North Carolina —
FFRF worked with the Columbus County (N.C.) Schools system to keep the district from infusing religion with mandatory school events.
A district parent and multiple employees have reported that East Columbus Junior/Senior High School held several assemblies featuring religious speakers. FFRF learned that at the school’s awards assembly on Feb. 5, a staff member delivered a call-and-response poem which explicitly credited God and religion for the student’s accomplishments. The audience, consisting of all students and staff, were directed to repeat portions of the poem aloud.
Additionally, on April 15, East Columbus High held an honor roll ceremony to celebrate student achievement, and that students were told they would receive ice cream later in the day as a reward for making the honor roll. During the lunch period that day, a religious organization appeared on campus and distributed religious pamphlets and small gifts to students as they entered the cafeteria. Reportedly, a district staff member was visibly involved in the distribution of these religious materials, and when students went to get their ice cream reward, they had to walk past a group distributing bibles. Students reported feeling uncomfortable, harassed and pressured into taking a bible.
“Even if students had known about the religious content of these activities, voluntariness is no excuse for violating students’ rights,” FFRF Anne Nicol Gaylor Legal Fellow Kyle J. Steinberg wrote.
FFRF received correspondence from the district’s legal representative William W. Phipps after the complaint was filed. Phipps confirmed that the superintendent and the assistant superintendent immediately began an investigation after learning of the violations. Phipps, alongside the superintendent and assistant superintendent, met with the board addressing the incidents occurring at the school. “The superintendent also advised of the conference he held with the principal and the staff allegedly involved in these three incidents, counseling them on the mistakes, and what should have been done to avoid the same,” Phipps wrote. “He counseled them also on communication being important to avoid future instances related to the issue of separation of church and state and religious viewpoint discrimination.”
The post FFRF worked with the Columbus County School system to keep the district from infusing religion with mandatory school events. (October 2025) appeared first on Freedom From Religion Foundation.
