though secular messages were permitted. A lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court in Ohio.

• From the Flagstaff, Arizona Unified School District:

Sixth-grader Caitlin Ribelin wanted to tell classmates about her church youth group, but her school principal prevented her from doing so because of school policies preventing distribution of religious materials not authored by students. A lawsuit had to be filed against the school district to allow religious literature to be treated the same way that secular literature is treated.

• From Muskogee Public School District, Oklahoma:

An 11-year-old Muslim student was suspended for wearing her religious hair covering to school, in violation of the school's dress code. A lawsuit was filed to protect the student's religious rights in federal court in Oklahoma, and the school district finally decided to settle after the U.S. Department of Justice opened an investigation.

• From Cushing Elementary School, Delafield, Wisconsin:

Morgan Nyman, an eight-year-old student was denied the opportunity to share the valentines that she had made by hand with her classmates because the Valentines included religious messages, which would "violate the separation of church and state" if little Morgan was permitted to hand them out. A lawsuit was filed to protect Morgan's rights, and the Kettle Moraine School District only relented after litigation, deciding to allow Morgan to pass the valentines out.

• From the Boulder Valley School District, Colorado:

For a class project, students were asked to select their favorite book for an oral book report. Eleven-year-old student Elizabeth Johnson selected the Bible, specifically Exodus, to share with the class, but the teacher rejected the student's choice, saying that the Bible may be "offensive" to some. Additionally, Elizabeth was told that she could not bring her Bible to school. An attorney became involved and sent a letter to the district explaining how Elizabeth's rights had been violated, and a television station contacted the school about the events. Twenty minutes after the news called, the district relented and permitted Elizabeth to select the Bible as the subject of her book report.

• From Miami-Dade, Florida:

Students tried to distribute business-sized cards to other students on the MiamiDade Community College campus; the cards had a number for people to call where they could hear a recorded message about Jesus Christ. Campus security officers approached and told the students that they couldn't pass out the cards. Later, the students returned to resume handing out their cards and were approached by security officers and an administration official. When the students tried to leave, more security officers were summoned as was a police officer who threatened to arrest the students. A lawsuit had to be filed to protect the students'

rights, and the school was barred from reviewing Christian literature and could prevent its distribution only in limited circumstances.

• From Boca Raton School District, Florida:

Members of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) were denied the opportunity to share a religious message on construction panels in the school as part of a beautification project. Though students were told that no profane or obscene messages were permitted, no policy was mentioned regarding religious messages. The students' messages were edited to eliminate "God" and "Jesus." A lawsuit was filed.

• From Asa Adams School in Orono, Maine:

Third grader Gelsey Bostick wore a t-shirt and sweatshirt that said “Jesus Christ" on them, and her teacher asked her to turn both articles inside out because they were causing a commotion and offended one of the students. Furthermore, some students construed the words "Jesus Christ" as swear words. The school reversed itself only after a religious liberties law firm intervened.

STUDENT PRAYER

· Goulba v. Sch. Dist. of Ripon, 45 F.3d 1035 (7th Cir. 1995).

After students recited the Lord's Prayer, on their own accord, before the opening of graduation ceremonies, student Nikki Goulba filed a civil contempt motion against the School District of Ripon and the Ripon High School principal, claiming that the officials violated a permanent injunction that prevented them from prayer during school graduations.

• ACLU v. Black Horse Pike Reg'l Bd of Educ., 84 F.3d 1471 (3rd Cir. 1996).

A lawsuit was filed challenging a school policy that permitted the graduating class to vote to determine if there would be student-led prayer during graduation ceremonies. The court struck down the policy, determining it violated the Establishment Clause and enjoined the school from permitting the prayer.

• Adler v. Duval County Sch. Bd., 250 F.3d 1330 (11th Cir. 2001).

Lawsuit filed to challenge a school policy permitting high school seniors to use a popular vote to select a graduation speaker who could deliver a message of their choosing, without approval by school officials. The offense was that some students would use their time of speech to express religious thoughts.

• Candler v. Siegelman, 230 F.3d 1313 (11th Cir. 2000).

A principal and student filed suit to challenge an Alabama statute, which allowed student-initiated prayer during school events.

• Geardon v. Loudon County Sch. Bd., 844 F. Supp. 1097 (E.D Va. 1993) (mem.). Parents and students filed a lawsuit challenging prayer at a high school graduation, and the court permanently enjoined the school from permitting prayer at graduation ceremonies.

• Jones v. Clear Creek Indep. Sch. Dist., 977 F.2d 963 (5th Cir. 1992).

A Clear Creek ISD parent filed suit to challenge a policy permitting high school seniors to select student volunteers to give nonsectarian, non-proselytizing invocations at graduation ceremonies.

• Mellen v. Bunting, 327 F.3d 355 (4th Cir. 2003).

Two students brought suit challenging the practice of having a supper prayer at a military school in Virginia on the grounds that it violated the Establishment Clause and the court struck down the practice.

Santa Fe Indep. Sch. Dist. v. Doe, 530 U.S. 290 (2000).

A lawsuit was filed to challenge a school district policy permitting student-led, student-initiated prayer prior to football games, and the court struck down the policy, determining it violated the Establishment Clause. In the lower court in this same case, the judge ordered students not to pray in Jesus' name and told them that federal marshals would be on hand to take students to the Galveston County Jail, saying "Anyone who violates these orders, no kidding, is going to wish that he or she had died as a child when this court gets through with it.”

• Lee v. Weisman, 505 U.S. 577 (1992).

In Providence, Rhode Island, principals of public school were permitted to ask clergy to give invocations and benedictions at graduation exercises, but when a middle school principal invited a rabbi to give a nonsectarian prayer, a student's parent got a temporary restraining order to prevent the prayer and sought a permanent injunction to prevent the practice of inviting clergy to perform prayers in the future.

Wallace v. Jaffree, 472 U.S. 38 (1985).

A lawsuit was filed to challenge the practice of having a period of meditation and voluntary prayer in schools in Alabama.

• Frank J. Murray, Federal Court Hears Lawsuit Over Kindergarten Christian; New York Schools May Relent, May Let Tot Say Grace at Meals, The Washington Times, April 12, 2002.

Kindergartner Kayla Broadus prayed, “God is good. God is great. Thank you, God, for my food," with two classmates at her school in Saratoga Springs, New York at the snack table before they ate their snack. Her teacher silenced the prayer, scolded Kayla and informed the school lawyer. A lawsuit ensued over the child's prayer.

• From Aledo Independent School District, Aledo, Texas:

Katherine Furley was elected to pray at her graduation ceremony, but then was ordered to submit her prayer to officials. School officials then proceeded to edit, word by word, which words she could and could not pray. A lawsuit was filed to protect Katherine's right to pray without being edited by the government. The Court ruled against her right to pray without government editing.

After graduating seniors voted to have prayer in their graduation, a student complained to the ACLU, who threatened legal action against the school if they permitted the prayer. At the graduation ceremony, school officials announced that there would be no praying during the ceremony.

SCHOLARSHIP AWARDS AND VOUCHERS

Locke v. Davey, __ U.S. 124 S. Ct. 1307 (2004).

Josh Davey received a Promise Scholarship, which was awarded to academically gifted students with postsecondary education expenses, to use at any college in the state. He decided to pursue a double major in pastoral ministries and business management/administration. Davey was told that he could use the scholarship for any major unless he was devoted to become a pastor. The Court ruled against him.

Eulitt v. Me. Dep't of Educ., 307 F. Supp. 2d 158 (D. Me. 2004).

Though Maine state law requires free public education for kindergarten through 12th grade, the town of Minot only has schooling through the eighth grade, and the town has contracted to send their students elsewhere for high school, public school or other schools if the student has "educational program requirements that may not be offered in association with PRHS." A Minot family was denied access to public funding for child's tuition to Catholic high school, despite the fact that the state had the authority to approve payments to alternative schools, and a lawsuit was filed.

• Zelman v. Simmons-Harris, 536 U.S. 639 (2002).

An Ohio voucher program was enacted because the public school system was in a "crisis of magnitude," and families were given voucher funds to use toward a school of their choosing. Many families elected to use their vouchers for religious schools, and as a result, a lawsuit was filed to challenge the program, claiming it established religion.

• From Michigan:

A Cornerstone University graduate student received a tuition grant from the state of Michigan. But when the student decided to pursue a Pastoral Studies divinity degree, the financial aid office of the university informed him that he was no longer eligible for the grant because it could not be used for divinity, theology, or religious instruction. In other words, religious studies were being treated differently than other areas of study.

SCHOOL FACULTY AND OTHER STATE EMPLOYEES

Barrow v. Greenville ISD, 332 F.3d 844 (5th Cir. 2003).

Karen Jo Barrow was denied an assistant principal position because she refused to remove her children from private, Christian school. A lawsuit was filed to protect her rights to select a religious education for her children without suffering repercussions for it at work in the public schools. Though the district court

refused to uphold Barrow's parental rights to send her children to Christian school, the Fifth Circuit did and warded off this egregious religious discrimination on the part of the school district.

• Fraternal Order of Police v. City of Newark, 170 F.3d 359 (3d Cir. 1999).

Two Muslim police officers in Newark were required to shave their beards after the city issued an order requiring all police officers to be clean shaven. The order permitted a medical exemption, but not a religious exemption. The officers had to file a lawsuit to protect their constitutional right to free exercise of their religion.

Nichol v. Arin Intermediate Unit 28, 268 F. Supp. 2d 536 (W.D. Pa. 2003).

The school district suspended elementary school instructional assistant Brenda Nichol for wearing a cross necklace, finding her in violation of a district policy based on the Pennsylvania's Garb Statute, which prohibited teachers and other public school employees from wearing religious emblems or insignia. A lawsuit was filed to remedy the policy, which was overtly and openly hostile to religion, and to prevent the district from forbidding symbolic speech by employees from a religious viewpoint.

• Peloza v. Capistrano Unified Sch. Dist., 37 F.3d 517 (9th Cir. 1994).

The Capistrano Unified School District forbade John Peloza, a biology teacher, from discussing religious matters with students the entire time he is on the school campus, even if the discussion occurs outside of class time and is studentinitiated. Essentially the district had a history of reprimanding and harassing Peloza because of his worldview. Peloza filed suit to protect his constitutionallyprotected free speech and equal protection rights, but the court dismissed Peloza's complaint finding that the school district's interest in avoiding an (unlikely) Establishment Clause violation trumped Peloza's rights.

· Roberts v. Madigan, 921 F.2d 1047 (10th Cir. 1990).

Mr. Roberts' class had a silent reading period daily, and Mr. Roberts had a library of 239 books, from which the students could select reading material. Two of the books dealt with Christianity. Mr. Roberts participated in the reading period, often choosing to read his Bible, and he kept the Bible on his desk during the school day. The school principal censored Mr. Roberts, forbade him from placing his Bible on his desk during the school day and from reading it during the school day, and forbade him from keeping the two Christian books in the library. A lawsuit was filed to end the religious bigotry against Mr. Roberts, but the court upheld the school's action and even awarded the school district court costs.

Diane Lynne, Petition Posted to Defend 'God Bless America,' WorldNetDaily, Jan. 31, 2003.

Military honor guardsman Patrick Cubbage was fired for saying “God bless you and this family, and God bless the United States of America” to families as he presented a folded flag in honor of a fallen veteran. Though the families did not object to the practice, Cubbage's co-guardsmen complained to their supervisor,