A Washington school district that forced children to hide Bibles in sealed envelopes must apologize and pay $275,000.

Joel Penton of LifeWise Academy says Washington school district policies forcing students to hide Bibles in sealed envelopes prompted the federal lawsuit.

Children felt they were being forced to "hide their faith" after the school's Bible restrictions, says the chief executive of Christian education.

Joel Penton, founder of LifeWise Academy, discusses a Washington school district's restrictions on students carrying Bibles and a settlement that requires a public apology, religious freedom training and $275,000 in attorney fees.

A Christian education organization will publicly apologize, undergo religious freedom training and pay $275,000 in attorney fees after a lawsuit overturned policies that required elementary school students to keep Bibles hidden in sealed envelopes, its executive director says.

"I've also heard from parents that when they're told to put their Bibles and stuff in envelopes, they feel like their kids are being told to hide their faith, like it's something to be ashamed of, and I know that's very hurtful as well," Panton says.

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LifeWise Academy, which offers privately funded Bible instruction to public school students during the school day with parental permission, sued after the Everett School District imposed restrictions that the organization argued unfairly targeted its program.

Panton said LifeWise operated in Everett for several years, serving dozens of students and families, before the school board changed its policies.

"The school board changed some of its policies in ways that were downright discriminatory, and violated the religious freedom of our program there," Spenston said.

Penton said they were told they weren't allowed to participate in some community fairs, which he said other student organizations could participate in.

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"And then they also told the students that if they received any leaflets or even Bibles in our program, when they got back to school, they had to put them back in sealed envelopes so that other students wouldn't be exposed to them," Panton said.

He argued that weekly permit requirements threaten the program's ability to operate.

"We knew, at least with the FISH policy that was going to effectively shut down the program, that one of the reasons students and parents of their students sign up is how convenient it is for them to receive Bible instruction during school hours as part of the school day," Panton said. "And now to tell them that they had to bring a permission slip in person every week. It's really impractical for a lot of parents, and I know a lot of people are frustrated by that."

Panton said LifeWise initially tried to resolve the dispute directly with school officials and later through an attorney before filing suit.

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The settlement announced by LifeWise Academy requires, among other things, religious freedom training for school board members and $275,000 in attorney fees, according to the organization. (Brian A. Jackson/South Florida Sun Sentinel)

In April, a federal judge issued a preliminary injunction against the district, LifeWise reported.

The settlement, announced Wednesday by LifeWise Academy, calls for changes in district policies, religious freedom training for school board members, a public written apology posted on the district's website for six months and $275,000 in attorneys' fees, the organization said.

The settlement notice quoted a statement from the district that said: "The district acknowledges that comments made at various LifeWise board meetings, including by administrators, were offensive and hurtful to families participating in the LifeWise program." For this reason, the district and its board of directors sincerely apologize."

In a statement posted on its website, Everett Public Schools said, "Parents and guardians have the right to choose for their students' freedom during the school day for religious activities or instruction that takes place off school property for part of the school day in accordance with District Policy 2340 and Procedure 2340P." Policies and procedures comply with Washington State law (RCW 28A.600.025) and federal law, with which the District is required to comply. This method allows students to waive a portion of the school day, provided the instruction takes place off-site and does not disrupt classroom instructional time."

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