Washington school district to pay $275K over Bible concealment policy

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 16 Oct, 22:38 · Archive

Everett School District in Washington has agreed to pay $275,000 and apologize after being sued over policies requiring students to hide Bibles.

Everett School District in Washington has agreed to settle a lawsuit brought by LifeWise Academy, a Christian education organisation that provides privately funded Bible instruction to public school students. The settlement requires the district to pay $275,000 in attorney's fees, issue a public apology and undergo religious liberty training.

The lawsuit challenged policies requiring elementary students to keep Bibles in sealed envelopes and mandating weekly permission slips for families to allow their children to attend LifeWise's voluntary, off-campus Bible instruction sessions. LifeWise Academy founder and CEO Joel Penton said the restrictions caused emotional harm to students, with parents reporting their children felt pressured to hide their faith.

Penton stated that LifeWise had operated in the Everett district for several years before the school board changed its policies. He characterised the new restrictions as 'transparently discriminatory' and argued they infringed on religious liberty. The organisation claimed the policies unfairly targeted its programme.

How it is being reported

• Washington school district that made kids hide Bibles in sealed envelopes must apologize and pay $275KWashington's Everett School District will pay $275,000 and apologize to settle a lawsuit over forcing students to hide Bibles in sealed envelopes.New York Post · 16 Oct, 22:22
• Washington school district that forced kids to hide Bibles in sealed envelopes must apologize, pay $275KLifeWise Academy's Joel Penton says a Washington school district's policies forced students to hide Bibles in sealed envelopes, sparking a federal lawsuit.Fox News · 16 Oct, 16:43

In this story: LifeWise Academy · Everett School District · Joel Penton · Washington

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