Via press release
Kentucky Citizens for Democracy has called a special meeting to educate those who want to know more about the implications of the Oldham County Board of Education potentially approving the request from LifeWise Academy to pull students from the building during the school day, once a week, for moral instruction/religious classes.
When: This Tuesday, August 19th, at 6:30 pm.
Where: St. James Episcopal Church. 401 La Grange Rd, Pewee Valley, KY 40056
Who: The session will be led by Associate Director Anita Davis, who is also a former Assistant Superintendent and Chief Academic Officer of Oldham County Schools.
Guest Speakers will include:
Michael Fox - Michael is the parent who first noticed that the Locust Grove Elementary School Site-Based Decision Making Council had approved LifeWise Academy to start moral, religious-based instruction without parents being surveyed or approval from the Board of Education. He will inform us on the history of how we got to where we are today.
Pastor Richard Gianzero - Master of Divinity, Resurrection Lutheran Church, Madison, IN. Pastor Gianzero has taught graduate-level theology courses and has followed the Christian Nationalism movement carefully for years. He has numerous insights into the background of how LifeWise and other religious institutions have begun to find their way into schools through state legislation and other methods.
Professor Chris Keith - Professor of New Testament and Early Christian MF Norwegian School of Theology, Religion and Early Christianity. MF Norwegian School of Theology, Religion and Society. Education - Ph.D., University of Edinburgh (2008). New Testament and Christian Origins. M.A., M. Div., Cincinnati Christian University (2005) B.S., Cincinnati Christian University (2002). Biblical Studies, suma cum laude, Salutatorian. More about Dr. Keith’s background and accomplishments can be found here.
Kentucky Citizens for Democracy has concluded that the proposal to enter into an agreement with LifeWise Academy is egregious for the following reasons:
- Religious instruction is not the mission of the public schools.
- The Board is supposed to advance public education. LifeWise Academy’s supporters often advocate for school privatization and vouchers.
- LifeWise Academy's mission is to reach the “unchurched” using public schools as its “mission field,” with little regard for the disruption the program causes to teachers and students. We oppose using schools in this manner.
- LifeWise Academy model sees children 4 to 14 as impressionable targets for religious instruction. We see this as a form of indoctrination using the public schools as a vehicle.
- Data presented to the Board by the proponents of LifeWise Academy is not peer-reviewed and does not meet basic research standards.
- The proposal to pull children from related arts is unacceptable, as is pulling students from lunch or recess. Devaluing these is not acceptable.
- The curriculum was developed by an arm of the Southern Baptist Convention. This religious instructional model reflects one strand of the many branches of religious belief structures. This is inherently discriminatory.
- The adoption of this program would lead to school culture problems: bullying or coercion to attend for those children who are opted out. The use of incentives, which LifeWise Academy reportedly uses, is also problematic.
- The LifeWise Academy's guidance on how to handle difficult questions from children is controversial and troubling. It’s an affront to families in our community who have different or no religious beliefs. Responses regarding LGBTQ and transgender persons, as well as unwed or divorced parents, are equally as troubling.
Please feel free to contact me at the contact information below, or our Associate Director, Anita Davis (502-303-8837), if you would like any more information. You will also find a list of resources linked below for your use.
Sincerely,
Michael E. Slider
Executive Director - Kentucky Citizens for Democracy
kycitizens.org
[email protected]
502-724-9733
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