Settlement Vindicates Use of Historical Religious Documents in Classroom
by Jim Brown
August 17, 2005
(AgapePress) - A settlement has been reached in a case involving a California elementary school teacher who was barred from distributing American history documents because they contained references to God and religion.The Alliance Defense Fund and the Cupertino School District have reached a settlement in which the district has agreed to no longer censor teacher Steven Williams because he is a Christian. Officials at Stevens Creek Elementary had prohibited Williams from providing fifth-grade students with supplemental readings such as William Penn's Frame of Government and excerpts from the Declaration of Independence.
Williams' attorney, Kevin Theriot, says the district has agreed Williams did not violate school policy when he handed out the materials. Theriot says he is hopeful that school officials now understand that religion can be discussed in schools.
"And, incidentally, the school district also agreed that teachers can talk about religion in schools, even their religious beliefs that they may subscribe to, as long as it's done objectively and as long as the teachers are not trying to convert students to their particular religious beliefs," the attorney explains.
Prior to the settlement, school officials had argued that Williams was attempting to proselytize students with the handouts. Now, says the attorney, his client is pleased with settlement. "Mr. Williams is satisfied that they are going to follow their policy [and] that there's not going to be any prohibition on him talking about religious things or distributing documents like the Declaration of Independence or William Penn's Frame of Government," he says.
Theriot says it is unfortunate that many public school teachers avoid the topic of religion while in the classroom because they are unsure what they are legally permitted to do. But the settlement in Williams v. Widmar now puts in writing a district policy that "allows teachers, no matter what their religious beliefs, to use appropriate educational material (including supplemental handouts of historical significance) during instructional time that has religious content" and also allows teachers "to teach students during instructional time about matters involving religion" provided the content is compliant with district-prescribed curriculum and is not used to influence a student's religious beliefs.
Jim Brown, a regular contributor to AgapePress, is a reporter for American Family Radio News, which can be heard online.
