Akron Public Schools is now mandated by Ohio law to allow religious instruction during school hours. But it must take place off school grounds.
Ohio lawmakers earlier this year passed House Bill 8, widely known for its Parents’ Bill of Rights. But the state mandate also includes language that allows religious groups to pick up public school students from schools, transport them to off-campus sites for instruction and return them to school property, with parents’ permission.
On Monday night, the Akron Public Schools’ Board of Education amended the policy, which was first adopted by the board in 1998.
Board President Carla Jackson said after the school board meeting that parents should have the final say about what their kids need from their education.
“We’re American citizens, it’s their freedom,” Jackson said.
“That’s what we have to understand as American citizens is that we have the right,” she continued after some conversation. “People bled and died for us to have our religious freedom.”
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How does release time work during the school day at Akron Public Schools?
According to the school district’s policy and Ohio law, parents must consent to their kids being released into the care of a third-party religious organization during the school day. Those organizations and Akron Public Schools are obligated to collaborate to determine times when kids can leave campus.
One important caveat is that religious organizations cannot pull kids out of core instruction classes.
What is core instruction in Akron schools?
Public school districts have the autonomy to decide what core instruction is. Typically, that’s state-tested subjects like math, English, science and social studies. In Akron, that extends to all graded subjects.
What is considered religious instruction?
The mandate for public school districts to allow release for religious instruction policies was written and enacted by Ohio’s Republican-led state legislature under the subtext of providing Christian education to students. However, the law does not include a provision on which faith denominations can participate.
That means religions ranging from Christian and Jewish traditions to the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster can offer programs for students during school hours. In fact, a church promoting Satanic beliefs is already operating in at least one Ohio school district.
Who is eligible to participate?
Both Ohio law and APS policy allow for students from elementary through high school to take advantage of the release time for one course per week.
Do parents have to give written permission? Do they have to actively opt out?
Yes, public school parents must give written consent for their children to leave school for religious instruction. It is purely by choice, so parents who do not want their children to participate don’t have to actively opt out of the program.
Where is release time operating now in Ohio?
Religious instruction for public school students during the school day has grown markedly in popularity in recent years. Lifewise, an Ohio-based organization that explicitly exists to teach students about the Christian faith during school hours, states it has nearly doubled the number of school districts it serves within Ohio.
Last January, Lifewise operated in about 160 school districts in the state, according to reporting by the Ohio Capital Journal. This school year, the organization plans to operate in 303 Ohio public school districts and serve more than 600 schools.
Its popularity isn’t limited to the Buckeye State. The organization announced in a press release it plans this school year to operate in 34 states and enroll about 100,000 students across the U.S.
What Ohio law requires — and bans — for off-campus religious classes
Ohio’s release-time law imposes few restrictions on off-campus religious classes. But it does stipulate what students can bring back to school from their time away. Board policy matches state law in this area.
“Any private entity providing religious instruction during the school day may distribute educational and program materials to participating students,” the policy states. “Non-educational or non-program related materials, however, are not permitted for return to school.”
Who runs these programs in Akron, Summit County and across the state?
Any religious organization is able to offer off-campus education under the new bill, but the most popular organization in the state is Lifewise, which lobbied for the law’s passage.
Who handles transportation, funding and supervision off campus?
Under Ohio law, public school districts cannot provide transportation, funding or personnel for off-campus religious instruction, including accommodations for students with disabilities. That means the outside organizations must foot the bill.
What happens for students who don’t participate?
For students who do not choose to participate, essentially nothing happens. They go about their school day as they did before.
How are student records and privacy handled?
Neither board policy nor state law mention student privacy considerations. Both do, however, mandate that the outside organizations maintain attendance records and make them available to the district.
Under the law, schools cannot mark a student absent for participating in the program.
What accommodations are made to address language access, IEPs/504 plans?
None. There is no language in the board’s policy to address language barriers or individual education. The organizations do, however, have to make accommodations for students with disabilities.
Does Akron Public Schools’ policy apply to all religions equally? Can families request programs for different faiths?
Yes, both state law and APS policy allow for any religious organization to participate if parents consent. Families interested in allowing their children to participate should contact the religion’s faith leaders, not the school or district, to ask for a program to be offered.
How does Akron Public Schools avoid religious recruitment?
Off campus, there’s nothing schools can do to avoid religious recruitment. On school grounds, however, the district has a policy, adopted in 1998, that requires board review and approval for the solicitation of outside services or events on district property.
The policy does not explicitly mention religious recruitment, but the board’s religious release time policy mentions the 1998 policy directly.
“It is the policy of the Board of Education that students, staff members, and District facilities not be used for commercial advertising or promoting the interests of any nonschool agency or organization, public or private, without the approval of the Board or its designee; and any such approval, granted for whatever cause or group, shall not be construed as an endorsement of said cause or group by this Board,” the policy states in part.
Board member and district’s attorney spar over policy language
On Monday, the debate about core instruction marked a moment of contention between school board member Rene Molenaur and new district counsel David Sipusic.
The language the subcommittee agreed upon: “The Board recognizes the core curriculum as including, but not limited to, courses aligned with State-approved learning standards, graded courses, and other learning experiences identified as core curriculum under Board policies.”
Wording was changed between last week’s Legal, Policy and Contracts subcommittee and Monday’s full board Monday night.
The language ultimately approved by the full school board on Monday by a 4-3 vote says: “all graded courses to be core curriculum including, but not limited to, courses that have State-approved learning standards, graded courses, and other learning experiences identified as core curriculum under Board policies.”
Previously, Molenaur told Signal Akron she tried to influence the policy to ensure core instruction included recess, study hall and lunchtime. During Monday’s meeting, Sipusic seemed to not understand the differences in language and context between the two versions of the policy.
“There are similar words, but it is not what I see in the agenda,” Molenaur said during the full board meeting.
To support her argument, Molenaur cited research that shows the academic value of unstructured play time, especially for young students. This would’ve limited opportunities for outside religious organizations to take students off campus.
Board President Jackson, members Bruce Alexander, Summer Hall and Diana Autry voted yes, while Molenaur, Barbara Sykes and Gregory Harrison voted no.