The U.S. Department of Education has reaffirmed the rights of students to engage in prayer and other religious activities under newly issued guidance on religious expression in public schools.
“For many students, their faith is the core of who they are,” said Education Secretary Miguel Cardona in a May 15 Twitter post. “Everyone should be free to learn and show up as their true selves. Today @USEdGov released guidance on constitutionally protected religious expression, protecting one's right to practice their faith or no faith at all.”
The guidance document aims to provide educators, administrators and parents with a clear understanding of public school students' religious rights. It emphasizes that students have the right to pray individually or in groups during non-instructional time, organize and participate in religious clubs, express their religious beliefs in assignments and wear religious attire.
Students can partake in religious expression during instructional time in certain circumstances, such as praying to themselves prior to taking an exam.
The guidance, which Cardona stated hasn’t been updated since 2020, stresses that schools should neither endorse nor inhibit religious practices but should, instead, remain neutral and offer a safe place for all faiths and belief systems.
“Our goal is to provide clarify and reaffirm our student’s freedom of religion,” Cardona said in a video accompanying his Twitter post. “Educators and school leaders should continue fostering inclusive environments and making accommodations for students from all religious and non-religious backgrounds.”
In the video, Cardona discussed how he took a variety of steps to be accommodating during his many years working in the education field. He noted how he spun the dreidel on Hanukkah as a 4th grade teacher and made sure Muslim students didn’t have to be present in the cafeteria during Ramadan when he was a principal.
He also held a Three Kings Day celebration, which is observed by the Hispanic community.
“It’s all about respecting and celebrating our differences,” Cardona said.
