D-20 Clarifies Role Of Staff For National Day Of Prayer
District Tempers E-mail Hours Later
POSTED: 11:00 pm MDT May 5, 2010UPDATED: 8:55 am MDT May 6, 2010COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- One day before the National Day of Prayer, School District 20 staffers were told to not participate in prayer.Hundreds of thousands will mark the occasion nationwide on Thursday, May 6th. Congress established the Day of Prayer in 1952.Wednesday, May 5th, D-20 staff received this email from Pat Richardson, Director for Legal Relations: Dear Principals, Tomorrow (Thursday, May 6) is the National Day of Prayer. As long as prayer around the flagpole is student-led, it is constitutionally permissible. The Supreme Court has said that “nothing in the Constitution as interpreted by this Court prohibits any public school student from voluntarily praying at any time before, during, or after the school day. But the religious liberty protected by the Constitution is abridged when the State affirmatively sponsors the particular religious practice of prayer.” Santa Fe Independent School District v. Doe. Therefore, students may assemble at the flagpole and pray, but staff should not participate. School staff should not encourage or discourage students from participating.Hours later, D-20 spokeswoman Nanette Anderson clarified the email, writing, "the email... regarding National Day of Prayer was not intended in any way to curtail the rights of staff to pray at their school. It is meant to be a reminder that staff must be careful not to violate the establishment clause."
blog comments powered by DisqusCopyright 2010 KRDO. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Still difficult travel and lingering snow over the Palmer Divide...
Latest StormTracker 13 Weather Webcast
Whiteout conditions persist on day two of a major snow event, and an emotional start to the Colo. Springs Tow Truck Driver trial. You can find it all in your Friday night Mobile Minute.
Blowing snow and snowpacked roads near Ellicott frustrated drivers and kept some people stuck in their own driveways Thursday night.
Blizzard conditions for a second straight day.
The current winter storm is turning out to be a major inconvenience for residents, drivers and road crews in northeastern El Paso County.
Closings, Delays and Cancellations for Southern Colorado
Sheriff's Staff Shuffle
A three-car crash trapped one person inside a vehicle on Wednesday morning.
Potent storm system is tracking across the state and is making for quite the wintry scene across Southern Colorado
Check out who has rocked out at the Super Bowl during halftime performances.
