Should Prayer Be Allowed in Public Schools?

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As the U.S. Supreme Court has recognized, neither public school students nor teachers shed their constitutional rights at the schoolhouse gate.

The vigilant protection of our constitutional freedoms is nowhere more vital than in the community of American schools. Unfortunately, many school officials, confused over where to draw the line regarding the so-called “separation of church and state,” have chosen to err on the side of censorship rather than free speech when it comes to religious expression, and more particularly, prayer in the schools.

Much of this censorship has arisen out of confusion in the schools and the courts over what role religion should play in our society. However, there is a crucial difference between government speech that promotes religion (which the Establishment Clause forbids) and private speech that promotes or makes reference to religion (which the Free Speech and Free Exercise Clauses protect). In other words, while student-initiated prayer is a constitutionally protected form of speech, prayer that is orchestrated by school officials is not permissible.

Nevertheless, many students and school officials still find themselves prohibited from engaging in other constitutionally forms of expression simply because it makes reference to or involves religion. For example, when high school valedictorian Brittany McComb attempted to reference God in a graduation speech about things that contributed to her success, school officials unplugged the microphone, effectively censoring her speech. This case is currently making its way through the courts.