What people are saying:

• Secular Education Association: 📌 Discussion question for educators, parents, and school board members:
  HB 829 would allow the Attorney General — or private individuals — to sue school districts that refuse to allow “moral instruction” programs during the school day. It would also remove certain legal protections school boards normally have.
  Should the state be able to force local school districts to allow religious instruction programs through lawsuits and court orders?
  We’re especially interested in hearing from educators, parents, and school board members in Kentucky.
  • Facebook User: Secular Education Association wait – whose definition of “moral” are we using? Donald Trump’s???
• Facebook User: Start putting every other religion in there also. Christianity should not have sole rights if they are going to allow religion in public schools.
  • Secular Education Association: Facebook User That’s a common suggestion, and in theory it sounds fair. But in practice it creates a lot of problems for public schools.

    Released-time programs require transportation, scheduling changes, supervision, and administrative coordination during the school day. Most religious groups actually don’t want to operate that kind of program, and many explicitly say they don’t want to interrupt instructional time.

    It also raises safety, equity, and liability questions for school districts.

    That’s why the larger question for many communities is whether public schools should be structured around facilitating religious programs during the school day at all.

• Facebook User: Following this
• Facebook User: So students cannot leave school to protest and exercise their rights but can leave to go to church?? Have I got that right?
  • Secular Education Association: Facebook User you’re not wrong to feel that tension. A lot of people notice the same inconsistency.

    Students who leave school to protest or engage in civic activity are often marked absent or disciplined, yet there are legal frameworks that allow students to leave campus during the school day for religious instruction under the Supreme Court’s ruling in Zorach v. Clauson.

    That contradiction is exactly why many educators and parents are asking hard questions about whether religious programs should be happening during the school day at all.

    And HB 829 goes even further. It wouldn’t just allow these programs — it would allow the Attorney General or private individuals to sue school districts if they decide not to allow them.

    So the real issue many people are wrestling with is this:
    Should public schools be put in a position where they can be forced through lawsuits to accommodate religious instruction during the school day, while other forms of student expression are restricted?

    It’s a fair question, and one a lot of communities are starting to ask.

• Facebook User: Parents should be responsible for teaching their children religion and morals.
  • Secular Education Association: Facebook User Many people would agree with you that parents should be the primary ones teaching their children about religion and moral beliefs.

    The question being debated with HB 829 is whether public schools should be required to accommodate organized religious instruction during the school day, and whether districts should face lawsuits if they decide not to allow it.

    Public schools serve families of many different faiths — and families with no religious affiliation at all. Because of that, courts have historically required schools to remain religiously neutral.

    That’s why policies around released time programs have always been carefully limited, and why proposals like HB 829 are generating so much discussion among educators and school leaders.

  • Facebook User: Secular Education Association I am well aware of this. Most of the propaganda surrounding this is coming from a company called Lifewise. They are heavily promoted by the Heritage Foundation and is part of the Christian Nationalist movement. Catch the children early and brainwash them. Children that don’t attend are bullied by those who attend.
  • Secular Education Association: Facebook User we absolutely agree that organizations like LifeWise Academy are a major part of the conversation around these programs.

    Secular Education Association has been researching and documenting LifeWise since 2021. Our founder helped uncover their curriculum and was sued over that reporting, so we’ve been following their expansion and the legislation surrounding it for several years now.

    That’s a big part of why we’re raising questions about bills like HB 829 and how they could affect public schools. We also have a private national group group of over 9k. You’re welcome to join us if you haven’t already!

• Facebook User: The bill allows students who participate in programs like LifeWise to be exempt from attendance laws in Kentucky. That is clear preference being given under law to religion and is unconstitutional!