FLORIDA
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
MODEL
POLICY ON RELIGIOUS EXPRESSION IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS1
Per Chapter 1002 Section 206 - 2021 Florida Statutes,
Florida Statutes, known as the “Florida Student and School Personnel
Religious Liberties Act,” the Department of Education’s Model Policy on
religious expression in
public schools is as follows:
It is the policy of the
School
District
that
the district will not discriminate against
a student, parent, or school
personnel on the basis of a religious
viewpoint or religious expression.
Student Expression of Religious Viewpoints
1.
School District will treat a student’s voluntary
expression of
a religious
viewpoint
on an otherwise permissible subject in the same manner that a school
district
treats
a student’s voluntary expression of a secular viewpoint.
2. A student
may express his or her religious beliefs
in coursework, artwork, and other written
and
oral assignments free from discrimination. A
student’s homework and classroom
assignments
shall be evaluated, regardless of their religious content, based on
expected
academic
standards relating to the course curriculum and requirements.
3. A
student may not be penalized or rewarded based on the
religious content of his or her
work
if the coursework, artwork, or other written or oral assignments
require a student’s
viewpoint
to be expressed.
Religious Clothing, Jewelry, and Accessories
A student may wear clothing, accessories, and jewelry that display a
religious message or symbol
in the same manner and to the same extent that secular types of
clothing, accessories, and jewelry
that display messages or symbols are permitted to be worn.
Students Engaging in Religious Activities and Expression
at
School
1. A
student may pray or engage in religious activities or religious
expression before, during,
and
after the school day in the same manner and to the same extent that a
student may
engage
in secular activities or expression.
2.
A student may organize prayer groups, religion
clubs, and other religious gatherings before,
during,
and after the school day in the same manner and to the same extent that
a student
is
permitted to organize secular activities and groups.
1
In addition to the requirements of Florida law,
districts
should ensure that they comply with all federal law regarding religious
expression, including
but not
limited to the Equal Access Act, 20
U.S.C. §§ 4701-4704. Districts may also wish to consult U.S. Department
of Education Guidance
on Constitutionally Protected Prayer in Public Elementary and Secondary
Schools, which may be
found here: https://www2.ed.gov/policy/gen/guid/religionandschools/prayer_guidance.html.
1
Employees Engaging in
Religious Activities and Expression at
School
1.
School District may not prevent school personnel from
participating in
religious
activities on
school grounds that are initiated by students at reasonable times
before
or after the school day if such activities are voluntary and do not
conflict with the
responsibilities
or assignments of such personnel.
2.
School District must comply with the federal
requirements in
Title VII of
the
Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits an employer from
discriminating against an
employee
on the basis of religion.
Equal Access to School Facilities
1.
School District shall
give
religious groups access to the same school
facilities
for assembling as given to secular groups without discrimination based
on the
religious
content of the group’s expression.
2. A group
that meets for prayer or other religious speech may advertise or
announce its
meetings
in the same manner and to the same extent that a secular group may
advertise or
announce
its meetings.
Limited Public Forum Required for Student
Speakers
School District is required to
establish a limited
public forum for student speakers
at any school event where a student
is to speak publicly. Where student
speakers are permitted, the district:
1. Must
provide the forum in a manner that does not discriminate against a
student’s voluntary
expression
of a religious viewpoint on an otherwise permissible subject;
2.
Must provide a method based on neutral criteria for the
selection of student speakers at
school
events, activities, and graduation ceremonies;
3.
Must ensure that a student speaker does not engage in
obscene, vulgar, offensively lewd,
or
indecent speech; and
4.
Must state in oral or written form that the student’s speech
does not reflect the endorsement,
sponsorship, position, or expression of
School District.
School
District must deliver this required disclaimer at all
graduation
events and at any other event where a student speaks publicly.
5.
Student expression of a religious viewpoint on an otherwise
permissible subject may not
be
excluded from the limited public forum.
Courtesy
of Hisways
USA, Inc. Notes. (not
copyrighted, used for education only)
Remember this law is new in Florida. If
an anti expression infraction occurs don't be surprised.
Your school personnel and/ or district may not be aware of
it's harm to the children's liberties.
For example, my local School Board (SB) attorney said that he
had
never participated in
a 1st
Amendment Workshop for Teachers and school
personnel; and,
that he had never heard of a program like it.
If an infraction occurs, you might get
a delightfully quick remedy if you can show your own
copy of this law with an
emphasis on the Official FL DOE reference link above.
If
producing the Model Policy
is
ineffective or/and you are dismissed by a statement such as "You are
the only
parent that is concerned about this", you can design a Survey /Poll
Form to sign up the
other classroom parents and or the whole grade. A
good practice is to go up through the "chain of command"
until you reach a solution. The chain of
command might be similar to: Teacher, VPrincipal,
Principal, Area Supervisor, SB Superintendent, your SB
representative or speak at a School Board (SB) meeting. If
the
infraction is egregious and all else fails, call one of the Liberty
Defenders to see if you have a case that has already been
decided by the Supreme Court.
