baccalaureate.jpg

The Freedom from Religion Foundation has objected to Mona Shores' promotion of annual baccalaureate services for graduating seniors.

(MLive file photo)

NORTON SHORES, MI -- Mona Shores school officials are distancing themselves from the annual baccalaureate ceremony for graduating seniors after a complainant said they were violating the constitutional separation of church and state.

An attorney with the Freedom from Religion Foundation, a self-described association of atheists and agnostics, sent a letter to Mona Shores Superintendent Dave Peden warning him that Mona Shores High School's association with the baccalaureate ceremony violated the U.S. Constitution.

Baccalaureate ceremonies typically include Christian worship, prayer, music and speeches and are held close to the time of graduation.

Among the Freedom from Religion concerns were the inclusion of the baccalaureate in the Mona Shores High School calendar and daily announcements, sign-up sheets that were in the counseling office, the attendance of teachers and staff at the event and the participation of the school's orchestra.

"The school's apparent role in hosting and supporting attendance at this baccalaureate causes reasonable graduating seniors and parents to conclude the District endorses the religious messages espoused at these services," Attorney Rebecca Markert wrote in the letter to Peden. "The school orchestra may not perform at religious services. To avoid the perception of school sponsorship of religious practices, a public school should take measures to disassociate itself from religious activity."

Peden said the school was simply trying to "help the church out" in promoting the event to students, but acknowledged that a mass email that was sent out regarding the service "made it look like we're endorsing it." Forest Park Covenant Church holds the baccalaureate, Peden said.

He said about one-third of graduating seniors typically attend baccalaureate.

In a response to Markert, Peden thanked her for bringing the issue to his attention. He wrote that the district's attorney made recommendations on how the district can avoid the "aura of affiliation" in the future. Those include:

Adding language to notices about the baccalaureate disclaiming "official endorsement."

No longer sending out emailed invitations, instead having the church send them.

Making sure orchestra students know it's voluntary for them to perform.

Not including a school staff member's affiliation with the district, but rather just their name, if they speak at the service.

Markert said the complainant is a member of the Freedom of Religion Foundation. She declined to provide any more information about that person, saying "some people aren't out in the community as far as being an atheist." She said the foundation has about 21,000 members, including 540 in Michigan.

Mona Shores' response addressed most of the concerns except for the calendar, Markert said. She said it's OK for a school to include baccalaureate on calendars if those include other community events that aren't school sponsored. Local districts that included baccalaureate services on their online calendars include Holton, North Muskegon and Reeths-Puffer. None of the calendars, including Mona Shores', appear to include community events.

School superintendents, but not always principals, understand the importance of separating themselves from baccalaureate services, Markert said.

"In our experience, sometimes we get superintendents, especially in Kentucky and Tennessee who say 'We knew this was wrong but the community wanted to have it done and we wanted to proceed on it until somebody called us out,'" she said.

Lynn Moore covers education for MLive Muskegon Chronicle. Email her at lmoore8@mlive.com and follow her on Twitter and Facebook.