Virginia
FFRF fought to keep students in the Clarke County Public Schools system safe from a program that would have allowed a church to proselytize students under the guise of offering mentorship.
A district parent informed FFRF that the district was considering a proposal to establish a “Community Mentorship Program” with Fellowship Bible Church.
The proposal was presented in August, when the pastor of the church claimed that the intent of the partnership was not to proselytize, despite the church’s website making it clear that this was not the case. The church’s mentoring partnership website included a list of “Resources to help you share Jesus,” and explained that “a mentor from Fellowship Bible Church is an ambassador of Christ in an increasingly difficult world.”
“This partnership with Fellowship Bible Church would put Clarke County Public Schools in the dubious position of entangling itself with a church, in violation of the Establishment Clause,” FFRF Staff Attorney Chris Line wrote.
The district sought guidance from the Timberlake Smith law firm, where G. Rodney Young II ensured that FFRF received a response. “The board took no action to approve the proposed program, and it has not been implemented in any division school,” Young wrote.
