As a public school system, we are all responsible for maintaining religious neutrality in our schools, offices, and related activities. Accordingly, the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution requires us to avoid entanglement with religious matters. At the same time, our policies and regulations call for appropriate respect for the beliefs and viewpoints of all employees and scholars.
To that end, this memorandum serves as a reminder that GRPS does not engage in, encourage, condone, or tolerate discrimination of any kind, including but not limited to religious discrimination.
To maintain religious neutrality, employees are prohibited from proselytizing on school district grounds or at school-sponsored or related functions. Staff are expected to abide by the guidelines outlined below when planning events, including commencement and promotion exercises. Although the following guidelines do not include every possibility, all of them are to be considered and implemented.
- Christmas trees are permitted but a crèche (i.e., a model/tableau representing the birth of Jesus) is not. The court in Allegheny v. American Civil Liberties Union, 492 US 573 (1989) held that the Christmas tree has the standing of a cultural icon instead of a religious practice. Nevertheless, staff must ensure trees are not decorated with religious symbols.
- Instruction that relates to religious holidays, such as Hanukkah, Christmas, Ramadan, Diwali, Rosh Hashanah, Easter, Passover, etc., must only be offered in the context of instruction about diverse religions and religious practices around the world. School personnel must not inject personal religious beliefs into the classroom or denigrate any religious belief or practice. Of course, all classroom instruction should be directly aligned to standards set by GRPS and the Michigan Department of Education. All staff must remain neutral regarding religious holidays and issues by not encouraging or discouraging external religious activity.
A good general rule to remember is that when acknowledging religious holidays, it is essential that the school or worksite must not appear to endorse religion over non-religion or one particular religious practice or credence over another.
- Concerts, theatrical performances, or any other performing arts conducted on school grounds, at school-sponsored functions, and/or school administrative offices should present a variety of music or other artistic expressions that represent various religious and cultural traditions. Although some religious music can be performed, it must not dominate the program. The cultural aspects of the holidays, not the worshipful aspects, must be emphasized during any program, whether it is musical or not.
It is important to note that even when the theme of a musical or other program is consistent with these neutrality standards, parents may request that their children be excused from attending or participating in holiday events. Those requests should be granted when made, with no repercussions against the scholar(s).
- All office or school parties must have a religiously neutral theme. Schools and worksites must take care to avoid the appearance of endorsing religion over non-religion or one particular religious practice over another.
The First Amendment Center suggests asking the following questions when thinking about holidays:
- Do I have a distinct educational purpose in mind? If so, what is it? It should not be the purpose of public schools to celebrate or observe religious holidays.
- If I use holidays as an opportunity to teach about religion, am I balanced and fair in my approach? If I teach about Christmas and Easter, for example, do I also teach about non-Christian holidays?
- Does the planned activity have the primary effect of advancing or inhibiting religion? Does it, for example, promote one faith over another or even religion in general? Remember that the school’s approach should be academic, not devotional. It is never appropriate for public schools to proselytize.
General Religious Prohibitions:
- School-led prayer is not permitted, regardless of whom leads the prayer and or whether it takes place on or off school grounds.
It is important to note, however, that staff must use care and sound judgment when confronted with instances of scholar-initiated religious speech. GRPS personnel must not interfere with the free expression of private speech, even when the topic is religion. When confronted with instances of genuinely scholar-initiated religious speech, GRPS personnel must not restrict such speech any more than they would non-religious speech.
- School-sponsored events must not be held in conjunction with a religious worship service or activity and should not be held at religious facilities unless certain standards are met.
- School district staff may not sponsor or lead school-based scholar religious clubs or activities. Scholars may initiate these clubs and activities in the same manner as other clubs or activities, but staff may only attend to supervise and may not participate in any manner.
- Employees and scholars must not erect or condone any exclusively sectarian themes and/or displays on school grounds, at school-sponsored functions, or in school administrative offices. If religious symbols are used in the classroom, they must only be used in the context of studying the cultural and historical significance of the holiday or religious practice and not for religious practice or worship.
- All program content should be reviewed by administrators/supervisors to ensure that components do not offend or infringe on the rights of others who may or may not share the same religious beliefs.
Thank you for your continued cooperation. If you have any questions, please contact the Legal Services Department at (616) 819-2031 or legal@grps.org.
