Texas —

The Royse City Independent School District was reminded that any religious groups run through the school cannot be led by adults, in order to protect students’ First Amendment right to be free from religious coercion at public schools.

A local parent informed FFRF that a “Men of Honor” group was planning on holding meetings led by adults at Bobby Summers Middle School in September 2025. An email sent to parents from the school listed the group’s first mission as being “to call young men to a new standard that is Christ-likeness.” The parent-complainant also reported that there was a “Girls 4 God” group at the same school that was seemingly run by adults based on photos of meetings on school social media that showed adults speaking to a group of students.

“Any religious student clubs, such as Men of Honor or Girls 4 God, must be bona fide student clubs that are student-led and student-organized,” FFRF Patrick O’Reiley Legal Fellow Charlotte R. Gude wrote. “Outside adults cannot regularly attend Men of Honor or Girls 4 God activities and any school staff in attendance may only participate in a supervisory capacity.”

The district reached out to the Abernathy Roeder Boyd Hullett law firm for guidance on the issue. In response to FFRF’s letter, Lucas Henry clarified that both clubs are student led and were only hosting guest speakers in compliance with district policy. However, the district did take note of the concerns and promised that these clubs would not tread over the line into a constitutional violation.

The post The Royse City Independent School District was reminded that religious groups run through the school cannot be led by adults (November 2025) appeared first on Freedom From Religion Foundation.