The Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) is suing the Cherry Creek School District of Colorado on behalf of three parents of children who attend schools in the district. The suit is taking place over an item in the district’s “40 Developmental Assets” list. #19 is the one in question, which urges that children spend at least an hour a week in a religious institution. A notice on the FFRF website states that, “this Asset is prominently posted in Cherry Creek public schools alongside the photo of a young child with her hands clasped as though in prayer under the title ‘Faith Community.’ ” (Note that the text of the photo is not verbatim to the actual asset listed in the CCSD’s development guide, this seems more harmless.)
Now I’m not personally one to promote lawsuits for every minute little thing, but how schools let this kind of thing happen is still beyond me. From experience, I know that Colorado is not a particularly religious state. My brief time in the Cherry Creek School District when I was younger was pleasant and looking back on it, I would say the experience was fairly secular. So when a friend told me about this case I was pretty surprised. I’m not sure that a lawsuit is the right solution to this problem, exactly, but that’s not really for me to decide. However I would say that this problem is kind of major, considering that the district is saying that religion is an asset to a child’s development.
On that note, if you know a child or a parent of a child who attends a school in the Cherry Creek School district, the FFRF urges you to pass this official statement on:
The Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) has a very important challenge regarding the separation of church and state in the Cherry Creek School District in Denver. The lawsuit challenges the District adoption of the “40 Developmental Assets,” of which number 19 is a recommendation of a “religious community” for children. The school district is recommending that children spend at least an hour a week in a church or other religious setting.
In a document specifically written for children, the endorsement reads: “I spend time with my religion.” A poster of a praying child next to this wording is displayed in various ways. The asset appears on a master calendar at the District website and various District documents.
FFRF has uncovered a religious agenda of the “40 Developmental Assets” program (in which the Lutheran Brotherhood, which developed it, cites bible verses which inspire each “asset,” even the secular-sounding assets).
Due to a child of a plaintiff graduating, FFRF is down to a single plaintiff. We are requesting anyone having a child in the school system who supports the separation of church and state to join the suit.
If you have a child in the Cherry Creek School system (or sympathetic friends or relatives with children in the District) and you might be interested in joining our action against this establishment of religion by the school district, then please let me know. Plaintiffs must have children who use the Cherry Creek public schools.
If we are to add additional plaintiffs, they need to be added before 2009. There is no cost involved and very little time required, and you would be helping to ensure we can challenge a violation that is occurring nationwide. The Court has a protective order which keeps parent (and child) names out of the court documents and newspapers. If interested contact me ASAP
Tim Bailey 303.921.0641
Tcsgrv@mindspring.com
Humanists of Colorado
Cheers
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A little confused here-
So it was the Lutheran Brotherhood that made the list of 40 Assets? How then did this get to be district recommendation?
That’s a good question. Connections between CCSD and the Lutheran Brotherhood seem pretty unclear but it looks like the Lutheran Youth Group, which was either part of or affiliated with the Brotherhood, worked with the district. That being said, the Lutheran Brotherhood is now basically extinct (since it merged with another Lutheran group to form Thrivent Financial) so it’s hard to find anything about their specific connection in archives.