Across the country, hundreds of bills have been introduced to undermine the quality of public education and erode the First Amendment freedoms of students, teachers, and administrators. For years, watchdogs have warned against religious nationalist initiatives from Project Blitz to Project 2025 that aim to censor classroom discussions, restrict students’ exposure to the full marketplace of ideas, impose a narrow religiopolitical ideology, and divert public dollars to private schools — jeopardizing academic integrity and core civil liberties. A rapid shift in federal jurisprudence regarding religion in public schools has also left districts and educators confused and at risk of costly litigation. A national coalition of secular organizations have developed model legislation to safeguard nonsectarian public education. Policy and legal experts with American Atheists, the American Humanist Association, and the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) say their Student Secular Bill of Rights (SSBOR) affirms a long-established principle: Public schools must remain neutral in matters of religion. Coalition members contend this is both legally required and the best way to protect districts, administrators, teachers, students, families, and taxpayers alike.  Just weeks into the 2026 legislative session, the SSBOR has already been introduced in three states: Kansas (HB 2431, Rep. Heather Meyer), Oklahoma (HB 3488, Rep. Michelle McCane), and Vermont (H 705, Reps. Monique Priestley and Laura Sibilia). If passed, these bills will codify longstanding Establishment Clause case law into state statute, ensuring that public schools are not subject to the whims of the U.S. Supreme Court. “This is a chance for state lawmakers to stand up for students’ right to a secular public education in the face of an increasingly hostile U.S. Supreme Court,” said FFRF Action Fund Senior Policy Counsel Ryan Jayne. “Enshrining these protections into state law guarantees that kids remain protected, regardless of what damage judicial activists may do to the First Amendment.” Proponents of the policy warn the consequences of perverting the Founders’ promise of religious freedom for all into a privilege and weapon for some are not hypothetical. Religious minority and nonreligious students experience alarming levels of discrimination and bullying at school. In California, 40% of Muslim students say discrimination has caused them to miss school. Nationally, over 75% of Sikh students report experiencing verbal, physical, social, or cyber bullying due to their religious beliefs. And nearly one-third of nonreligious youth report being bullied while at school, according to American Atheists’ U.S. Secular Survey. “The Constitution promises fundamental freedoms to everyone, regardless of religion,” said Sam McGuire, Director of Grassroots Organizing & Advocacy for American Atheists. “Anti-pluralistic policies that promote one faith tradition in public schools alienate religious minorities and nonreligious people. Our tax dollars must never fund or favor someone else’s beliefs, and we cannot allow students to be casualties in politicians’ culture wars.”  The coalition also developed a more comprehensive version, the Promoting Liberty & Upholding the Rights of All Learners (PLURAL) Act, which includes the same protections as SSBOR, as well as a minimum school funding standard and additional provisions to safeguard against the deprofessionalization and deregulation of education. The PLURAL Act further affirms that students themselves – not only their parents and guardians […]

The post American Atheists, Secular Partners Advance Model Legislation to Safeguard Students’ Rights appeared first on American Atheists.