President Donald Trump told attendees of the Religious Liberty Commission meeting on Monday that new guidance would be released regarding prayer in public schools.
“I’m pleased to announce this morning that the Department of Education (DOE) will soon issue new guidance protecting the right to prayer in our public schools,” Trump said at the meeting at the Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C.
The exact timing of the new guidance announcement was not immediately clear.
Newsweek reached out to the White House via email on Monday for more information on the guidance to be issued.
Why It Matters
The balance between individual religious expression and the constitutional prohibition on government‑sponsored prayer has long been litigated in U.S. courts.
Public‑school prayer policies were sharply curtailed by Supreme Court rulings beginning in the 1960s and remain a legal touchstone in disputes between advocates and critics of expanded prayer in schools.
Most recently, cases in Texas and Oklahoma have challenged long-standing precedent.
AP Photo/Alex Brandon
What To Know
President Trump made the announcement during the Religious Liberty Commission meeting, saying: “For most of our country’s history, the bible was found in every classroom in the nation, yet in many schools today, students are indoctrinated with anti-religious propaganda.”
“Some have already been punished for their religious beliefs,” Trump added, referencing a Texas student in attendance who he said had been punished by her school for organizing students to pray for an injured peer.
The Religious Liberty Commission was established by Trump in an executive order issued in May, with the President appointing Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick as Chairman and Dr. Ben Carson as Vice Chair.
According to the White House website, the Commission was created to “advise the White House Faith Office and the Domestic Policy Council on religious liberty policies of the United States.”
Part of that directive includes creating a way to secure religious liberty both in the U.S. and abroad, the website added.
A cultural and legal battle surrounding prayer in public schools continues to play out across the United States, with some states proposing laws to further religious expression in school.
The Supreme Court recently upheld a ruling that would not allow Oklahoma to launch the country’s first religious public charter school.
What People Are Saying
President Donald Trump said during the meeting: “I’m pleased to announce this morning that the Department of Education will soon issue new guidance protecting the right to prayer in our public schools.”
Rachel Laser, president of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, said in May: “We will continue our efforts to protect inclusive public education. We call on this nation to recommit to church-state separation before this safeguard of democracy and freedom is further attacked.”
The Executive Order creating the Religious Liberty Commission on May 1 read: “It shall be the policy of the executive branch to vigorously enforce the historic and robust protections for religious liberty enshrined in Federal law. The Founders envisioned a Nation in which religious voices and views are integral to a vibrant public square and human flourishing and in which religious people and institutions are free to practice their faith without fear of discrimination or hostility from the Government.”
What Happens Next
According to the White House statement, the commission will advise the White House Faith Office and the Domestic Policy Council, potentially shaping both DOE guidance and the administration’s enforcement approach.
The lack of a timetable for new DOE guidance raises questions about how quickly schools might receive clarifying rules and whether the guidance could trigger litigation or new state laws on prayer and other forms of religious expression in public schools.
Advocates for broader religious expression have said administrative guidance is needed to protect students’ constitutional rights.
