After FFRF intervened, religious leaders will no longer be allowed to use a mandatory school event in the Fort Payne School District to proselytize to students.
A Fort Payne High School parent reported that the school hosted a mandatory camp for marching band members. The school solicited volunteers from the community to provide dinner for the students. The complainant reported that the first group to provide a meal for students was a local church. Church members were allowed to speak with students during the meal about the church and its facilities in an effort to recruit students to attend.
FFRF Attorney Chris Line wrote to the district to ensure that future school-sponsored events do not include church members recruiting, proselytizing or praying with students.
The district’s attorney sent a response, informing FFRF that Fort Payne City Schools and the band director recognize that the church leader should not have been allowed to speak to students at the event and “no further similar statements by religious leaders were made throughout the remainder of the band camp, nor at any other school-sponsored event since that time.”
