At the Wall of Separation, Ilana Stern notes that today is the 62nd anniversary of a key church-state decision. 1948's McCollum v. Board of Education determined that public schools may not use instructional time for religious education – even under the guise of a "voluntary" program.
In 1944, Illinois fourth-grader James McCollum returned home from school and handed his mother a batch of homework assignments and a permission slip. James’ class was not embarking on a field trip, but rather, he and his classmates were asked to participate in “voluntary” religion classes that would be taught during the school day.
Initially consenting, his mother, Vashti McCollum, quickly changed her mind. After reviewing the course materials, she prohibited James from engaging in the school’s released-time program based on her belief that the classes were inappropriate for the public schools and offensive to her humanist sensibilities.
