Florida says schools must work with parents on religious absences

Following the Florida education commissioner's March memorandum to protect religious rights in public schools, the state board of education tweaked its policy to clarify its stances on excused absences for religious instruction or religious holidays.

The new rule clarifies that each school district must adopt a policy to allow "release time during the school day for students to participate in religious instruction" and have school officials work with parents to ensure it is not during core curricular instruction time. It also requires districts to set time parameters on the notice parents must give; and the amount of time students have to make up exams or assignments missed as a result of a religious excused absence.

The changes come on the heels of the state creating a tipline for those who believe their religious rights have been violated.

"Florida is absolutely committed to longstanding constitutional protections for voluntary prayer and for religious expression," said Paul Burns, chancellor of the department of education. "Students, teachers and other school employees retain their constitutional right to religious expression, including individual prayer."

Education Commissioner Anastasios Kamoutsas said the policy was "near and dear" to his heart, and he'd consulted with faith leaders across the state as he affirmed the need for protecting religious freedom.

"If students want to have the ability to receive faith instruction during lunchtime ... we're creating a mechanism by which they can receive that as part of this character development initiative," he said. "We're going to make sure students are still receiving rigorous academic instruction, and when they're in school, they are learning the necessary robust standards that this board has approved in so many of the subject areas."

Board member Grazie Christie said she supported the changes.

"The purpose of education is not just to fill children's minds with knowledge and technical know-how and fill them with certificates, but also to to give them a good thing to do with all that education and all that technical knowledge, and that is to make the world a better place," she said.

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