Research On Religion » public schools

Laura Olson on Attitudes towards Religious Free Exercise

tonygill — Sun, 18 Sep 2016 08:00:41 +0000

In light of several recent Supreme Court cases — most notably Hobby Lobby and Obergefell — the issue of the First Amendment’s free exercise clause has come to the public’s attention, particularly as it pertains to public employees. When Kim Davis, a county clerk in Kentucky, refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples based upon her religious beliefs, a debate arose about how religious freedom applies to government officials. Anticipating potential conflicts that might arise in a public school setting, Prof. Laura Olson from Clemson University, began a research project with several colleagues to survey the opinions of public school teachers around the country. She was interested in discovering what teachers thought about a variety of free exercise issues in the classroom including: 1) the ability of teacher’s to opt out of certain duties based upon religious belief; 2) facing penalties for expressing religious beliefs in the workplace; 3) supporting “unnamed officials” who were refusing certain job duties based upon conscience; 4) support for practicing religious activities on the job; and 5) support for teachers who want to provide clear moral direction on controversial issues. Laura provides us with historical background on how all of these issues became so salient since the middle of the 20th century. And while the results of her collaborative project are still being tabulated, Laura shares the rationale for the study, the research design, and some of the initial, topline findings. Interestingly, political ideology (i.e., conservative versus liberal) tends to be a more salient factor than partisan affiliation (e.g., Democrat, Republican) when it comes to these attitudes, with more conservative individuals supporting greater religious expression in the public school workplace. She and her colleagues also discovered that it was “orthodoxy” in (or strength of) religious belief that mattered more in determining one’s response than denominational identity and weekly attendance at religious services. All of this prompts Tony to ask Laura whether or not we might be seeing a new partisan re-alignment in the electoral landscape that is mediated by attitudes towards religious liberty. We discuss this and Laura also provides some thoughts on how the religious-political landscape has changed over the past several decades and what we might likely see in the presidential election of 2016. Recorded: September 12, 2016.

Jordan Lorence on Religious Property Cases

tonygill — Sun, 11 May 2014 08:00:19 +0000

Access to property is very important for religious organizations as it allows congregants to have a regular place to meet. But property does not come free of restrictions on use; governments often set policies that can facilitate or hinder how a religious group uses property. We discuss four court cases pertaining to property access and use with Jordan Lorence, senior counsel and senior-vice-president of the Office of Strategic Initiatives for the Alliance Defending Freedom. Our survey of these court cases includes issues pertaining to whether congregations can gain access to public property (most notably public schools), whether or not churches are tax exempt on their property, the type of signage available to religious organizations, and minimum acreage requirements imposed on houses of worship.

Our conversation begins with a bit of chit-chat about Minnesota, Tonka Toys, and what it is like to argue cases before the US Supreme Court. We then dive into our main topic, which is the issue of church property. Jordan reveals that he became involved in this area of litigation simply based upon the number of court cases that have been popping up over the past several decades. He mentions that many of these cases are prompted both by “equal access” concerns (i.e., can a religious group lay claim on property that is similar to a secular group’s claim) and the tax-exempt status of faith-based organizations. Not surprisingly, if a confessional group would like to occupy property and that property is tax exempt, local governments might be reluctant to allow these groups to use that space over a concern of foregone revenue.

The first case we examine in detail pertains to whether or not churches (and synagogues, mosques, etc.) can rent space in public schools during the weekend to hold worship services. The specific case where this is being challenged in the Bronx Household of Faith v Board of Education of the City of New York. Jordan details the history of this church and the conflict surrounding whether or not it can gain access to this public space, a conflict that dates back to the mid-1990s. Jordan notes that of the 50 largest school districts in the U.S., this is the only place where churches are not allowed to rent public school space for worship services. What constitutes “worship services” (as compared to a Bible study group) is one of the definitional issues that we wrestle with. Mr. Lorence reviews the arguments on both sides of the case and talks about where this litigation currently sits following a 2-1 decision against Bronx Household in the 2nd Circuit in early April.

Our conversation moves from New York City to Arizona, a place where one might think religious property rights issues are not as contentious. Nonetheless, we talk about two current cases winding their way through the court system. The first case, Church of the Isaiah 58 Project of Arizona v La Paz County involves a lien placed upon a small church for not paying $50,000 in back taxes. The church claims it has tax exempt status, but the county is requiring proof from the I.R.S. although the state of Arizona has granted the organization such status albeit not for all the year’s of its existence. This generates an interesting conversation about the role that taxes play in determining how local governments handle religious property claims. The second case from Arizona does not deal with real estate per se, but rather the regulations placed on church signage. The issue in Reed v Town of Gilbert centers around how churches face greater restriction on the size of, and duration to which, signs advertising worship are displayed. While the church organization has lost at the lower court level, this is a case that has garnered a great deal of attention from some big name legal scholars and is awaiting a set of decisions from the US Supreme Court on whether (and how) it will proceed.

Our final case involves a rather interesting twist on church property claims. In New Generation Christian Church v Rockdale County, instead of limiting the maximum size of church property, the local government is requiring a small congregation to purchase a minimum of three acres for its activities even though the congregation does not need this much land. During this portion of the conversation, and echoing some earlier discussion, we reflect upon how the definition of “church” or “worship service” can play a large role in determining how religious groups fit with various regulations. We conclude with Jordan’s thoughts on whether the legal environment involving church property has become better or worse for churches over the years. Where equal access cases involving the use of public space have tilted in favor of religious use over the past few decades, issues involving the actual real estate owned by religious organizations has not. Jordan finishes up with a bit of typical Minnesota commentary. Recorded: April 30,2014.

Mike Donnelly on Homeschooling

tonygill — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 09:00:01 +0000

Mike Donnelly, adjunct professor of government at Patrick Henry College and a staff attorney at the Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA), joins the podcast to talk about homeschooling. We begin our discussion with a brief history of the homeschool movement back in the 1950s and ’60s, noting both its secular and religious origins, and how the movement expanded rapidly in the 1980s. Prof. Donnelly provides some demographic context to our discussion by telling us who is most likely to homeschool and the reasons these families choose to do so. Our converstation covers the concerns over academic achievement (on standardized testing and college performance) and socialization. As for the latter, Mike reveals that homeschoolers are not any less well socialized than their peers in public or private schools. The latter half of the podcast focuses on various legal hurdles facing homeschoolers and Mike recounts several of the specific cases that he has litigated, including one involving a German homeschooling family that sought asylum in the United States. We finish with a brief discussion of the HSLDA and Patrick Henry College, a recently-created institution of higher learning that caters to homeschoolers but also accepts students educated in public and private schools. Recorded: February 23, 2011.