Portfolio Six 1

Portfolio Six

Kelsey A. Posatiere

EDU 210-1004

December 2, 2018

College of Southern Nevada

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A kindergarten teacher named Karen White recently became a Jehovah’s Witness.

Because of her new affiliation with the religious group she can no longer participate in certain

activities or projects. She also will no longer be decorating the classroom for holidays or singing

“Happy Birthday”. Parents were not happy so they took their complaints to the principle, Bill

Ward. Mr. Ward felt that Ms. White was no longer meeting the needs of her students and

recommended her for dismissal.

The first case that I will be presenting in favor of Karen White is Wigg v. Sioux Falls

School District (2003). In the case Wigg v. Sioux Falls School District (2003) a second and third

grade teacher, Barbara Wigg, taught at Laura B. Anderson Elementary School in the Sioux Falls

School District. Anderson Elementary School is one of the five schools that The Good News

Club meets at. The Good News Club is an after school club where children are taught character

development and good morals through a religious perspective. Ms. Wigg told Principle Peterson

that she would like to participate in The Good News Club. However, Principle Peterson didn’t

think this was such a good idea. Based on the fact that the school might be seen as an

establishment of religion if Ms. Wigg participates in the after school club. The court ruled in Ms.

Wiggs favor because the club met after school and she had the right to participate in the club as

long as she was there as a private individual and not as a teacher. This case helps Karen White

because the school is violating Ms. Whites free exercise of religion.

Lee v. Weisman (1992) is the second case that I will be presenting in favor of Karen

White. In the case Lee v. Weisman (1992) a school principle, Robert Lee, had a rabbi come to the

school to speak at the graduation ceremony. One of the graduating students, Deborah Weisman,

and her father, Daniel Weisman, were not happy about this. The Weisman’s decided to file a

lawsuit to try to get the principle to stop the rabbi from speaking at the graduation. The U.S
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Supreme Court sided with Weisman because they felt that the school was sponsoring prayer.

This violated the Establishment Clause by forcing the support of religious practice. Deborah

Weisman and her family were basically being forced to listen to religious speech or miss out on

her own graduation. This helps Karen White because she is essentially being forced to participate

in activities that are against her religion, and if she doesn’t participate in these activities then she

will be terminated.

Florey v. Sioux Falls School District (1979) is the first case that I will presenting against

Karen White. In the case Florey v. Sioux Falls School District (1979) Roger Florey complained

about his child having to memorize Christmas carols. He also didn’t like the fact that the students

were being taught the religious reasons behind Christmas. So, Roger Florey sued the school

district. The court found as long as the purpose of the activity is to teach the students about our

society’s culture and/or religious beliefs, then these types of activities are allowed. This case

helps Bill Ward’s case against Karen White because as a teacher Ms. White’s duty is to teach the

students based on state and school requirements. Ms. White as a teacher is to teacher her students

about our society and different culture elements, including holidays. Just because Ms. White

does not believe in the material doesn’t mean she should deprive the students the opportunity to

learn the information.

The second case I will be presenting against Karen White is Clever v. Cherry Hill

Township (1993). In the case Clever v. Cherry Hill Township (1993) taxpayers and parents of

students attending schools in the Cherry Hill district were upset by the use of culture, ethnic, and

religious themes in their schools’ programs. The school also allowed religious symbols to be

displayed around the school and used in classroom activities. The taxpayers and parents took

Cherry Hill Township Board of Education to court for allowing these practices. The court
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favored the school district, because as long as religion is taught constitutionally, it is acceptable.

Clever v. Cherry Hill Township (1993) relates to the case of Bill Ward and Karen White because

using these religious symbols during the holidays is a part of meeting the students needs. Ms.

White is in violation of the student’s constitutional rights to learn about religious symbols and

holiday’s being celebrated by different cultures.

In the case of Karen White v. Bill Ward I am in favor of Karen White. I feel that the

cases Wigg v. Sioux Falls School District (2003) and Lee v. Weisman (1992) gave me the insight

that I needed to make the right decision. I feel that Principle Ward is violating Karen White’s

First Amendment right of freedom of religion. As long as Karen White is still teaching the

necessary material and still providing a good classroom experience, then there should be no

grounds for her dismissal. If parents want their children to be taught certain things about their

religion and the holidays they celebrate, then they can do that at home.
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References

Clever v. Cherry Hill Township, (1993), No. 93-1012(JEI), Retrieved December 4, 2018,

https://www.belcherfoundation.org/clever_v_cherry_hill.htm

Florey v. Sioux Falls School District, (1979), No. CIV78-4120, Retrieved December 4, 2018,

https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/FSupp/464/911/1520042/

Lee v. Weisman, (1992), No. 90-1014, Retrieved December 4, 2018,

https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/505/577/

Wigg v. Sioux Falls School District, (2003), No. CIV 03-034, Retrieved December 4, 2018,

https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/FSupp2/259/967/2362414/