Club approval vote stands

Religious extracurricular club ok’d.

By: Al Wicklund
MONROE — After an hour and 40 minutes of discussion involving more than 35 members of the audience, the Board of Education stuck to its decision to allow an extracurricular club with a religious base at Monroe Township High School.
   The Fellowship of Christian Athletes, a club that will include Bible study, prayers and working toward living a life based on Christian values, was approved by the board Dec. 11.
   The board approved the club by a vote of 6 to 3 after being advised by its attorney, Bertram Busch, that the Federal Equal Access Act required the board to treat religious and nonreligious clubs the same.
   School board President Joe Homoki said the board could revote on approval only if a board member who had voted with the majority for approval made a motion to put the question up for another vote.
   No one made such a motion and the vote stood.
   Interest in the issue brought an audience of close to 250 to the board’s Wednesday meeting.
   There was substantial support for the club among the speakers ranging from parents, and several seniors, who expressed support for the values to be learned and practiced, to students, who shared the interest in values and resented suggestions that the club would create problems among other students in a diverse school population. Others said the club was a violation of the separation of church and state.
   "Adults have blown this out of proportion," said Michelle Jurgen, a student.
   Concerning the teaching of values and about God in a school setting, student Lindsay Pritzlaff pointed out that the Boy Scout and Girl Scout troops operate in the schools.
   Ben Damiano asked that people on both sides of the question remember that this is a diverse country built on tolerance.
   Other residents said they were concerned that the group’s name gave the impression that it is exclusionary and that it should be renamed.
   "East Brunswick has a Bible club. I believe in compromise; the Bible is acceptable," Marilyn Shustak of Concordia said.
   Ms. Shustak said the questions that stemmed from this board’s decision were serious enough that the board should have notified the public before the Dec. 11 meeting.
   Mr. Busch said the board has no legal obligation to publish an agenda in advance of a meeting.
   In response to a question from Ms. Shustak about how the club-proposal process started, Mr. Busch said the board responded to a petition signed by nine students.
   Mr. Homoki said there are a number of FCA clubs in New Jersey school districts, including Edison, Shore Regional in West Long Branch, Keyport, Keansburg and Asbury Park.
   In the opening paragraph of their proposal to the board, FCA petitioners said the organization began 46 years ago "with the sole purpose of presenting to athletes and coaches and all whom they influence, the challenge and adventure of receiving Jesus Christ as Savior and lord, serving Him in their relationships and in the fellowship of the church."
   Residents who oppose the board’s decision said the approval also raised questions about separation of church and state. They expressed their concerns to the board and members of the administration by telephone and through the mail. Some asked that the decision be revisited.
   Still, some board members felt their hands were tied.
   "The courts have spoken; let’s move on," board member Carol Haring said.
   Mr. Homoki said the club is not in existence yet and the district is not paying a teacher-adviser.
   Mr. Busch said the adviser will act as a custodian to the club, which will be student-run.
   "The adviser will not be permitted to participate," he said.
   Jay Ellis Brown, one of the board members who voted against approval, said he is Jewish and he would have voted against a Torah-study club, if one had been proposed, because he doesn’t believe it would be appropriate for a public school.
   He said school activities "should bring us together on common ground."