Religious club draws church-state objection in Dist. 116

For the second time this school year, second-grader William Monroe brought home a flier for an after-school religious club.

The flier promoting the Good News Club was handed out in class earlier this month by a teacher at Indian Hill Elementary School in Round Lake Heights.

It touched off a complaint from William's father, Derek, who said he wants to make sure Round Lake Area Unit District 116 is keeping religion out of schools, as required by law.

"This is just about principle," he said. "It doesn't matter what religion they are promoting."

At issue is the thin line between freedom of speech and separation of church and state.

The mere use of a public school by a religious group for an after-school program doesn't necessarily create a problem, said Ed Yohnka, spokesman for the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois.

"They can use the facility, but they can't use the district's resources in order to advance or promote their religious viewpoint," he said.

The Good News Club has been active in Round Lake schools since the 1980s. Calls to club organizers were not returned this week.

The private Evangelical Christian group for children uses the elementary building for its weekly after-school program, which includes Bible lessons and memorizing scripture.

It has raised controversy in other school districts. In 2001, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in the club's favor, ordering Milford Central School in upstate New York to make its facilities available for use after hours by religious groups as well as other community organizations.

The elder Monroe, an atheist from Round Lake Beach, said he is mostly upset with teachers handing out fliers with content that reeks of religious indoctrination.

No other parents have complained about the fliers.

Monroe was assured by district officials the matter had been resolved last fall when William brought home a flier from the Good News Club the first time. Yet two weeks ago, the 8-year-old came home with a second club flier, again handed out by a teacher.

A district official said this week the fliers were mistakenly distributed by teachers at one school.

"They (the club) went to the school without contacting the district office," said Janet Elenbogen, District 116 chief education officer. "They had gone individually and asked if they could distribute the fliers."

District 116 officials said they are taking stock of their policy on distribution of materials in schools by outside groups, as part of an overall policy review in March with the Illinois Association of School Boards.

They have met with Good News Club members about establishing a process for distributing fliers. The group was asked to post fliers on a school bulletin board, but the club protested that it was unfair.

The district cannot prevent the club from handing out fliers in school if it allows groups such as the park district and Boy and Girl Scouts to distribute materials, per the district's legal counsel.

Yet Elenbogen said some ground rules have been established since Monroe's complaint.

The club is responsible for making copies of fliers that first must be approved by the district. All fliers must state clearly the group is not a district-sponsored function.

"I feel we're going to address it, but we have to uphold the Constitution as well," Elenbogen said.