separation of church and state

The Ohio Senate Education Committee has held multiple hearings on the bill that would require one of nine historical documents being displayed in classroom, including the Biblical precepts.

The House-passed state budget plan sets limits on the number of times a week the group can remove Ohio kids from school for religious instruction.

LifeWise Academy, a program that provides off-site Bible study for public school students during school hours, released a report saying they are now in more than 600 schools nationwide.

LifeWise Academy, which holds off-site school day Bible study classes for public school students, doubled its revenue as a nonprofit in the last fiscal year.

Worthington's school board voted 4-0 Monday to rescind its release time policy after Dec. 31.

The Ohio case shows how governments can push the envelope to funnel money to private schools.

Worthington is the latest district to reconsider a religious release policy, as two state bills seek to require public schools to have religious release time policies.

At the center of the debate is the increasingly popular Hilliard-based LifeWise Academy, which runs in more than 500 schools in 23 U.S. states.

The move comes just a month after Westerville City Schools rescinded their religious release time policy, ending the district’s LifeWise Academy off-campus Bible study.

The decision spells the end for the LifeWise Academy in the district. The popular – and sometimes controversial – program had been in the district since fall 2022.