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Board adopts local resolution declining to impose a set time for prayer in response to Senate Bill 11
Summary
Trustees reviewed and approved a local resolution in response to Senate Bill 11 (which designates a time for prayer and reading of religious texts). The resolution affirms students' ability to pray but declines to designate a district-wide time for worship; trustees debated practical implications before voting to approve the local resolution.
Trustees discussed a local resolution drafted in response to Senate Bill 11, which the superintendent characterized as designating a time for prayer and worship in schools. The superintendent said he consulted legal mentors and that the locally proposed resolution affirms students' rights while declining to impose a single districtwide prayer or worship time.
Board members raised questions about how such a time would operate in practice and the potential for varied faith groups to misuse a designated slot. One trustee said parents and religious leaders advised that students should be free to pray anytime rather than being assigned a single time: "If you make it a time, then anybody can do anything," the trustee said. Another trustee noted that groups of students already pray informally in the cafeteria before meals and that the resolution would not change those practices.
After discussion the board moved to adopt the local resolution; the motion carried on the floor. Trustees did not request additional language changes during the meeting and directed staff to finalize the district's approach consistent with the resolution.
