MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2012 Regular Session
To: Education
By: Representatives Zuber, Bell, Boyd, Busby, Carpenter, Chism, Howell, Moore, Staples
AN ACT TO CREATE THE "MISSISSIPPI STUDENT RELIGIOUS LIBERTIES ACT OF 2012"; TO AUTHORIZE VOLUNTARY STUDENT EXPRESSION OF RELIGIOUS VIEWPOINTS IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS; TO REQUIRE SCHOOL DISTRICTS TO ADOPT A POLICY CREATING A LIMITED PUBLIC FORUM FOR VOLUNTARY STUDENT EXPRESSION OF A RELIGIOUS VIEWPOINT; TO REQUIRE SCHOOL DISTRICTS TO CREATE A LIMITED PUBLIC FORUM FOR STUDENT SPEAKERS AT GRADUATION AND OTHER EVENTS; TO REQUIRE SCHOOL DISTRICTS TO ALLOW RELIGIOUS EXPRESSION IN CLASS ASSIGNMENTS; TO REQUIRE SCHOOL DISTRICTS TO PROVIDE STUDENTS WITH THE FREEDOM TO ORGANIZE RELIGIOUS GROUPS AND ACTIVITIES; TO ESTABLISH A MODEL POLICY ON STUDENT EXPRESSION OF RELIGIOUS VIEWPOINTS WHICH MAY BE ADOPTED BY SCHOOL DISTRICTS; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "Mississippi Student Religious Liberties Act of 2012."
SECTION 2. A school district shall treat a student's voluntary expression of a religious viewpoint, if any, on an otherwise permissible subject in the same manner that the district treats a student's voluntary expression of a secular or other viewpoint on an otherwise permissible subject. A school district may not discriminate against a student based on a religious viewpoint expressed by the student on an otherwise permissible subject.
SECTION 3. (1) To ensure that a school district does not discriminate against a student's publicly stated voluntary expression of a religious viewpoint, if any, and to eliminate any actual or perceived affirmative school sponsorship or attribution to the district of a student's expression of a religious viewpoint, if any, each school district shall adopt a policy that requires the establishment of a limited public forum for student speakers at all school events at which a student is to publicly speak. The policy regarding the limited public forum must require the school district to:
(a) Provide the forum in a manner that does not discriminate against a student's voluntary expression of a religious viewpoint, if any, on an otherwise permissible subject;
(b) Provide a method, based on neutral criteria, for the selection of student speakers at school events and graduation ceremonies;
(c) Ensure that a student speaker does not engage in obscene, vulgar, offensively lewd or indecent speech; and
(d) State in writing or orally, or both, that the student's speech does not reflect the endorsement, sponsorship, position or expression of the district.
(2) The school district disclaimer required by subsection (1)(d) must be provided at all graduation ceremonies. The school district also must continue to provide the disclaimer at any other event in which a student speaks publicly for as long as a need exists to dispel confusion over the district's nonsponsorship of the student's speech.
(3) Student expression on an otherwise permissible subject may not be excluded from the limited public forum because the subject is expressed from a religious viewpoint.
SECTION 4. Students may express their beliefs about religion in homework, artwork and other written and oral assignments free from discrimination based on the religious content of their submissions. Homework and classroom assignments must be judged by ordinary academic standards of substance and relevance and against other legitimate pedagogical concerns identified by the school district. Students may not be penalized or rewarded on account of the religious content of their work.
SECTION 5. Students may organize prayer groups, religious clubs, "see you at the pole" gatherings, or other religious gatherings before, during and after school to the same extent that students are permitted to organize other noncurricular student activities and groups. Religious groups must be given the same access to school facilities for assembling which is given to other noncurricular groups without discrimination based on the religious content of the students' expression. If student groups that meet for nonreligious activities are permitted to advertise or announce meetings of the groups, the school district may not discriminate against groups that meet for prayer or other religious speech. A school district may disclaim school sponsorship of noncurricular groups and events in a manner that neither favors nor disfavors groups that meet to engage in prayer or religious speech.
SECTION 6. Each school district shall adopt and implement a policy regarding a limited public forum and voluntary student expression of religious viewpoints. If a school district voluntarily adopts and follows the model policy governing voluntary religious expression in public schools provided by Section 7, the district is in compliance with the provisions of this act covered by the model policy.
SECTION 7. As used in this section, the term "model policy" means a local policy adopted by the school district that is substantially identical to the following:
ARTICLE I
STUDENT EXPRESSION OF RELIGIOUS VIEWPOINTS
The school district shall treat a student's voluntary expression of a religious viewpoint, if any, on an otherwise permissible subject in the same manner that the district treats a student's voluntary expression of a secular or other viewpoint on an otherwise permissible subject. The school district may not discriminate against a student based on a religious viewpoint expressed by the student on an otherwise permissible subject.
ARTICLE II
STUDENT SPEAKERS AT NONGRADUATION EVENTS
There is created by the school district a limited public forum for student speakers at all school events at which a student is to publicly speak. For each speaker, the district shall set a maximum time limit reasonable and appropriate to the occasion. Student speakers may introduce:
(a) Football games;
(b) Other athletic events designated by the district;
(c) Opening announcements and greetings for the school day; and
(d) Any additional events designated by the district, which may include, without limitation, assemblies and pep rallies.
The forum must be limited in the manner provided by this article.
Only those students in the highest two (2) grade levels of the school and who hold one (1) of the following positions of honor based on neutral criteria are eligible to use the limited public forum: student council officers; class officers of the highest grade level in the school; captains of the football team; and other students holding positions of honor designated by the school district.
Each eligible student must be notified of the student's eligibility. Any eligible student who wishes to participate as an introducing speaker shall submit the student's name to the student council or other designated body during an announced period of not less than three (3) days. The announced period may be at the beginning of the school year, at the end of the preceding school year so student speakers are in place for the new year, or, if the selection process will be repeated each semester, at the beginning of each semester or at the end of the preceding semester so speakers are in place for the next semester. The names of the volunteering student speakers must be drawn randomly until all names have been selected, and the names must be listed in the order drawn. Each selected student will be matched chronologically to the event for which the student will be giving the introduction. Each student may speak for one (1) week at a time for all introductions of events that week, or student speakers may be rotated after each speaking event or in any manner otherwise determined by the district. The list of student speakers must be chronologically repeated as needed, in the same order. The district, in its discretion, may repeat the selection process each semester rather than once a year.
The subject of the student introductions must be related to the purpose of the event and to the purpose of: marking the opening of the event; honoring the occasion, participants and those in attendance; bringing the audience to order; and focusing the audience on the purpose of the event. The subject must be designated, a student must stay on the subject, and the student may not engage in obscene, vulgar, offensively lewd or indecent speech. The school district shall treat a student's voluntary expression of a religious viewpoint, if any, on an otherwise permissible subject in the same manner that the district treats a student's voluntary expression of a secular or other viewpoint on an otherwise permissible subject. The school district may not discriminate against any student based on a religious viewpoint expressed by the student on an otherwise permissible subject.
For as long as there is a need to dispel confusion over the nonsponsorship of the student's speech at each event in which a student will deliver an introduction, a disclaimer must be stated in written or oral form, or both, such as, "The student giving the introduction for this event is a volunteering student selected on neutral criteria to introduce the event. The content of the introduction is the private expression of the student and does not reflect the endorsement, sponsorship, position or expression of the school district."
The school district recognizes that certain students who have attained special positions of honor in their schools traditionally have addressed school audiences from time to time as a tangential component of their achieved positions of honor based on neutral criteria. Examples of such positions of honor include the captains of various sports teams, student council officers, class officers, homecoming kings and queens, prom kings and queens, and the like. Nothing in this policy eliminates the continuation of the practice of having these students, irrespective of grade level, address school audiences in the normal course of their respective positions. The school district shall create a limited public forum for the speakers and shall treat a student's voluntary expression of a religious viewpoint, if any, on an otherwise permissible subject in the same manner that the district treats a student's voluntary expression of a secular or other viewpoint on an otherwise permissible subject. The school district may not discriminate against any student based on a religious viewpoint expressed by the student on an otherwise permissible subject.
ARTICLE III
STUDENT SPEAKERS AT GRADUATION CEREMONIES
There is created by the school district a limited public forum consisting of an opportunity for a student to speak to begin graduation ceremonies and another student to speak to end graduation ceremonies. For each speaker, the district shall set a maximum time limit reasonable and appropriate to the occasion.
The forum must be limited in the manner provided by this article.
Only students who are graduating and who hold one (1) of the following neutral criteria positions of honor are eligible to use the limited public forum: student council officers; class officers of the graduating class; the top three (3) academically ranked graduates; or a shorter or longer list of student leaders designated by the school district. A student who otherwise will have a speaking role in the graduation ceremonies is ineligible to give the opening and closing remarks. The names of the eligible volunteering students will be drawn randomly. The first name drawn will give the opening and the second name drawn will give the closing.
The topic of the opening and closing remarks must be related to the purpose of the graduation ceremony and to the purpose of: marking the opening and closing of the event; honoring the occasion, the participants and those in attendance; bringing the audience to order; and focusing the audience on the purpose of the event.
In addition to the students giving the opening and closing remarks, certain other students who have attained special positions of honor based on neutral criteria, including, without limitation, the valedictorian and salutatorian, will have speaking roles at graduation ceremonies. For each speaker, the school district shall set a maximum time limit reasonable and appropriate to the occasion and to the position held by the speaker. For this purpose, the district creates a limited public forum for these students to deliver the addresses. The subject of the addresses must be related to the purpose of the graduation ceremony, marking and honoring the occasion, honoring the participants and those in attendance, and the student's perspective on purpose, achievement, life, school, graduation and looking forward to the future.
The subject must be designated for each student speaker, the student must stay on the subject, and the student may not engage in obscene, vulgar, offensively lewd or indecent speech. The school district shall treat a student's voluntary expression of a religious viewpoint, if any, on an otherwise permissible subject in the same manner that the district treats a student's voluntary expression of a secular or other viewpoint on an otherwise permissible subject. The school district may not discriminate against the student based on a religious viewpoint expressed by the student on an otherwise permissible subject.
A written disclaimer must be printed in the graduation program which states, "The students speaking at the graduation ceremony were selected based on neutral criteria to deliver messages of the students' own choices. The content of each student speaker's message is the private expression of the individual student and does not reflect any position or expression of the school district or the board of trustees, the administration or employees of the district or the views of any other graduate. The contents of these messages were prepared by the students, and the district refrained from any interaction with student speakers regarding the student speakers' viewpoints on permissible subjects."
ARTICLE IV
RELIGIOUS EXPRESSION IN CLASS ASSIGNMENTS
A student may express the student's beliefs about religion in homework, artwork and other written and oral assignments free from discrimination based on the religious content of the student's submission. Homework and classroom work must be judged by ordinary academic standards of substance and relevance and against other legitimate pedagogical concerns identified by the school. Students may not be penalized or rewarded on account of religious content. If a teacher's assignment involves writing a poem, the work of a student who submits a poem in the form of a prayer (for example, a psalm) should be judged on the basis of academic standards, including literary quality, and the student may not be penalized or rewarded on account of the poem's religious content.
ARTICLE V
FREEDOM TO ORGANIZE RELIGIOUS GROUPS AND ACTIVITIES
Students may organize prayer groups, religious clubs, "see you at the pole" gatherings, and other religious gatherings before, during and after school to the same extent that students are permitted to organize other noncurricular student activities and groups. Religious groups must be given the same access to school facilities for assembling which is given to other noncurricular groups without discrimination based on the religious content of the group's expression. If student groups that meet for nonreligious activities are permitted to advertise or announce the groups' meetings by publishing notice in a student newspaper, putting up posters, making announcements on a student activities bulletin board or public address system, or handing out leaflets, school authorities may not discriminate against groups that meet for prayer or other religious speech. School authorities may disclaim sponsorship of noncurricular groups and events if the disclaimer is administered in a manner that does not favor or disfavor groups that meet to engage in prayer or other religious speech.
SECTION 8. This act applies beginning with the 2012-2013 school year.
SECTION 9. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2012.