Title: Religion in Public Schools | Lawyers.com
Headings: Religion in Public Schools
Religion in Public Schools
Prayer in School: Personal vs. School-Sponsored
Prayers and Religious Expression by Student Speakers at School Events
School Celebrations of Religious Holidays
Religion in the Classroom and in Homework
No Discrimination Against Religious Literature or Clubs
Speaking With a Lawyer

Content: Schools shouldn't interfere with students' right to pray on their own or with their friends, as long as they aren't disrupting schoolwork or violating other students' rights. At the same time, schools shouldn’t interfere with students’ right to pray on their own or with their friends—at lunch, before or after school, in religious clubs or “see you at the pole” prayer gatherings, or silently in class—as long as they aren’t disrupting schoolwork or violating other students’ rights. The same holds true for other forms of religious expression, including wearing clothing or jewelry meant as a statement of faith. Prayers and Religious Expression by Student Speakers at School Events
When students are speaking at school functions like graduation ceremonies, they may generally include prayers or other expressions of their faith if: they chose to do so on their own
the school had a secular purpose for allowing the students to speak, and
the process of selecting those speakers had nothing to do with what they would say. However, some courts have held that school officials may prevent students from delivering invocations as part of graduation ceremonies or giving commencement speeches that included Christian comments meant to convert their classmates. And the Supreme Court has held that a high school violated the establishment clause by arranging for students to give invocations over the public address system at football games, even though students created and led the prayers ( Santa Fe Independent School Dist. v. Doe, 530 U.S. 290 (2000)). School Celebrations of Religious Holidays
Public schools need to be careful when they celebrate religious holidays. Schools may not put up explicitly religious symbols (like a nativity scene or menorah) unless they’re part of a larger holiday display that’s not religious.