JUNCTION CITY (KSNT) — The Geary County School District reversed its stance on Bibles in school after they were threatened with a lawsuit.
KSNT News first reported this story after a letter drafted by the American Humanist Association was sent to USD 475 about the Bibles that were made available to students.
The Bibles, which were provided by Gideons International, were not forced upon students to take, but the religious books did make one fourth grade student at Seitz Elementary School uncomfortable. That student told her mother, who approached the school’s administration on Nov. 6.
“Frankly, I felt like the mother’s concerns were being dismissed by the administration,” Monica Miller told KSNT News on Nov. 10. Miller is the senior counsel for the American Humanist Association and the author of the letter.
In the letter, Miller told USD 475 that, “Seitz Elementary School facilitated the Gideons in distributing Bibles to a captive audience of elementary school children.”
The association was given a week to respond to the Association or they would proceed with legal action.
The district responded on Monday. And now, the father of the student is speaking out about why they decided to ask for help.
“It’s a big deal to my family because it opens the doors to a lot of other organizations,” Thomas F. told KSNT News Tuesday. In order to protect the identity of his children, Thomas only used his first name. “Finding support is difficult to do in this community or even in this country.”
Thomas said this was not the first time his family has contact the association when an incident like this happened at other schools.
The Gideons had made Bibles available at schools in USD 475 for 15 years, according to Hugh Davis, the communications director for the district.
“We don’t feel like we’ve made a mistake, but we do feel that we have to take into consideration all the factors involved,” Davis said.
The district sent two response letters to the association, one saying, “The Gideons have conducted themselves in a manner that adheres to the district policy for over 15 years. USD 475 has had very strict guidelines in place on how this activity has to take place so it does not put pressure on students to participate.”
But those guidelines did not help ease the student’s feeling of pressure. She and her mother told school administrators that a fifth grade teacher allowed students to leave class to get a Bible and then return.
Was the response of the district enough for Thomas? “From my point of view, I find that difficult to take in,” he said, even though the school promised to stop the practice.
Thomas said he feels that way because there is a lack of a complete ban on the possibility of all religious materials in public schools in Geary County.
