1. McCollum vs. Board of Education timANDERSON

2.  Case started with the issue of public school religious classes  Public religious figures of various faiths (Christian, Jewish) were allowed to come in to teach.  Children were allowed to leave class to attend a religious class and miss normal class.  Started in 1940. Not brought to issue until 1947. background

3.  Case started with the issue of public school religious classes  Children attended these classes with consent from parents, all others stayed in regular class.  Class was 30 minutes, once a week.  Children were “encouraged to attend.” backGROUND

4.  Vashti McCollum  Mother of a child who attended a Champaign County, Illinois school.  Atheist.  Felt as though her rights as a parent were being violated.  Sued the Champaign County school system. theCASE

5.  Vashti McCollum  Case was not upheld in circuit court. They saw no reason to get rid of the system.  Taken to state Supreme Court with the same result.  Eventually tried in Supreme Court in December of 1947.  Tried case for 3 months.  Certain religious associations sent in arguments in favor of McCollum. theCASE

6.  Vashti McCollum  Case was not upheld in circuit court. They saw no reason to get rid of the system.  Taken to state Supreme Court with the same result.  Eventually tried in Supreme Court in December of 1947.  Tried case for 3 months.  Certain religious associations sent in arguments in favor of McCollum. theCASE

7.  Vashti McCollum  Eventually settled in March of 1948.  All evidence was provided before hand, and only reviewed in Court.  Supreme Court ruled in favor of McCollum, 8 to 1.  Classes deemed unconstitutional, violation of Establishment Clause and 1 st Amendment. theCASE

8.  Was 30 minutes a week really worth the time of the case?  What would you do if your child was forced to attend classes you did not agree with?  Did they really violate freedom of speech?  Should we still offer classes such as this today?  If these were different religions, would this have been dealt with differently? How? Questions…