Portfolio Assignment #6

Alexus Jones
Edu 210
Due: 12/5/14

Religion in schools is an extremely delicate issue. In this scenario, a teacher by

the name of Karen White was dismissed from her job as a kindergarten teacher because
of her new religion, Jehovahs Witness. As part of becoming a member of the religion,
Karen White was no longer able to decorate her classroom for the holidays, plan gift
exchanges, sing Happy Birthday, or even perform the daily Pledge of Allegiance at the
beginning of class. Due to the complaints and protests of disgruntled parents, the
principal of the school, Bill Ward, recommended the dismissal of Ms. White. However,
there might be some question as to whether this dismissal is justifiable or not.
Throughout recent history, there has been many court cases involving the rights of both
students and teachers in schools, and looking at the courts ruling in those cases can help
establish a reasonable point of view, and help predict a courts ruling in this current case.
With there being evidence to support both sides, some potential gray area can remain,
could make a clear-cut decision nearly impossible.
Due to Karen Whites newly founded religious beliefs and values, the way she
teaches her class has changed. She feels justified to do so due to her first amendment
rights. In the popular and famous Tinker v. Des Moines case, the Supreme Court stated
the opinion that it can hardly be argued that neither students nor teachers shed their
constitutional rights to freedom of speech and expression at the schoolhouse gate. With
this ruling, Karen White should still be expected to retain her First Amendment rights to
freedom of speech and expression while teaching at the public school, and that she should
be allowed to freely teach her class, as long as she is not making one religion seem more
or less important than the others. However, with this ruling, she should not lose her job
for not even mentioning or decorating other religions. She never held her religion or any

other religion above the others, and that seems to be the main aggressor for teachers
violating the Establishment Clause.
In the case of Fink vs. Board of Education, a teacher was dismissed due to his
involvement of religion and Christian practices within his classroom. In their opinion, the
Supreme Court stated that the Establishment Clause prohibits a state or federal
government from placing official support behind the tenets of one or of all orthodoxies.
In response, Jeremy Leaming of the American United for Separation of Church and State
declared that It is clear that teachers cannot distribute religious material to students, lead
students in prayer, join students in Bible readings and encourage students to attend the
teachers church In the classroom, the job of a teacher is to teach secular subjects. It is
very clear by both the judges cases and the representatives views, that a teacher cannot
overextend their authority and teach religion in the classroom. However in the case with
Ms. White, she is doing the opposite. She should not be punished for NOT teaching
religion to the dismay of parents, when it is what the court deems should be done.
With that being said, there is ample support in favor of the school and Principal
Wards decision. One example of such support would be in the case of Downing v. West
Haven Board of Education, the federal court decided that high school administrators did
not violate the rights of a teacher when they ordered her to remove or cover up a shirt
with the wording JESUS 2000 J2K on it. Even if the actual act did not violate the
Establishment clause, it is justifiable for the school to make their decision if they felt
there was a legitimate threat to a potential violation. The court wrote In short, whatever
First Amendment rights were implicated by Downing wearing her T-shirt must give way
to the defendants legitimate concerns about a potential Establishment Clause violation in

a public school. Since parents of the students in the class raised their concerns, Principal
Ward thought that a potential violation could occur, and acted within reason and within
his constitutional rights as an educator.
A second case that supports the Principals decision is in Marchi v. Board of
Cooperative Educational Services. In this case, Dan Marchi, a special education teacher
who recently had converted to Christianity, much like Ms. White did with Jehovahs
Witness, and similarly changed his teaching program to discuss topics dealing with his
new religion. The 2nd circuit court ruled that school officials were justified in their orders
for him to refrain from using references, and to return to his old methods of teaching.
This case bears striking similarities to the present case, and the courts decision rules in
favor of the school, and against Ms. White. The court also added For his part, the
employee must accept that he does not retain the full extent of free exercise rights that he
would enjoy as a private citizen. This quote shows that Ms. White should be expected to
do her duty as an educator, and that giving up some of her rights is constitutional and
justly expected in the public school system.
Due to the evidence provided, and the legal history in the matter, I would have to
believe that the court would side with Principal Ward. Even though Karen Whites actions
may not seem flagrant or with religious intention, the school system is given leeway to
decide what could be posed as a threat to the Establishment Clause. Especially with the
complaints by the parents of the students, and their uneasiness with the teachers
methods, it is more than reasonable to see why Principal Ward made the decision that he
did. A school must make religion a nonfactor and nonthought in their system, no matter
what the grievance might be for. Even though Ms. White isnt directly promoting one

religion, the fact that she is unwilling to perform daily activities and normal procedures
shows that she values her religion more than her duty to educate, and with the evidence
given, that is something worthy of termination.

Works Cited
Hudson, David. "Teachers Religious Liberties." First Amendment Center. 16 Sept. 2002. Web. 5
Dec. 2014. <http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/teachers-religious-liberties>.
"FINK v. BD. OF ED., WARREN CO. SCH. DIST." Leagle. Web. 5 Dec. 2014.
<http://leagle.com/decision/198238565PaCommw320_1325.xml/FINK v. BD. OF ED.,
WARREN CO. SCH. DIST.>.
"DAN MARCHI, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. BOARD OF COOPERATIVE EDUCATIONAL
SERVICES." FindLaw. Web. 5 Dec. 2014.
<http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?
navby=search&case=/data2/circs/2nd/987213v2.html>.
"ELLA DOWNING V. WEST HAVEN BOARD OF ED." US Courts. Web. 5 Dec. 2014.
<http://www.ctd.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/opinions/082401.SRU.Downing.pdf>.