Reviewing Your Religion Policy
As we enter the holiday season, we thought it was an appropriate time to review requirements for charter schools when it comes to religion. Since a charter school is a public school working to improve the state’s education system, the same constitutional requirements apply as for traditional school district buildings. One of the key elements of the Constitution for schools and other public institutions is the establishment clause of the first amendment. Under this requirement, the goal for the school should be to remain as religiously neutral as possible. This means to neither advocate for nor against religion, as well as not advocating for one religion over another.
This can get particularly challenging this time of year as schools struggle to balance a concern for endorsing religion with seasonal events, holidays, and student and staff free expression. The most prominent of these is using Christmas Day to refer to December 25th or holding events that are connected to the cultural event that is Christmas. Simply holding a Christmas caroling program, or even using the word Christmas to refer to the legal, public holiday does not in itself violate the Constitution. Having a religion policy that addresses this balance is helpful, and can be crafted to meet the religious accommodation policy requirement of your charter school assurances. There have been recent court cases and are more on the docket to address this concern, particularly at the local government level. Historically, however, these three questions have guided assessment of government action and could be a starting point if you face questions on use of religiously affiliated symbolism or events:
Does the reference in question have a secular purpose or connection?
Is a religion advanced or inhibited?
Is the primary effect of the reference to endorse a religion?
If you are planning an activity or displaying holiday materials, being aware of these three questions will help you to navigate the uncertainty of constitutional compliance along with your reviewed and updated religion or religious accommodation policy. We wish you the best of luck for all of your holiday preparations!