An Oklahoma State Senate committee has approved a bill that would require all public schools in the state to display the phrase "In God we trust" in classrooms.
(RNS) — A parent opposing the measure said the proposal was unnecessary because a state statute already requires schools' display of the state flag, which includes the motto.
M.O. suffered harassment for many years, her rights being violated by her teachers A federal lawsuit was filed by American Atheists in U.S. District Court for Texas' Southern District. The suit was filed on behalf of “M.O.,” a teenager who complained of long-term harassment by school officials. They did so as she remained seated when […]
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Muslim student athletes at one U.S. high school no longer have to be slowed down by worries that their headscarves might fall off.
Deering High School in Portland, Maine, is providing sport hijabs with the goal of making Muslim girls comfortable — and boosting their participation in sports. The lightweight scarves stay put and are less bulky than other hijabs, garments that cover the hair and are worn by many Muslim women to express their faith.
Source: Sporty hijabs help Muslim girls keep up pace in...Read more about Sporty hijabs help Muslim girls keep up pace in athletics
(RNS) An Alabama Presbyterian church may soon become the first in the nation to form its own police force, invested by the state with the rights of “regular” police.
(JTA) — Swiss Jews spoke out against a regulation that makes it illegal for schoolchildren to refuse to shake hands with their teachers because of religious reasons.A regional school board last month ruled that schools in Basel Country can fine parents up to $5,000 if their children refuse to shake hands with teachers, as is customary at graduation ceremonies.The ruling was in reaction to the refusal of two Muslim boys to shake hands with female teachers at a public school in northern Switzerland.
Junior education minister Sander Dekker has ruled out funding a proposed Islamic secondary school in Amsterdam in the latest stage of a long-running dispute.In a letter to parliament, Dekker said he was not convinced that the Amsterdam Islamic Education Board (SIO) could fulfill its ‘legal citizenship duties’, adding: ‘We cannot use taxpayers’ money to support a school where children learn to reject the Netherlands rather than become part of it.’
When two Syrian immigrant brothers refused to shake their female teacher’s hand this year, it ignited national outrage in Switzerland.This week, the authorities in the northern canton of Basel-Landschaft ruled that the students, who studied at a public school in the small town of Therwil, could not refuse to shake their teacher’s hand on religious grounds. They said that parents whose children refused to obey the longstanding tradition could be fined up to 5,000 Swiss francs, about $5,050.
ST. LOUIS (AP) — An Illinois public school that requires students who ride the bus to arrive early for optional religious instruction at a Roman Catholic parish has agreed to discontinue the practice in response to a legal challenge.