Students may express
the students' beliefs about religion in homework, artwork, and other
written and oral assignments free from discrimination based on the
religious content of the students' submission. Homework and
classroom work shall be judged by ordinary academic standards of
substance and relevance and against other legitimate pedagogical
concerns identified by the school. Students may not be penalized or
rewarded on account of religious content. If a teacher's assignment
involves writing a poem, the work of a student who submits a poem in
the form of a prayer (for example, a psalm) should be judged on the
basis of academic standards, including literary quality, and not
penalized or rewarded on account of its religious content.
ARTICLE V
FREEDOM TO ORGANIZE
RELIGIOUS GROUPS AND ACTIVITIES
Students may organize
prayer groups, religious clubs, "see you at the pole" gatherings,
and other religious gatherings before, during, and after school to
the same extent that students are permitted to organize other
noncurricular student activities and groups. Religious groups must
be given the same access to school facilities for assembling as is
given to other noncurricular groups, without discrimination based on
the religious content of the group's expression. If student groups
that meet for nonreligious activities are permitted to advertise or
announce the groups' meetings, for example, by advertising in a
student newspaper, putting up posters, making announcements on a
student activities bulletin board or public address system, or
handing out leaflets, school authorities may not discriminate
against groups that meet for prayer or other religious speech.
School authorities may disclaim sponsorship of noncurricular groups
and events, provided they administer the disclaimer in a manner that
does not favor or disfavor groups that meet to engage in prayer or
other religious speech.
