Resident raises separation‑of‑church‑and‑state concerns over Christian daycare involvement in district athletics
Summary
A resident, Zach Silverstein, used public comment to urge the board to reconsider including a Christian daycare organization in school activities and said the arrangement could violate separation of church and state if the district provides preferential treatment without compensation.
At the board meeting’s public comment period, resident Zach Silverstein voiced objections to what he described as “inclusion of a Christian daycare system within a public education system,” saying the district’s arrangement raised separation‑of‑church‑and‑state concerns.
Silverstein said the inclusion—he referenced prior emails to the superintendent’s office and an apparent matter involving a basketball team—could be perceived as preferential treatment for a particular religious denomination if the organization receives access without compensation. He told the board district staff had not followed up on earlier emails and that, as someone of Jewish descent, he objected to religious organizations being included in public school activities.
Silverstein concluded by saying he would follow up with the superintendent’s office and planned to return to future meetings.
The remarks were part of the public comment agenda and no board action was recorded in the transcript on the points raised.
