California —
FFRF corrected an ongoing First Amendment violation in the Saddleback Valley Unified School District in California, where a church group was taking advantage of preferential treatment of the school’s rental space contract.
A district employee reported that Los Alisos Intermediate Schools had been giving a local church, C30C, preferential treatment regarding the church’s use of school facilities. FFRF learned that the church rented school facilities for use on Sundays, but starting in June 2024, Los Alisos had permitted the church to store a variety of worship and decoration items in student-accessible areas throughout the school, including the school’s stage, as well as staff restrooms. The church’s official rental contract reportedly did not include the church being permitted to store items throughout the school and that C30C was not paying the school additional funds to use facilities for storage. FFRF’s complainant stated that at times, the school was even allowing the church to leave items in spaces that blocked pathways for wheelchair users, creating accessibility problems for students and staff.
Additionally, the school reportedly allowed the church to begin storing its items in a storage pod on Los Alisos’ grounds, again, free of charge. The district’s official Community Services Office was informed of the preferential treatment C30C was receiving and the hazards it was causing, but the office did nothing to enforce the terms of the church’s actual rental contract or otherwise intervene. The church has also seemingly removed and damaged other items in teachers’ classrooms, including LGBTQ-plus pride flags, while additionally leaving pamphlets and other literature “hidden” in classrooms, likely with hopes that students will find the materials and join the church.
“The school is allegedly permitting the church to enter the building outside of its official rental hours, store its items throughout the building and in a pod on school grounds, interfere with teacher property, and leave literature behind in classrooms,” FFRF Staff Attorney Sammi Lawrence wrote to the district.
After the district acknowledged FFRF’s letter, but did not provide any details about action, FFRF pressed for further resolution. Finally, Assistant Superintendent Robert Craven wrote back to FFRF, confirming that the district was aware of, and working to fix, the violation. “Yes, we’ve been taking concrete corrective actions and will continue to if needed,” Craven wrote.
