ACLU Sues Over Teaching Of Religion In Irasburg School

The American Civil Liberties Union Foundation of Vermont has filed a lawsuit against the Irasburg School District for a teacher’s religious proselytizing and retaliation against students who complained of his actions.

The suit was filed in U.S. District Court on behalf of Irasburg parents Robin and Robert Voitle and Melvin and Anne Downs, and their children. It names as defendants the teacher who subjected the students to the religious indoctrination, Wally Rogers; as well as the Irasburg Village School principal, Paul Simmons; the Irasburg School District, and the Orleans Central Supervisory Union. The officials supervising Rogers failed to correct the teacher’s behavior when asked to do so by the plaintiffs, despite abundant notice of Rogers’ longtime practice of proselytizing in the classroom, the suit says.

“The ACLU believes strongly in individuals’ religious expression rights,” said Allen Gilbert, ACLU executive director. “But that’s only half of the First Amendment. The other half says schools and other government agencies can’t preach religion. Mr. Rogers has used his position as a teacher in a public school to preach religion. This has occurred over a long period of time in obvious ways such as posting the Ten Commandments in his classroom, to subtle ways such as manipulating booklists so students are rewarded for reading books with Christian themes. You can teach religion in schools as academic subjects, but you can’t preach religion. Mr. Rogers has been preaching religion. The school knew this and didn’t stop him.”

“Moreover, school and supervisory union administrators cannot turn a blind eye towards the teaching of religion in public schools,” Gilbert added. “When students ask that their constitutional rights be respected, the correct response is not to have the students change schools. It’s to correct the illegal activity.”

The lawsuit asks the court to declare that the defendants’ actions violated the plaintiffs’ First Amendment right against the establishment of religion and the Fourteenth Amendment right of parents to direct the religious upbringing of their children. It asks the court for injunctive relief, barring the defendants from teaching religion in a public school or spending public money on religious items. Damages are being sought to cover the costs the plaintiffs have borne as a result of the defendants’ failure to stop the illegal activities at the school.

“This lawsuit shouldn’t be necessary,” said Gilbert. “The vast majority of Vermont teachers, administrators, and school board members recognize the line between preaching and teaching at school. They work hard to make sure that views of one religion or another -- or no religion -- aren’t imposed on students. The Irasburg school failed in this responsibility.”

Representing the plaintiffs are ACLU Foundation of Vermont cooperating attorneys A. Jeffry Taylor of Abatiell Associates, P.C. in Rutland, and Antonio Pyle of Antonio Pyle, P.C. in Stowe, as well as ACLU Foundation of Vermont staff attorney Dan Barrett. The lawsuit is captioned Voitle v. Rogers, docket number 09-cv-32; click here for a copy of the complaint..