08/09: Baptists Leaving Public Schools
Category: American Culture
Posted by: an okie gardener
Decades ago, Baptists sent their children to public schools without giving thought to alternatives. Roman Catholics, Missouri-Synod Lutherans, and Christian Reformed folks, established parochial schools, some Episcopalians sent their children to private schools--sometimes with a Saint's name--, but Baptists and others supported public schools.
But things changed. In the nineteenth century American public schools supported a generic Protestantism. This situation continued, perhaps in a milder form, through the early 1960s. When I was in first grade in my public school we began each day with prayer and a Bible verse over the intercom. Then two things happened. First, overt religious expression by the school itself was banned by the Supreme Court. Second, as American culture became more secular and more diverse, an increasing number of teachers, administrators, and parents, pushed an agenda that challenged traditional Christianity. As a result, conservative Christians began feeling more and more uncomfortable sending their children to public schools. Combine this discomfort with increasing perceptions that public schools are not doing a good job educating students, and evidence that student culture is becoming ever more sexualized and prone to violence, it is not surprising that more parents have become willing to spend the money for parochial education.
This story (link from The Layman) covers the phenomenon of Southern Baptists establishing parochial schools. This practice began during desegregation in the South with the establishment of "private academies," but now is accelerating fueled by religious concerns.
More below.
Convinced that God has been erased from public schools, Southern Baptists are now working to open their own schools, where Jesus is writ large and Bible study is part of the daily curriculum.
Church leaders are not calling for a wholesale exodus from public schools, which would be a monumental hit, considering that Southern Baptists make up the nation's largest Protestant denomination with 16 million members.
Rather, they talk about alternatives to public schools capable of educating a new generation ready and willing to advocate for biblical principles rather than popular culture.
"In the public schools, you don't just have neutrality, you have hostility toward organized religion," said Daniel Akin, president of Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest. "A lot of parents are fed up."
Southeastern is leading the push, sponsoring a Christian School 101 workshop Monday and Tuesday. The program is designed to train church leaders to open private schools.
I see the impact of Southern Baptists leaving the public schools as follows. First, there goes another group of concerned parents opting out. As a former public school teacher I know that involved, concerned parents are crucial to having a good school district. If public schools are left with a higher-and-higher percentage of unconcerned parents, the downward slide will continue. Second, the pressure for school-choice will grow. Third, historically the public schools were a major adhesive in the glue holding American culture together--a common experience for a large chunk of the population. As the percentage of students in private and parochial schools grows, there is less to hold us together. This last may be mitigated by the fact that public schools in the last couple of decades have not taught a positive American story anyway.
But things changed. In the nineteenth century American public schools supported a generic Protestantism. This situation continued, perhaps in a milder form, through the early 1960s. When I was in first grade in my public school we began each day with prayer and a Bible verse over the intercom. Then two things happened. First, overt religious expression by the school itself was banned by the Supreme Court. Second, as American culture became more secular and more diverse, an increasing number of teachers, administrators, and parents, pushed an agenda that challenged traditional Christianity. As a result, conservative Christians began feeling more and more uncomfortable sending their children to public schools. Combine this discomfort with increasing perceptions that public schools are not doing a good job educating students, and evidence that student culture is becoming ever more sexualized and prone to violence, it is not surprising that more parents have become willing to spend the money for parochial education.
This story (link from The Layman) covers the phenomenon of Southern Baptists establishing parochial schools. This practice began during desegregation in the South with the establishment of "private academies," but now is accelerating fueled by religious concerns.
More below.
Convinced that God has been erased from public schools, Southern Baptists are now working to open their own schools, where Jesus is writ large and Bible study is part of the daily curriculum.
Church leaders are not calling for a wholesale exodus from public schools, which would be a monumental hit, considering that Southern Baptists make up the nation's largest Protestant denomination with 16 million members.
Rather, they talk about alternatives to public schools capable of educating a new generation ready and willing to advocate for biblical principles rather than popular culture.
"In the public schools, you don't just have neutrality, you have hostility toward organized religion," said Daniel Akin, president of Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest. "A lot of parents are fed up."
Southeastern is leading the push, sponsoring a Christian School 101 workshop Monday and Tuesday. The program is designed to train church leaders to open private schools.
I see the impact of Southern Baptists leaving the public schools as follows. First, there goes another group of concerned parents opting out. As a former public school teacher I know that involved, concerned parents are crucial to having a good school district. If public schools are left with a higher-and-higher percentage of unconcerned parents, the downward slide will continue. Second, the pressure for school-choice will grow. Third, historically the public schools were a major adhesive in the glue holding American culture together--a common experience for a large chunk of the population. As the percentage of students in private and parochial schools grows, there is less to hold us together. This last may be mitigated by the fact that public schools in the last couple of decades have not taught a positive American story anyway.
A Waco Farmer wrote:
I am a Texas-born Southern Baptist who migrated with my family to Southern California at pre-school age. I left Los Angeles public schools when I was in 4th grade (1974) for a non-denominational but extremely evangelical Christian K-12. Upon graduation, back to Texas where I attended Baylor University, eventually taking two degrees from the greatest Baptist University in the world.
Today I attend an evangelical-liturgical Baptist church (admittedly, something of an oddity) oriented toward the university faculty community in Waco.
My elementary-age children attend an Episcopal school, and we have plans to enroll them in the Catholic middle school and high school at the appropriate time.
Thinking out loud:
1. My family is the demographic to which the Gardener speaks.
2. I agree with the Gardener's analysis in re motivation--but add safety. There is an increasing perception that public schools are not safe. Part of this is what may people call rather bluntly and not quite correctly "racism." Perhaps a more nuanced way to explain it is a suspicion or lack of confidence in urban black and Hispanic culture--and a realization that administators are powerless to discipline.
3. While I agree that public schools have served as an important adhesive over time in American culture, this has not been true for all of our history. And the Gardener identifies a key problem in our current society--the public schools have given up on instilling a positive American narrative in the hearts of school children. Frankly, as the Gardener intimates, it is not clear whether losing the public schools as they currently exist presents an overall plus or negative.
4. My story in regards to my children illustrate the incredibly ecumenical quality to religious life in America today. Protestants, Liturgical Protestants, Catholics, and even Jews seem to me much more likely to unite around larger cultural goals than argue over theology.