Brochure Brouhaha.(Making A Difference)

Scottsdale Unified School District No. 48 (SUSD) in Scottsdale, Arizona, allows the 33 schools it supervises to distribute literature promoting events and activities sponsored by nonprofit organizations, provided that the material is not of a "commercial, political or religious nature."

In 2000, Joseph Hills, president of a nonprofit educational corporation called A Little Sonshine from Arizona, decided to conduct a "Desert Mountain Summer Camp" for children and advertise the event by distributing a brochure to nine elementary schools within the school district. Of the 19 courses offered during the camp (such as camping, gymnastics, golf, and elementary Spanish), two were entitled "Bible Heroes" and "Bible Tales." The course description for the "Bible Tales" class stated, in part: "Did you know that if a child does not come to the knowledge of JESUS CHRIST and learn of the importance of Bible reading by age 12 chances are slim that they ever will in this life? We think it is important to start as young as possible!" Course descriptions were accompanied by the notation: "[T]hese classes are Non-denominational in nature. All Faiths are Welcome."

The brochure was initially approved by SUSD officials, but they stopped distribution after a parent complained about its religious nature. A few days later, officials allowed distribution to resume, provided that a disclaimer making clear that the school district neither endorsed nor sponsored Hills' activities was included. Officials then halted distribution once again, but allowed it to resume a week later. And a week after that, SUSD officials again withdrew permission, claiming that it was necessary to avoid a possible Establishment Clause violation. They advised ...