Building Stronger Schools: Religious Freedom in Public Schools Summit

Interfaith Alliance convened the inaugural Religious Freedom in Public Schools Summit in Dallas, Texas, earlier this week. Hundreds of faith and civic leaders attended the event, with speakers addressing the theme of building stronger public schools.

Since the Brown v. Board of Education decision in 1954 that desegregated public schools, religious zealots have been attempting to undermine public education and open federal coffers for private sectarian schools.  

While education was central to Puritan New England in the 18th century, what we now know as public education did not begin until the mid-19th century with the “Common Schools Movement.” Horace Mann, “The Father of the Common School Movement,” advocated for a public school system in Massachusetts that would be free for every child, taxpayer-funded, and operate under the authority of the state.  

Mann once quipped, “Ignorance breeds monsters to fill up the vacancies of the soul that are unoccupied by the verities of knowledge.” He went further: “Education then, beyond all other devices of human origin, is the great equalizer of the conditions of men, the balance-wheel of the social machinery.”

In Mann’s era, New England was one of the most literate regions in the world.  

While public education has never been perfect, the “Common School Movement” set into motion a national network of public schools cooperating with the federal government. America’s public school system remains one of the great institutions that shapes and influences every part of the American experience.  

Baptist minister and Interfaith Alliance President and CEO Rev. Paul Raushenbush kicked off the summit, reminding the audience of the importance of public education. He highlighted the significance of educating every child regardless of race, gender, religion, socio-economic status or sexual orientation.  

Public schools are the epitome of the American melting pot.

Raushenbush said: “As a Baptist minister who has two children in public education, I feel so lucky that my kids are growing up being able to learn from different faith traditions, but that I get to teach them what it means to pray, and then I get to interpret Sacred Scripture to them … then at the same time I’m doing that, other families do that with their children … and then they come together and show the best of their tradition and share that with one another.”

However, religious zealots often do not appreciate the diversity public education has to offer and incorporate into community experiences and learning lessons. 

Rabbi Sharon Kleinbaum spoke from a Jewish perspective about the importance of diversity in public education. “The United States gave Jews a place where they did not have to be second-class citizens,” she said.

Jewish students have the same opportunities as their Christian, Muslim, and atheist classmates. That’s the genius of public schools.

For democracy to remain vibrant and healthy, a fully-funded public school system is essential. Democracy Forward President and CEO Skye Perryman informed the group that if public schools succumb to attacks from authoritarians and privatizers, then our democracy will fall along with them.  

Another strategy by religious zealots advocating a Christian nationalist agenda is to change the curriculum to fit their perspectives and values—even if that means distorting history and reconstructing reality. SMU Professor Dr. Mark Chancey offered the example of the Bluebonnet Curriculum in Texas.  

Chauncey told the crowd how the biblical stories being used within the curriculum are inaccurate, citing the example of Esther. While the book of Esther never mentions God or faith, the curriculum inserts it into the story.

In Oklahoma, State Superintendent Ryan Walters wants teachers to tell students the 2020 presidential election was questionable. This type of misinformation undermines the credibility of public education and teeters on the edge of ideological indoctrination.  

And for those arguing that public school indoctrinates leftist agendas, reality suggests this argument fails because what proponents call a “leftist agenda” is really fact-based education void of religious influences. If religious zealots cannot control the content and outcome, then they will work to destroy it.  

BJC Executive Director Amanda Tyler is building a coalition of faith leaders to counter the attacks on public education. Through online training and education, the alliance teaches citizens how to be involved in their local school systems and advocate at state capitols.  

Oklahoma State Representative Mickey Dollens agrees that such work has benefits for lawmakers. Hearing from parents and citizens about the importance of public education in their communities goes a long way with most politicians. Unfortunately, other groups are gaining the ears of lawmakers in states like Oklahoma and Texas.

Dollens told the crowd about the “City Elders” in Oklahoma. The City Elders website declares, “We are a national network of elders charged with the mission of governing the gates of every city in America to establish the Kingdom of God with strength, honor, and courage.” The group aims to infiltrate every city, state, and federal government with their candidates and ideologies.  

Rev. Charles Johnson, Executive Director for Pastors for Texas Children, reminded the audience that educators are feeling isolated after all the nonsense Christian nationalists are placing on them. Public school teachers and administrators need to know that a majority of their fellow citizens support them and are fighting on their behalf.

Overall, the summit effectively demonstrated the real dangers public education faces. Christian nationalists and privatizers continue their attempts to dismantle public education and instill their narrow and misguided ideologies upon every student.  

Maggie Siddiqi, Senior Fellow at Interfaith Alliance, summed it up best when she challenged the crowd to start being more offense-minded. She concluded that the pro-public education crowd has far too long been on the defensive, reacting to every harmful policy and strategy of religious zealots.  

“We need a good offense,” Siddiqi concluded. 

We need to promote and adopt policies that fully fund public education, seek to be more inclusive of the diverse student body that comprises public schools, and support educators in a manner that truly recognizes their essential contribution to our democracy.  

America needs strong public schools: a place where every student feels safe and nurtured, a place where facts can be trusted and education without bias is at the heart of the mission, a place free from sectarian causes, and a place that empowers students to become the next generation of great human beings and citizens.