The Hillsborough County Public Schools in Florida are being battered by advocacy groups with strong opinions about religion.  The Freedom from Religion Foundation accuses the district of violating the Constitution.  Liberty Counsel, on the other hand, accuses the district of infringing on religious freedom.  What’s this about?

It’s about the Equal Access Act and the Fellowship for Christian Athletes. The story hit the news when the district temporarily banned adult leaders of the FCA from meeting with district students.

In a situation like this, the facts get spun to suit the storyline of the advocacy group.  So let’s just back up and review some of the basics of the Equal Access Act. This is the law that guarantees that student-led groups can meet in school facilities during non-instructional time.  The law applies to secondary schools in districts that receive federal funding.  The law requires that if such a school district allows one such group to meet, it must allow all of them to meet, regardless of religion, politics or philosophy.  The original intent of the law was to make sure that Bible clubs, FCA and other religiously oriented meetings would be allowed.  Schools are not to discriminate against these groups, just because they are religious.

However, the Equal Access Act does contain some limitations and rules.  Policy 5730 in Hillsborough County, Florida, accurately reflects those limitations and rules.  They are:

1. The activity has to be initiated by students;

2. Attendance at the meeting must be voluntary;

3. No agent or employee of the district is to promote, lead, or participate in the meeting;

4. The meeting must not materially and substantially interfere with instruction; and

5. Nonschool persons may not direct, conduct, control, or regularly attend the activity.

The fuss in Florida seems to be about that last point.  Here in Texas, by the way, you will find these same restrictions imposed with slightly different verbiage in Policy FNAB.

We don’t know what is going on in Florida. But it seems there are three possibilities.

*If it turns out that the district regularly turns a blind eye to “non-school persons” who are “regularly attending” student meetings, then the district has failed to enforce its policy.

*If it enforces the policy selectively, applying the rules to some groups but not others, then the disfavored group has a legitimate gripe.

*If it enforces the policy as written with regard to all groups, then it is not infringing on anyone’s religious freedom or discriminating in any way.

It is just following the law and its own policy. That’s what the Dawg recommends.

DAWG BONE: TAKE A LOOK AT FNAB, LEGAL AND LOCAL, AND MAKE SURE YOU ARE ENFORCING IT UNIFORMLY.

File this one under: EQUAL ACCESS ACT

TOMORROW: HOW MUCH KLINGON DO YOU KNOW?