Martin Do Nascimento | KUT
Under Senate Bill 11, if a student or employee wants to take part in the designated period, a signed consent form has to be submitted. Signing the consent form waives the right to sue the school under state or federal law.
Galveston ISD on Wednesday became the latest local school district to reject school prayer periods, which are permitted by a new Texas law.
Board members for Houston ISD, the largest district in Texas, also have voted against carving out prayer periods and Bible-reading sessions. So have several other Houston-area school districts, including Alief ISD, Conroe ISD, Cypress-Fairbanks ISD, Humble ISD, Katy ISD and Spring ISD, according to Houston Chronicle reporting.
Leaders of at least one Houston-area district, Magnolia ISD, have voted to adopt designated prayer periods, which are voluntary for students and staff under Senate Bill 11. The law requires all public school boards and charter school governing bodies in Texas to make a decision by March 1 about whether or not to implement the prayer sessions.
Sign up for the Hello, Houston! daily newsletter to get local reports like this delivered directly to your inbox.
Galveston ISD officials stated that even without adopting them, students and employees are not prohibited from participating in prayer or reading the Bible or other religious texts during a period of the day that isn’t designated and does not interfere with instruction.
Some supporters of the law have said carving out time for prayer at school is important, asserting that the opportunity for voluntary prayer or reading of the Bible or other religious texts has deteriorated, according to previous Houston Public Media reporting.
Opponents say the new law risks violating First Amendment protections, erodes the separation of church and state and would be difficult to implement in schools. They also argue the bill was not necessary since students are already allowed to express their faiths in public schools.
The Galveston ISD board meeting agenda item, in opposition of adopting prayer periods, was approved in a 6-0 vote without discussion on Wednesday night. School board vice president Johnny Smecca was absent for the vote, which was taken as part of a consent agenda that included multiple items.
Houston Public Media’s Bianca Seward contributed to this report.