A Texas school district no longer selects a student to lead a prayer during pep rallies as a result of a letter it received from the Freedom From Religion Foundation.
FFRF Staff Attorney Stephanie Schmitt wrote to Superintendent of Ballinger Independent School District Will Brewer on Sept. 18 after FFRF received a complaint from a former Ballinger student.
“It is illegal for a public school to organize, sponsor and lead payers at public school events,” Schmitt said in the letter.
Brewer said in a Sept. 26 response letter that the Ballinger Integrated School District does not endorse religion, and are reviewing the pep rally program.
“Ballinger ISD employees do not request that students engage in prayer, privately or publicly, nor do they encourage or otherwise lead students in prayer,” Brewer said.
