ACLU-Nebraska: Because Freedom Can't Protect Itself

We get complaints about private people coming onto school property and distributing religious materials to public school students every year, yet this is just simply illegal.  In the fall of 2006 we had three different school districts with problems.  In Shelton, a minister came to school and handed out flyers for his church, urging children to come to their after school programs where they would learn about Jesus.  In Holdrege, youth ministers from a local church came into the school during lunch hours to urge students to attend their religious services.  In Grand Island, students were met with adults distributing Gideon Bibles at the front door of their school.  The First Amendment says students can have their own student-initiated religious groups, but the school cannot allow outsiders or adults to proselytize on school grounds during school hours.