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OKLAHOMA

Oklahoma

Oklahoma law (70 Okl. St. Ann. § 11-101.3) requires each school district board of education to adopt a Released Time policy that excuses students to attend religious or moral instruction taught by an independent entity off school property. Students may be excused for up to three class periods per week or a maximum of one hundred twenty-five class periods per school year.

Participation requires written parental consent. The independent entity must maintain attendance records, assume responsibility for transportation, indemnify and hold the school district harmless from liability for conduct occurring off school property, and maintain adequate insurance coverage. No school district funds (other than de minimis administrative costs) or personnel may be used to provide the instruction.

The school district superintendent or principal retains reasonable discretion over scheduling and timing of Released Time courses, and students may not be excused from classes that are subject to state assessment requirements.

Students attending Released Time are considered in attendance for the school day. Additionally, school district boards of education are required to award elective credit for work completed in a Released Time course when substantiated by a transcript from the independent entity, provided the course is evaluated using neutral, secular criteria.

Charter schools established under Sections 3-132 and 3-134 of Title 70 are not subject to this Released Time statute.

As with all Released Time programs, compliance with federal constitutional requirements remains essential. Programs must operate off school property, must not be funded by public funds (other than minimal administrative costs), and student participation must be voluntary.

General Information

70 Okl. St. Ann. § 11-101.3
(Effective November 1, 2023)

§ 11-101.3. Released time course--Policy--Requirements

Currentness

A. As used in this section, “released time course” means a period of time during which a student is excused from school to attend a course in religious or moral instruction taught by an independent entity off school property.

B. Each school district board of education shall adopt a policy that excuses a student from school to attend a released time course for no more than three class periods per week or a maximum of one hundred twenty-five class periods per school year; provided, that:

  1. The student's parent or legal guardian provides written consent prior to the student's participation in the released time course;
  2. No school district funds other than de minimis administrative costs are expended and no school district personnel, equipment, or resources are involved in providing the instruction;
  3. The independent entity maintains attendance records and makes them available to the school district and its board of education;
  4. Any transportation provided to and from the place of instruction is the sole responsibility of the independent entity, the student, or the student's parent or legal guardian;
  5. The independent entity or the student's parent or legal guardian indemnifies the school district and holds it harmless with regard to any liability arising from conduct that does not occur on school property under the control or supervision of the school district, and the independent entity maintains adequate insurance for that purpose;
  6. The student assumes responsibility for any missed school work; and
  7. The school district superintendent, the principal for the school site in which the student is enrolled, or their designees have reasonable discretion over the scheduling and timing of released time courses; provided, the student may not be excused to participate in a released time course during any class in which the subject matter being taught is subject to the assessment requirements of Section 1210.508 of Title 70 of the Oklahoma Statutes.

C. The school district, its board of education, and the state shall not be liable for the student who participates in a released time course when the student is not under the control or supervision of the school district.

D. Instructors hired by an independent entity to provide a released time course shall not be required to be licensed or certified teachers.

E. A student who attends a released time course shall be considered in attendance in the school district, and the time shall be calculated as part of the school day.

F. A school district board of education shall award a student credit for work completed in a released time course that is substantiated by a transcript from the independent entity providing the course. A student shall be awarded elective credit for the completion of each released time course. To determine whether elective credit may be awarded as provided for in this subsection, the board of education shall evaluate the course in a neutral and secular manner that does not involve any test for religious content or denominational affiliation. For purposes of this subsection, the secular criteria used to evaluate a released time course may include:

  1. The amount of classroom instruction time;
  2. The course syllabus, which reflects the course requirements and any materials used in the course;
  3. Methods of assessment used in the course; and
  4. The qualifications of the course instructor.

G. The provisions of this section shall not apply to charter schools established pursuant to Section 3-132 of Title 70 of the Oklahoma Statutes or charter schools or virtual charter schools established pursuant to Section 3-134 of Title 70 of the Oklahoma Statutes.

Statutes

None.

Regulations

None.

Attorney General

Zorach v. Clauson, 343 U.S. 306 (1952)

The U.S. Supreme Court in Zorach upheld a Released Time program that allowed students to leave school during the day for religious instruction off school property. The Court found the program constitutional because participation was voluntary, no public funds were used for instruction, and the program took place off campus. Zorach remains the leading authority guiding Released Time programs nationwide.

Lanner v. Wimmer, 662 F.2d 1349, 1357 (10th Cir. 1981)

In Lanner, the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals held that Released Time programs in Utah permitting attendance at religious classes off school premises did not offend the Establishment and Free Exercise Clauses. The court recognized that Zorach v. Clauson permits the release of students during school hours for attendance at religious classes. Id. at 1358. These religious classes must be taught by religious teachers on private property. Id. at 1354. The court concluded that “neither the individual aspects of the released time program nor the cumulative effect of the various aspects of the program violate the Establishment Clause.” Id. at 1359.

Since the Utah Released Time program was substantially similar to the program in Zorach, the Utah program was declared constitutional. However, the court struck down two aspects of the program because they created too much entanglement between the school and the Released Time program.

First, the court determined that, although it was permissible for a school to prepare uniform attendance slips for a Released Time program to use to track student attendance, it created too much entanglement to have school personnel travel to the Released Time location to gather the attendance slips. The better alternative is for Released Time personnel to deliver the completed slips to the school.

Second, the schools recognized Released Time classes as elective credit, as custodial credit, as credit required for extra-curricular activities, and as credit used to determine the school’s eligibility for state financial aid. However, the school district would not award credit for “courses devoted mainly to denominational instruction.” The court held that granting credit for religious coursework is not unconstitutional in itself, just as it is permissible to recognize credits earned at a private religious school. The problem with the policy at issue was that it only awarded credit for programs that were not “denominational.” This standard impermissibly required the school to monitor the religious courses and determine what is overly denominational and what it is not. The court stated that the key for awarding credit for Released Time programs was for the school to have secular standards by which to measure the courses.

*The rulings of the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals are binding precedent in Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Utah, and Wyoming.

Case Law