Recent challenges to the ban on religious-related service learning projects have been brought to the attention of the Academic Policies Committee, which will decide in coming weeks to overturn it or uphold it.
In order remain true to the U.S. Constitution, it is imperative that this ban is upheld.
| The Issue Religion-related service learning ban is being challenged, APC will come to a ruling. |
Dissidents of the ban cite various reasons to overturn it. One argument being that because students indirectly pay for service learning they should be able to choose any project they desire, the other being that bannng the proselytization of religion is hypocritical to allowing the proselytization of political agendas.
But there is a distinct difference between the proselytization of religion and the proselytization of politics. UW-Eau Claire, being a public university that receives federal funding and is composed of students who receive federal assistance, has a responsibility to promote civic involvement among its students. Religion, on the other hand, must remain an individual decision that goes uninfluenced and unrewarded by the university in order to uphold the seperation of church and state.
Overturning the ban would, inevitably, put the university in a precarious situation. Take, for example, the religous practice of consuming peoti (a halucinagenic mushroom), in some Native American cultures. Since only an “all or nothing” stance on religion can ensure the university remains facially neutral, this, too, must be condoned by the university if service learning credit can be earned by teaching Catholic Sunday school.
Furthermore, the ban creates no shortage of service-learning opportunities. In fact, religious-based projects that do not have a primarily religious component, such as Habitat for Humanity, are still acceptable forms of service learning.
In the name of seperation of church and state, the APC should stand up to the onslaught of religious pressure and do the right thing – uphold the ban.
