Prosocial behaviors are ubiquitous across societies. They emerge early in ontogeny

Forty-four states have laws that require public school classes recite the Pledge of Allegiance or mandates to school districts to set aside time for its recitation. Three of the six states without these laws have bills in their legislature to add required recitation. Children who attend public school from Kindergarten through 12th grade hear that we are a nation, ÔÇ£under GodÔÇØ over 2,000 times. Although the Supreme Court said students cannot be required to recite the Pledge of Allegiance in violation of a sincerely held religious belief, a daily recitation declaring the nation is, ÔÇ£under GodÔÇØ sends the┬ámessage to students that the government endorses theistic religion and non-theistic students are outsiders to patriotism.

History and tradition, often cited as support for religious references in government action, support a Pledge of Allegiance without the words, ÔÇ£under God.ÔÇØ Neither the original version of the Pledge of Allegiance, written in 1892 by Francis Bellamy, nor the version Congress recognized in 1942 as the official national pledge of the United States, contained any reference to God.ÔÇØ ÔÇ£Under GodÔÇØ was added to the Pledge of Allegiance in 1954 after the Knights of Columbus, the worldÔÇÖs largest Roman Catholic fraternal organization, persuaded members of both houses of Congress that the suggested religious reference would combat the threat of communism.

POLICY RECOMMENDATION:┬áThe Pledge of Allegiance should be returned to its original form, as the inclusion of ÔÇ£under GodÔÇØ in the daily patriotic school exercise isolates non-theistic students, or unfairly and unnecessarily compels them to comply.

Public school teachers and administrators must remain neutral concerning religion while carrying out their duties. It is unconstitutional for teachers or school employees to pray with or out loud in the presence of students or to encourage religious activities in school. Teachers and other school officials have no individual First Amendment right to use their official positions to proselytize in school.

Public schools cannot include invocations or benedictions at graduation ceremonies, regardless of who delivers the prayer. It does not matter whether or not attendance at the graduation ceremony is voluntary, since the pressure for students to attend this milestone event is effectively coercive. School-sponsored prayers at other school events, including athletic events, are likewise unconstitutional, even if the prayers are student-led.

POLICY RECOMMENDATION: As representatives of the government, teachers and administrators may not lead students in prayer; however, the right of a student to voluntarily engage in a non-disruptive private prayer has never been infringed.

Because of consistent federal court defeats, creationists no longer approach policymakers using ÔÇ£creation scienceÔÇØ terminology, but Biblical teaching must stay out of our public school science classrooms however it may be rebranded. If government-funded schools teach creationism, the government appears to endorse Bible-based religion, trampling on the principles of separation of religion and government.

The controversy of the teaching of evolution is a political one, not a scientific one. Evolution is a sound and basic scientific principle that belongs in every stateÔÇÖs science curriculum and textbooks.

POLICY RECOMMENDATION: Public schools and schools funded with taxpayer money should teach the scientifically undisputed principle of evolution.

Comprehensive sex education leads to a measurable reduction in early sex, unprotected sex, and number of sexual partners.

Abstinence-only programs lead to no measurable reductions in early sex or number of sex partners, and lead to a measurable increase in unprotected sex. American youth deserve medically sound sex education programs that address their needs.

POLICY RECOMMENDATION: All students should receive non-biased, medically accurate sex education through programs that give them the tools to make informed decisions concerning their sexual and reproductive health irrespective of their religious affiliation.

At the college level, non-theist groups occasionally face harassment, discrimination, and limitations on available funding and other resources. Public colleges and universities are obliged to protect the first and fourteenth amendment rights of students.

In secondary schools, secular student groups are protected by the Equal Access Act, which ensures that all student groups are treated equally and enjoy equal access to resources. Public institutions of higher education must also remain viewpoint-neutral toward religion and other ideologies, in providing resources for student groups. Non-theist student groups deserve equal access and protection.

POLICY RECOMMENDATION: All students and student groups, regardless of their religious or non-religious beliefs, should be treated equally, enjoy equal access to institutional resources, and protections on campuses.

Private schools receiving public funds through voucher programs are not subject to all federal civil rights laws and do not face the same public accountability standards public schools must meet, including those in Title IX, Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, and Americans with Disabilities Act. Although a portion of publicly funded vouchers pay for staffing costs, private school employment practices are not subject to anti-discrimination laws.

POLICY RECOMMENDATION: Taxpayer money for education should never fund a religious education or religious education institution.