RELIGION IN THE PUBLIC SCHOOL

Government should treat all of its citizens equally. No American should be made to feel like a second-class citizen because of what he or she believes (or does not believe) about God or religion.

Religious freedom guarantees that we can decide which religion to follow – if any – and whether and how our money goes to support religion.

The government should not tax us and then use those funds to pay for religious activities or the upkeep of any house of worship or religious school. Nor should the government pick and choose which religious communities are worthy of government support.

The government also should not subsidize religious activities and programs carried out by social service providers or by supporting religious schools.

All Americans should feel welcome when they attend government meetings or public events. When government officials, town councils, county boards and other bodies encourage prayer or incorporate official prayer into events and meetings, however, some of the people these officials are sworn to serve feel excluded.

Local government meetings, in particular, are an important time for citizens to come together and have a say in how their communities are run. Local governments are also the government offices that people are closest to, so they should strive to be inclusive and neutral regarding religion.

In Public schools, the Academic Calendar should be respectful of the variety of religious beliefs. In the case of the Jewish Community, we believe that Public schools should, ideally, refrain from offering tests on Jewish holidays - or offering make-up days for Jewish students who could not attend on those days. To facilitate this process, we have developed a 5-year calendar of Jewish Holy Days to be used by School officials and other Government offices.