An Illinois school district has agreed to lift restrictions on Christian student groups called Good News Clubs. The Moline-Coal Valley School District will also pay more than $100,000 in legal fees.
The school district previously denied the Christian student groups equal access to school facilities for more than five years, Liberty Counsel explained.
According to the lawsuit, the Christian groups had equal access between 2017 and 2020, after which the district began imposing fees. The settlement document describes the school district as having listed the group as a Category II organization, “requiring it to pay fees for facility use and preventing it from accessing certain fora like the Backpack Night, at which organizations distribute literature to students.”
To order Jonathan Cahn’s new book, The Altar of Pergamon, visit Amazon.com.
“This is a reasonable judgment and great victory for Child Evangelism Fellowship, parents, and students in the Moline-Coal Valley School District. The First Amendment prohibits public schools from discriminating against Christian viewpoints regarding use of school facilities,” said Liberty Counsel Founder and Chairman Mat Staver. “Child Evangelism Fellowship gives children a biblically based education that includes moral and character development. Good News Clubs should be in every public elementary school and that includes these Moline schools.”
A similar settlement was reached between a Washington state school district and LifeWise Academy, another Christian organization operating in schools. The school district in Everett, Washington, was sued after directing elementary school students to hide their Bibles as well as conceal any materials received by the Christian organization in envelopes. The district is to undergo religious liberty training and pay $275,000 in attorney’s fees.
This article originally appeared on American Faith and is reposted with permission.
