The Nebraska Legislature’s Education Committee has been trying for a month to get one of its packages of education proposals out of committee and onto the floor. But the past few executive sessions have been tense, and committee members remain…
Supreme Court appears inclined to establish Free Exercise Clause
The U.S. Supreme Court’s conservative majority seemed open April 30 to permitting the use of taxpayer dollars to fund the nation’s first religious public charter school. Their reasoning during oral arguments about the case of St. Isidore of Seville Catholic…
Letter to the Editor: Oklahoma case is a big deal
Dear Editor: In response to the Supreme Court’s argument on religious public schools, April 30: To students of Colonial American history and the Bill of Rights, this is a potential big deal and worthy of attention. Colonial Baptists, Quakers, Presbyterians…
Supreme Court hears case of parents wanting to opt out of story time
Should evangelical parents be allowed to opt-out their children’s participation in public school lessons they find objectionable, and how far should those objections be allowed to go? These are some of the key questions debated at the U.S. Supreme Court…
Speak up to defend public education, AFT president urges
These are not normal times, and normal responses to the Trump administration will not do, the president of the American Federation of Teachers said April 7. Randi Weingarten was the closing keynote speaker at the Summit for Religious Freedom sponsored…
Cuts to Education Department threaten religious liberty, BJC head warns
The Trump administration’s decision to cut nearly half the U.S. Department of Education workforce is a careless action that will wreak havoc in public schools and erode religious freedom, Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty said. “This action is not…
Here’s why the assault on Section 504 accommodations matters
Most Americans only encounter Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 if their child is one of the 8.5 million public school children with a 504 Plan. Whether they are dyslexic, have cerebral palsy or a temporarily broken leg,…
Oklahoma Supreme Court blocks Bible curriculum for now
The Oklahoma Supreme Court has temporarily blocked state school officials from purchasing Bibles and Scripture-based instructional materials for use in public school classrooms. The March 10 order bars Oklahoma Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters and the Oklahoma State Department…
In a year of voucher mania, a controversial federal plan emerges
Donald Trump and congressional Republicans already intent on spending tax dollars on private education want to go even further by creating billions in new federal tax credits to school voucher programs. Newly introduced legislation would provide $10 billion in annual…
Here’s a new way they’re selling Trump Bibles
The push to place Bibles in every public school classroom in Oklahoma has a new funding mechanism. Lee Greenwood’s Bibles for USA has launched a website where individuals may donate the $59.99 required to purchase a so-called “Trump Bible” that…
Oklahoma parents sue Walters to stop Bible curriculum in schools
The families, teachers and religious leaders already suing to block Oklahoma from buying classroom Bibles are now attempting to prevent the state from purchasing a Scripture-based curriculum for elementary school children. The plaintiffs filed a brief with the Oklahoma Supreme…
Now Ryan Walters seeks bids for Bible-based curriculum in Oklahoma
The Oklahoma Department of Education has opened the bidding process for a Bible-based curriculum designed for public elementary school children, according to a newly posted Request for Proposal. The move comes as state Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters deals…