Time Magazine
On Sunday mornings, most parents who don't believe in the Christian God, or any god at all, are probably making brunch or cheering at their kids' soccer game, or running errands or, with luck, sleeping in. Without religion, there's no need for church, right?
***
The growing movement of institutions for kids in atheist families also includes Camp Quest, a group of sleep-away summer camps in five states plus Ontario, and the Carl Sagan Academy in Tampa, Fla., the country's first Humanism-influenced public charter school, which opened with 55 kids in the fall of 2005.
Thursday, November 22, 2007
Monday, November 12, 2007
7 D.C. Schools Must Ponder Education Without Religion
Washington Post
At Holy Comforter-St. Cyprian Catholic School in Capitol Hill, students attend Mass once a week and a crucifix hangs in the lobby. Before dismissal time, pre-kindergarten teacher Courtney Pullen lines up her students and leads them in the Lord's Prayer. Pullen said she took a teaching job there because she could pray with the children and talk to them about God.
"It gives us leverage" with students, Pullen said of having religion as an integral part of the curriculum. "They're going to miss being able to pray and talk about religion."
The announcement last week by the Archdiocese of Washington that it plans to convert seven District schools to charter schools has forced teachers, students and parents to begin contemplating something that seems unreal: what a Catholic school education would be without religion.
Link to the original article.
At Holy Comforter-St. Cyprian Catholic School in Capitol Hill, students attend Mass once a week and a crucifix hangs in the lobby. Before dismissal time, pre-kindergarten teacher Courtney Pullen lines up her students and leads them in the Lord's Prayer. Pullen said she took a teaching job there because she could pray with the children and talk to them about God.
"It gives us leverage" with students, Pullen said of having religion as an integral part of the curriculum. "They're going to miss being able to pray and talk about religion."
The announcement last week by the Archdiocese of Washington that it plans to convert seven District schools to charter schools has forced teachers, students and parents to begin contemplating something that seems unreal: what a Catholic school education would be without religion.
Link to the original article.
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Church Decides To Convert 7 Schools
Archdiocese Says Elementaries Have Deficit of $4 Million
Washington Post
The Archdiocese of Washington announced yesterday that it planned to convert seven D.C. Catholic schools to charter schools, a decision that angers some parents, students and teachers who worried over the fate of their parochial schools.
The schools are elementary-level, have nearly all-African American student bodies and are located in some of the city's poorest neighborhoods. To become charter schools, they would have to make changes such as ending school prayer and removing religious symbols. But as charter schools, which are independent public schools, they would receive operating funds from the District.
Link to the original article.
Washington Post
The Archdiocese of Washington announced yesterday that it planned to convert seven D.C. Catholic schools to charter schools, a decision that angers some parents, students and teachers who worried over the fate of their parochial schools.
The schools are elementary-level, have nearly all-African American student bodies and are located in some of the city's poorest neighborhoods. To become charter schools, they would have to make changes such as ending school prayer and removing religious symbols. But as charter schools, which are independent public schools, they would receive operating funds from the District.
Link to the original article.
Thursday, November 1, 2007
Freedom of Speech: Clergy Deserve It, Too
Fox News
By Mark Joseph
A group called the Gotham Legal Foundation filed a lawsuit last week to repeal the Blaine Amendment, a little-known law passed in 1894 that, according to the group, was aimed at Catholic immigrants seeking to start parochial schools.
A century later, however, the practical result of the law has been that groups like the New Horizon Church in Harlem have been prevented from opening charter schools that reflected the church's beliefs.
Thanks to Gotham, relief for churches that wish to start charter schools may be on the way, but it may be time to take an even more comprehensive look at laws that restrict the rights of all Americans -- including those who are motivated by religious belief -- to participate fully in American public life.
By Mark Joseph
A group called the Gotham Legal Foundation filed a lawsuit last week to repeal the Blaine Amendment, a little-known law passed in 1894 that, according to the group, was aimed at Catholic immigrants seeking to start parochial schools.
A century later, however, the practical result of the law has been that groups like the New Horizon Church in Harlem have been prevented from opening charter schools that reflected the church's beliefs.
Thanks to Gotham, relief for churches that wish to start charter schools may be on the way, but it may be time to take an even more comprehensive look at laws that restrict the rights of all Americans -- including those who are motivated by religious belief -- to participate fully in American public life.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)