Hawaii’s Charter Schools Must Adhere to Federal Law on Prayers
Some schools may be flouting the constitutional mandate for separation of church and state. The Charter Schools Commission needs to stand up for compliance.
Jessica Terrell鈥檚 recent Civil Beat report on whether school prayer is crossing a line at some Hawaii charter schools begs serious questions that the Hawaii Charter Schools Commission now should answer 鈥斅爄f not to effectively meet its oversight responsibilities, then to prepare for issues that soon may be coming to it from the Hawaii Civil Rights Commission. Chief among them:
- Why are some of these taxpayer-funded schools being allowed to routinely feature prayers specific to individual faiths as part of the school day, in what would appear to be a clear violation of the U.S. Constitution?
- Why are some school employees and parents who are voicing concerns over the practices being ignored by school leadership or possibly retaliated against?
- Is instruction around Hawaiian culture and language being used as a cloak to introduce specifically Christian prayer and teachings into certain schools?
Students during morning opening protocol at the Ka ‘Umeke Ka’eo charter school in Hilo.
PF Bentley/Civil Beat
These questions are coming to the fore due to a Civil Rights Commission complaint filed by Kawaikini Charter School Business Manager Stuart Rosenthal, who has been complaining for some time about frequent, compulsory Christian prayers that he said often start the day at Kawaikini.
The school plans to eliminate Stuart Rosenthal鈥檚 position for the coming school year 鈥斅燼 move he chalks up to his persistent criticism of its聽Christ-centered prayers, but the school administrator blames on budget woes.
鈥淚 work for a public school and am a state employee. I should not be forced to pray to Jesus Christ,鈥 says Rosenthal in a passage from his complaint to the Hawaii Civil Rights Commission that neatly sums up a reasonable legal position.
We agree with the assessment by Tom Hutton, executive director of the HCSC, that identifying an appropriate and legally acceptable line separating cultural instruction and specific religious practices can be difficult, particularly when considering the Hawaiian language and ancient oral traditions that include chanting and singing.
But the difficulty doesn鈥檛 mean that responsibility can be avoided or that school leaders, who might have particularly strong personal beliefs regarding faith and religion, should be left to divine answers on their own.
Rosenthal鈥檚 story, at minimum, offers a compelling reason why: The previous school administrator, who hired him, said Rosenthal could be excused from prayers, but a new administrator allegedly told him 鈥減rayer is an important part of who we are鈥 and suggested Rosenthal wasn鈥檛 a good fit for the school.
That same administrator, Samuel Kaauwai, freely commented on Rosenthal鈥檚 employment to Civil Beat, but refused to answer questions about Christian prayers at the school, as did the chair of the school鈥檚 governing board, Leiilima Rapoza.
鈥淚 work for a public school and am a state employee. I should not be forced to pray to Jesus Christ.鈥 鈥 Kawaikini Charter School Business Manager Stuart Rosenthal
The HCSC, which answers to the state Department of Education, has responsibility for holding each charter school鈥檚 governing board to relevant obligations under state and federal law. Consistent with those duties, it ought to recognize that more than half of the state鈥檚 charter schools offer a Hawaiian culture or language focus, in which pule (prayer) is a common ritual. Such pule may not always be religious in nature, but many apparently often are, including pule that are Christian prayers spoken in the Hawaiian language.
Those familiar with , the landmark public school prayer case decided in 1962 by the U.S. Supreme Court, understand that school-sponsored prayers fail the constitutionality test, blurring what ought to be clear separation between church and state. But other types of prayer and religious expression are perfectly permissible, protected by the First Amendment and practiced widely on campuses around the country.
The HCSC has been in existence for just three years, and only hired executive director Hutton two years ago, so it may be forgiven for not having had the opportunity to consider these issues before now.
But the Rosenthal case and related issues raised in the Civil Beat report indicate the commission should dig into the matter of school prayer without delay, as some charter schools appear to be crossing what should be very bright lines delineating religious conduct that is acceptable and that which is certain to conclude on the losing end of a court decision.
