ACLJ Reaches Settlement With School District Protecting the Rights of Students To Pray

As explained in more detail here, the ACLJ recently filed a lawsuit against the Lake Central School Corporation, alleging that a track coach interfered with the rights of student-athletes to pray before a track meet.

We are pleased to report that within a day of the lawsuit being filed, we began working closely with school officials, through counsel, to resolve this matter in a swift fashion. Our amicable resolution of this case is not only in the best interests of our clients but also every Lake Central student—all of whom enjoy constitutional rights.

According to the terms of our settlement with the school district, it has and will take several measures to ensure that the First Amendment rights of all students, including our clients, are protected in the future. Those measures include:

(1) The adoption of a school board policy based on Indiana law that provides: “Public school students may pray or engage in religious activities or religious expressions before, during, and after the school day in the same manner and to the same extent that students may engage in nonreligious activities or expression”;

(2) A statement in the high school student handbook and a posting on the school district’s website informing students of their free speech rights;

(3) Assurances that all Lake Central coaches and staff, including the track coach, have been counseled not to retaliate against any student for that student’s lawful speech or religious expression;

(4) At the next annual training for all athletic staff, staff will be instructed about the rights of student-athletes to pray before and after games, per Indiana state law and the First Amendment;

(5) A written apology from the track coach; and

(6) Based on the foregoing terms, the lawsuit will be voluntarily dismissed.

The protection of a student’s right to pray and engage in religious expression is in the best interests of all concerned, and we applaud Lake Central School Corporation for moving quickly with us to help guarantee that protection for current and future Lake Central students.