🚨 Ohio 🚨

The Columbus Dispatch’s feature on LifeWise’s new Hilliard HQ shows what we’ve warned about: a well-funded NATIONAL campaign to turn public schools into mission fields.

LifeWise isn’t just a “Bible class.” It’s a multi-million-dollar machine with 1,700 staff, 10,000 volunteers, and half of Ohio’s districts already in its grip. Joel Penton openly says the goal is to normalize release-time religion for every student. Even those of different or no faith…. 👀

Here’s what gets left out:

⚠️ Not neutral. Kids who don’t go are singled out and pressured. That’s coercion, not choice.

⚠️ Lawmakers greased the wheels. Ohio’s “may-to-shall” law was no grassroots demand — it was pushed by Christian nationalist groups and took local control away from communities.

⚠️ Real risks. Second, unsecured locations. LifeWise hired a teacher fired for sexting with a student. Subpar background checks. False claims of the curriculum being “non-denominational”. Parents deserve transparency.

⚠️ Public schools bear the burden. Teachers juggle schedules so LifeWise can recruit kids on school time.

⚠️ The lies. Penton says critics “misconstrue.” Wrong. No one has ever mentioned Bibles in backpacks. What we oppose is the toys, candy, merch, and trinkets used to lure kids. LifeWise twists this to paint parents as “anti-Bible.” It’s dishonest.

⚠️ Separation of church and state. Penton pretends crossing the street makes it “separate.” That’s disingenuous. Separation isn’t physical distance — it’s keeping tax-funded institutions free from religious endorsement. Claiming otherwise is the same tired line that “separation of church and state isn’t even in the Constitution.” 😴 History and law say otherwise.

And let’s look at the Skestos Center. The new HQ carries the name of wealthy developer and The Ohio State University trustee George Skestos Sr., one of LifeWise’s biggest donors. Skestos has a history of using his money to shape institutions — even pressuring Opera Project Columbus not to cut ties with a conductor facing misconduct allegations, or tying millions to OSU programs later shuttered amid oversight questions. Naming the building after him isn’t about community — it’s about wrapping LifeWise in donor prestige, university connections, and wealth to shield them from scrutiny.

Then there’s the Tressel Coaching Hall. LifeWise named its flagship training room after former Ohio State Buckeyes head coach and now Lt. Gov. Jim Tressel. Ohioans know Tressel not only for football glory but for scandal: forced resignation over NCAA violations, coziness with boosters, and a career shadowed by corruption. His name lends LifeWise borrowed celebrity and political cover.

This isn’t just religion creeping into schools — it’s a coordinated mix of money, politics, and sports power being used to normalize religious control over public education.

SEA exists because parents see through this. We fight for schools that are inclusive, evidence-based, and free from religious pressure.

👉 Join us:
🌐 http://www.SecularEducationAssociation.org
🔒 Private Group-
https://www.facebook.com/groups/secularedassociation

Public schools are for education, not indoctrination.

https://www.dispatch.com/story/news/education/2025/09/18/lifewise-academy-hilliard-ohio-public-school-bible-study-lessons/86102395007/

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