Tahlequah board approves agreement to allow off‑campus religious release time, adds indemnity and background‑check requirements

The Tahlequah Public Schools Board of Education voted to approve an agreement to allow off‑campus released‑time religious instruction for Tahlequah Middle School students, with the provider agreeing to carry insurance, indemnify the district and perform background checks on its employees.

The vote on the agenda item described as an “agreement with MindWise Academy to establish guidelines and affirmation of insurance for parent‑initiated off‑campus release time courses for TMS students” followed public comment urging caution about the organization and detailed staff briefings about how state law and district policy apply.

Why it matters: Oklahoma House Bill 1425 (referred to in meeting remarks and district materials) permits students to be released from non‑tested classes for religious or moral instruction. The district’s superintendent told the board the school must facilitate legally permitted release time but that students are not under district supervision once they are checked out and that the agreement being approved is intended to clarify liability and logistics.

Public concerns and evidence presented Kathy Cotton, identifying herself as a Tahlequah resident, told the board she opposed allowing Lifewise‑style programs to operate during school hours and said the same provider has generated significant revenue in other states and been associated with reports of ostracism and bullying of non‑participants. “I urge the board and parents to approach this very profitable nonprofit with caution,” Cotton said, citing a Columbus Dispatch story she said reported Lifewise’s net revenue increases in Ohio.

Superintendent explanation Superintendent Abby (first name used in the meeting) told the board the agreement is not a district program and that, under state law, students may miss up to three hours per week of non‑tested classes for released‑time instruction; the local provider proposed one hour per week to start at Tahlequah Middle School. “This is not our board policy. This is state law,” Abby said, explaining the district’s adopted board policy 5508 sets out how high‑school transcripted electives would be handled and that, for other grade levels, the district’s role is to schedule the least‑disruptive time and to collect parental consent.

Protections added in the agreement Board members emphasized the agreement requires the outside provider to affirm insurance and to indemnify the district for actions that occur after students leave campus. Superintendent Abby also told the board the provider agreed to add a district‑requested parental permission form and to perform background checks on employees — a step the superintendent and several board members said is not explicitly required by state law but was added to increase student safety.

Board reaction and vote Board members acknowledged discomfort with release time occurring during school hours and several said they would prefer after‑school options. Several members said they opposed the law in principle but would approve the agreement because it provides additional protections for students and the district. The board then voted to approve the agreement as presented on the agenda.

What the agreement allows and what it does not According to district remarks at the meeting, parents must sign a permission form for a child to be checked out; once a child is in the custody of the provider the district is not legally responsible for the child, though the agreement requires the provider to indemnify the district and carry insurance. The superintendent said the district has asked schools to have staff call parents when permission slips are returned to confirm parental intent. The provider proposed starting after spring break; school staff reported 21 students had signed up across the three middle‑school grades as of the meeting.

Next steps The district said it would begin the program after spring break and monitor how the logistics work on the first days; any high‑school level transcripted electives would require additional course documentation and instructor qualifications under the district policy the superintendent described.