A Washington state public school district is making a settlement in a case where it blatantly discriminated against Christian students who had an off-campus prayer group.

The members of the prayer group took Everett Public Schools (EPS) to court over the LifeWise Academy-sponsored group, which meets during school hours, but not on the school campus. The settlement included “$275,000 in attorney’s fees, instituting required religious liberty training, and an apology from EPS,” according to Everett Post. EPS was trying to restrict the group’s growth as much as possible, while accusing it of encouraging hatred against homosexuals.

The religious liberty training is for the EPS Board of Directors, which will also have to adjust the district’s policies regarding religious activities. EPS confirmed this settlement to the Everett Post while also rushing to reassure the local outlet that it is not affiliated with any particular religious group or belief system. “No religious programs operate out of our schools during the school day. Parents and guardians have the right to choose to seek the release of their students during the school day for religious-related activities or instruction that occurs off school property for part of the school day pursuant to District Policy 2340 and Procedure 2340P,” the district explained, according to Everett Post.

LifeWise first wrote to EPS back in November 2025, expressing concern about the potential discrimination against Christian students. The next month, LifeWise sued EPS.

EPS itself admitted in the quote above that the students are allowed to take some time out of the school day for a religious group so long as the group is not meeting at the school. But EPS was reportedly forcing students who were part of the prayer group to seal up their Bibles so that other students wouldn’t be able to see them. The prayer group also found that EPS would not permit it to put up flyers where other groups had them or participate in community resource fairs, The Christian Post reported. Board member Charles Adkins accused the group of “homophobic hatred,” and parents had to resubmit permission slips constantly. EPS received a preliminary injunction from a U.S. district court earlier this year.

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EPS issued an apology on its website and to the Everett Post. “The District recognizes that comments made at various Board meetings that concerned LifeWise, including by Directors, were offensive and hurtful to the families participating in LifeWise programming,” it confessed. “For that, the District and its Board of Directors offer a sincere apology. We recognize that these statements negatively affected the exercise of your faith. The District values the rights of all families to raise their children according to their own religious beliefs. We further apologize to any students or families that were made to feel by these comments that your religious beliefs are unworthy of respect.”

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Joel Penton, CEO of LifeWise Academy, celebrated, “This settlement is a welcome victory for Everett families who simply want the freedom to choose Bible education for their children during school hours. We are pleased that LifeWise will receive the same access and respect given to other optional programs.”

The greatest Founding Fathers never meant to exclude all religion from the public sphere. In fact, they thought public prayer and incorporation of Bible instruction into education were not only normal but important. They simply did not want a government-mandated church. Public schools too often weaponize a misinterpretation of the Constitution against Jewish and Christian students.