Religion in Schools

Learn more about the relationship between religion and schools—including the separation of church and state and issues of religious freedom

Explainer

Bible laying on a school desk in an empty classroom full of desks.
Religion in Public Schools, Explained
Public schools cannot promote any particular religion, and they must respect the individual religious beliefs of students and staff.
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A U.S. Supreme Court police officer walks in front of the Supreme Court amid renovations as the justices hear oral arguments on President Donald Trump's push to expand control over independent federal agencies in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 8, 2025.
A U.S. Supreme Court police officer walks in front of the court amid renovations in Washington, on Dec. 8, 2025. The court took several actions in education cases, including ordering a lower court to take a fresh look at a lawsuit challenging a New York state law that ended religious exemptions to school vaccinations.
J. Scott Applewhite/AP
Law & Courts Supreme Court Orders New Review of Religious Exemptions to School Vaccines
The U.S. Supreme Court ordered a new look in a school vaccination case and declined to review library book removals.
Mark Walsh, December 8, 2025
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6 min read
A copy of the Ten Commandments hangs alongside other historical documents at the Georgia Capitol on June 20, 2024, in Atlanta. Similar displays in schools are now at the center of court battles in Texas and Louisiana.
A copy of the Ten Commandments hangs alongside other historical documents at the Georgia Capitol on June 20, 2024, in Atlanta. Similar displays in schools are now at the center of court battles in Texas and Louisiana.
John Bazemore/AP
Law & Courts Appeals Court Heightens Stakes Over Ten Commandments School Laws
A full federal appeals court will review Texas and Louisiana laws requiring Ten Commandments displays in schools.
Mark Walsh, October 29, 2025
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2 min read
Jackson County High School in Kentucky posts the Ten Commandments in the front hall of the school, shown here in 2000, and in every classroom, on June 25, 2025. A group of North Texas reverends filed a federal lawsuit this week to challenge a new state law that would require posting the Ten Commandments in each public school classroom.
The Ten Commandments were seen on display at Jackson County High School in Kentucky in 2000. The full U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit, in New Orleans, will review a Louisiana law that requires the display of the commandments in public school classrooms.
<a href="https://www.gettyimages.com/search/2/image?artistexact=Lexington%20Herald-Leader">Lexington Herald-Leader</a>/Getty Images
Law & Courts Louisiana's Ten Commandments Law Gets Full Federal Appeals Court Review
The full 5th Circuit threw out a panel decision that blocked a Louisiana law requiring Ten Commandments displays in schools.
Mark Walsh, October 7, 2025
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2 min read
Left: Republican Sen. Laura Wakim Chapman, chair of the West Virginia Senate Health and Human Resources Committee, holds a map of the U.S. on the Senate floor depicting the states, including West Virginia, that do not allow religious or philosophical exemptions for required school vaccinations on Feb. 21, 2025 in Charleston, West Virginia. Right: West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey speaks during a news conference at the Hubert Humphrey Building Auditorium in Washington on April 22, 2025.
Left: A U.S. map of states without religious or philosophical vaccine exemptions. Right: Republican West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey speaks at a news conference in Washington on April 22, 2025. West Virginia is at the center of the ongoing debate over school vaccine mandates after Morrisey this year issued an executive order requiring religious exemptions.
Left: Will Price/West Virginia Legislature; Right: Jose Luis Magana/AP
Law & Courts With Childhood Vaccination Rates Falling, Debate on Religious Exemptions Grows
There is growing pressure from parents and the Trump administration for exemptions to be expanded. The U.S. Supreme Court could decide.
Mark Walsh, September 17, 2025
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10 min read
Hundreds of students stand together in prayer during an Ash Wednesday service at Flint Powers Catholic High School on March 5, 2025, in Flint, Mich.
Hundreds of students stand together in prayer during an Ash Wednesday service at Flint Powers Catholic High School on March 5, 2025, in Flint, Mich. President Donald Trump on Monday said the U.S. Department of Education will issue guidance about the right to prayer in schools.
Jake May/MLive.com/The Flint Journal via AP
Federal Trump Says Ed. Dept. Will Release New Guidance on School Prayer
The federal agency will wade into an intensified debate over the place of religion in schools.
Brooke Schultz, September 8, 2025
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2 min read
A LifeWise Academy bus drops off students.
A LifeWise Academy bus drops off students.
LifeWise Academy
States More States Guarantee Students the Right to Religious Instruction Off Campus
At least 12 states require school districts to offer "released time" religious schooling upon parental request.
Robbie Sequeira, Stateline.org, September 3, 2025
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6 min read
Jackson County High School in Kentucky posts the Ten Commandments in the front hall of the school, shown here in 2000, and in every classroom, on June 25, 2025. A group of North Texas reverends filed a federal lawsuit this week to challenge a new state law that would require posting the Ten Commandments in each public school classroom.
The Ten Commandments is seen on display at Jackson County High School in Kentucky in 2000. On Aug. 20, 2025, a federal judge blocked—in 11 school districts for now—a Texas state law requiring similar displays. Similar state laws in Arkansas and Louisiana have also been halted recently in at least part of each state.
<a href="https://www.gettyimages.com/search/2/image?artistexact=Lexington%20Herald-Leader">Lexington Herald-Leader</a>/Getty Images
Law & Courts Judge Blocks Texas Law Requiring Ten Commandments in Schools
A federal district judge ruled that the Texas law requiring Ten Commandments displays is schools likely violates the First Amendment.
Mark Walsh, August 20, 2025
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4 min read
A copy of the Ten Commandments is posted along with other historical documents in a hallway of the Georgia Capitol, Thursday, June 20, 2024, in Atlanta. Civil liberties groups filed a lawsuit Monday, June 24, challenging Louisiana’s new law that requires the Ten Commandments to be displayed in every public school classroom.
A copy of the Ten Commandments is posted along with other historical documents in a hallway of the Georgia Capitol on June 20, 2024, in Atlanta. A judge on Aug. 4 blocked a new Arkansas law requiring a Ten Commandments display in public school classrooms in four districts in the state. Similar laws in Louisiana and Texas are also being challenged in courts.
John Bazemore/AP
Law & Courts Judge Blocks Arkansas Law Requiring Ten Commandments Displays in Schools
A federal judge blocked an Arkansas law requiring Ten Commandments displays in schools. The law is one of three being challenged nationwide.
Mark Walsh, August 5, 2025
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6 min read
Photo illustration of Supreme Court building and U.S. Constitution.
Education Week + Getty
Law & Courts Opinion How the Supreme Court Is Making Public Education Itself Unconstitutional
In a recent ruling, the high court took a step toward effectively outlawing public schools.
Johann Neem, July 9, 2025
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5 min read
Demonstrators are seen outside the Supreme Court as oral arguments are heard in the case of Mahmoud v. Taylor on April 22, 2025. The case contends that forcing students to participate in LGBTQ+ learning material violates First Amendment rights to exercise religious beliefs.
Demonstrators are seen outside the Supreme Court as oral arguments are heard in the case of <i>Mahmoud</i> v. <i>Taylor</i> on April 22, 2025. The justices ruled that parents can exercise their religious right to have their children excused from LGBTQ-themed lessons, which has prompted new logistical and practical concerns among teachers.
Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call via AP
Teaching Profession Teachers Face New Burdens After Supreme Court LGBTQ+ Opt-Out Ruling
A Supreme Court ruling allowing parents to opt their children out of certain lessons could add new challenges for teachers.
Elizabeth Heubeck, July 8, 2025
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6 min read
Demonstrators are seen outside the Supreme Court as oral arguments were heard in Mahmoud v. Taylor on April 22, 2025, in Washington, D.C. The case contends that forcing students to participate in LGBTQ+ learning material violates First Amendment rights to exercise religious beliefs.
Demonstrators stand outside the Supreme Court as oral arguments are heard in <i>Mahmoud</i> v. <i>Taylor</i> on April 22, 2025, in Washington. The case contends that forcing students to be exposed to LGBTQ+ curricular material violates parents' First Amendment rights to exercise their religious beliefs.
Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call via AP Images
Law & Courts Supreme Court Sides With Parents in LGBTQ+ Curriculum Opt-Out Case
The justices ruled in a case on whether parents with religious objections may excuse their children from some curriculum materials.
Mark Walsh, June 27, 2025
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7 min read
Law, politics and eco balance concept. 3d rendering of scale icon on fresh spring meadow with blue sky in background.
iStock/Getty
Law & Courts School Restrooms, LGBTQ+ Curriculum, Disability Rights: A Spring Legal Roundup
Courts weighed in this spring on transgender rights, disability access, and parent opt-outs.
Mark Walsh, June 20, 2025
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11 min read
Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry speaks alongside Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill during a press conference regarding the Ten Commandments in schools Monday, Aug. 5, 2024, in Baton Rouge, La. Murrill announced on Monday that she is filing a brief in federal court asking a judge to dismiss a lawsuit seeking to overturn the state’s new law requiring that the Ten Commandments be displayed in every public school classroom.
Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry speaks alongside Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill during a press conference on a law requiring the Ten Commandments be displayed in schools on Aug. 5, 2024, in Baton Rouge, La. A federal appeals court on June 20 upheld an injunction blocking the law from taking effect.
Hilary Scheinuk/The Advocate via AP
Law & Courts Federal Appeals Court Upholds Block on Louisiana Ten Commandments Display Law
Louisiana's law requiring the Ten Commandments in every classroom likely violates the First Amendment, a federal appeals court ruled.
Mark Walsh, June 20, 2025
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3 min read
Tight cropped photograph of hands flipping pages in their Bibles.
iStock/Getty
States Christianity Is Ramping Up in Public Schools. Where Is This Headed?
A wave of measures infusing religion in public schools isn't letting up, with an agreeable U.S. Supreme Court and executive branch.
Brooke Schultz, June 17, 2025
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5 min read
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