Am. Humanist Ass'n, Inc. v. Douglas Cnty. Sch. Dist. Re-1
Am. Humanist Ass'n, Inc. v. Douglas Cnty. Sch. Dist. Re-1
Opinion of the Court
This action is before the Court on remand from the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals for the reasons set forth in American Humanist Association, Inc. v. Douglas County School District RE-1 ,
I. BACKGROUND
This case, as it stands following the appellate decision, is brought by the American Humanist Association ("AHA") and one of its members whose pseudonym is "Jane Zoe." The AHA is a non-profit organization that promotes the "separation of church and state and the constitutional rights of humanists, atheists and other freethinkers." ECF No. 1 at 5. Ms. Zoe's two children attend Cougar Run Elementary School in Douglas County, Colorado. Plaintiffs claim that defendants promote a culture of promoting the Christian religion in the Douglas County School District.
The event that is the focus of the case vis-à-vis Ms. Zoe was a Guatemala mission trip in 2014. ECF No. 50 at 6-7. The mission trip was created by and for members of a district high school's chapter of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes ("FCA"), a student club in which both students and teachers took part. ECF No. 58 at 13. The FCA planned the trip through an organization called Adventures in Missions ("AIM"), which plans Christian mission trips in both the United States and abroad. ECF No. 47 at 1. The stated goals of the mission trip were to "promote Christianity" and to "introduce [children] to the Bible." ECF No. 47-23 at 89. Fourteen high school students and two teachers participated in the trip.
Specifically as it relates to the Zoe children, in the spring semester of 2014, Cougar Run sixth-grade teacher Micki Benge volunteered to spearhead a supply drive to help fundraise for the mission trip. ECF No. 47 at 5. The supply drive was to last a week and take place during school hours.
*1207In addition to the flyer, Ms. Zoe received an email from her son's preschool teacher, Camille Espinosa, encouraging participation in the supply drive. ECF No. 1-60. The email asked for supply donations for the trip and noted that "monetary donations are also welcome! Please make checks payable to Cougar Run Elementary."
In response to an interrogatory, Ms. Zoe stated that her son "felt coerced into participating and contributing to this religious fundraiser." ECF No. 47-8 at 4 (response to Interrogatory 5). As non-Christians, the school's actions in promoting and endorsing a Christian organization ... made us feel like outsiders and unwelcome in our own community." ECF No. 47-8.
In their Complaint plaintiffs asserted violations of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment and the Equal Access Act. They sought declaratory relief, injunctive relief, nominal damages, attorney's fees and costs under the Establishment Clause and the Equal Access Act. ECF No. 1 at 44-45. However, the Tenth Circuit determined that Ms. Zoe has standing to pursue her claims only in part. She has standing to pursue a claim for violation of the Establishment Clause and to seek retrospective declaratory relief, nominal damages, and presumably, attorney's fees and costs. She does not have standing as to her claim under the Equal Access Act, and she does not have standing to seek prospective relief. American Humanist Association ,
II. STANDARD OF REVIEW
The Court may grant summary judgment if "there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law." Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(a). The moving party has the burden to show that there is an absence of evidence to support the nonmoving party's case. Celotex Corp. v. Catrett ,
III. ANALYSIS
A. Ms. Zoe's Establishment Clause Claim - Scope and Merits.
The Tenth Circuit left it to this Court to determine the scope and merits of Ms. Zoe's Establishment Clause claim.
1. Scope of Ms. Zoe's Claim.
Ms. Zoe asserts that the District engaged in a pattern or practice of promoting Christianity in violation of the Establishment Clause. ECF No. 1 at 40. I bear in mind the limits of what is before this Court at this time. The Tenth Circuit determined that Ms. Zoe does not have standing to seek prospective relief. Also, Ms. Zoe does not have standing to challenge *1208activities at District charter schools (which her children do not attend or come into contact with) or a Belize mission trip organized by St. Andrew United Methodist Church (over which defendants are not responsible). See ECF Nos. 1 at 5 (charter school activities), and 39 (Belize trip).
The remaining events identified as constitutionally suspect in the complaint are the following: (1) the week-long supply drive hosted at Cougar Run Elementary during school hours; (2) the flyer and emails sent to students and their parents communicating that the supply drive was "sponsored by Cougar Run 6th Graders partnering with the FCA (Fellowship of Athletes)" and that the "FCA students will take [the donated supplies] with them to run camps during their Spring Break mission"; (3) one week's proceeds from the Cougar Run newsletter "Press Paws" were donated to the mission trip; (4) monetary donations to support the mission trip could be made via "checks payable to Cougar Run Elementary"; and (5) the DCSD students and faculty who went on the mission trip used the supplies donated at Cougar Run to aid in their proselytizing activities. ECF No. 1 at 26, 34-39, 41; see also Am. Humanist Ass'n ,
Plaintiffs respond that the scope of Ms. Zoe's injury went beyond the flyer and email communications and instead includes all "openly available data" regarding the District's promotion of Christianity, such as the week-long supply drive at the school and the use of said supplies on the mission trip. ECF No. 104 at 2 (quoting McCreary Cty. v. ACLU ,
Further, I find that the scope of Ms. Zoe's claim includes the fact of the mission trip and the use of supplies donated at Cougar Run on said trip. The FCA mission trip attendees used items collected at Cougar Run to aid in their proselytizing activities on the trip. Am. Humanist Ass'n ,
In sum, I will assess Zoe's Establishment Clause claim by considering the flyer and email solicitations; the fact of the week-long supply drive conducted at the elementary school, including the school's decision to donate proceeds from the school newspaper to the drive; and the fact of the mission trip itself during which items solicited and donated at Cougar Run were used to proselytize Christianity.
None of these allegations directly implicate the actions of Elizabeth Celania-Fagen, superintendent of the District, or Jerry Goings, the principal of Highlands Ranch High School. The claim against Ms. Celania-Fagen in her individual capacity was voluntarily dismissed. ECF No. 11. The claim against her in her official capacity is, in substance, a (duplicative) claim against the District. The claim against Mr. Goings is asserted only in his official capacity; in substance, it is a claim against the Douglas County High School.
Defendant John Gutierrez, the principal at Cougar Run, did permit the supply drive to take place at Cougar Run, and he even sent an email promoting the fundraiser to Cougar Run families. ECF No. 47-18. He admits that "funds were solicited as well as donations ... for the mission trip" which indicates that he was aware of the religious aspect of the fundraiser to which he requested the Cougar Run families donate.
2. Summary Judgment on Zoe's Establishment Clause Claim.
Defendants seek summary judgment on the basis that plaintiffs have failed sufficiently to show a violation of the Establishment Clause.
The First Amendment provides that "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion." U.S. Const. amend. I. The Establishment Clause "enshrines the principle that government *1210may not act in ways that aid one religion, aid all religions, or prefer one religion over another." Am. Atheists, Inc. v. Davenport ,
Although the Supreme Court remains somewhat divided on the contours of the Establishment Clause, the Tenth Circuit has affirmed that "the touchstone for Establishment Clause analysis remains the tripartite test set out in Lemon ." Am. Atheists, Inc. ,
The Tenth Circuit has applied the interpretation of the Lemon test provided by Justice O'Connor's concurring opinion in Lynch v. Donnelly ,
Defendants' conduct must satisfy all three prongs in order for the Court to find that they did not violate the Establishment Clause. I will review each in turn.
a. Purpose
As noted, the purpose prong probes whether defendants' "actual purpose" was to either endorse or to disapprove of religion. Courts should not engage in "judicial psychoanalysis" of the government actors' purpose. McCreary Cty., Ky. v. Am. Civil Liberties Union of Ky. ,
*1211Santa Fe Indep. Sch. Dist. v. Doe ,
Here, defendants assert that the "purpose" of Cougar Run's involvement with the mission trip and related fundraising activities was educational in nature. ECF No. 50 at 18. To support this argument, they point to the declaration of the supply drive organizer, sixth-grade teacher Micki Benge, who stated that the "purpose of the donation drive was for our sixth-grade students to make real-world connections with their Latin American social studies curriculum by supporting needy Guatemalan children." ECF No. 50-20 at 2. Defendants also note that the supply drive sought donations of non-secular items only, such as athletic supplies and temporary tattoos, rather than inherently religious items. ECF No. 59 at 10. Finally, they point out that Cougar Run partners with many other student clubs in their fundraising efforts, and they argue that "helping the poor is not an inherently religious activity." ECF No. 50 at 18; ECF No. 50-13 at 13:25-14:10 (Ms. Zoe's admitting that it was common to receive flyers for other fundraisers at Cougar Run).
The District supports many of its student clubs by allowing them to host fundraisers. See ECF No. 47-3 (District interrogatory response listing other student groups who hosted fundraisers, such as the Hip Hop Club and marching band). As to this particular fundraiser, defendants have proffered a legitimate purpose for the promotion of the supply drive. Ms. Benge stated that she organized the supply drive and fundraising efforts because she thought it would bring the Latin American social studies curriculum closer to home for her sixth-grade students.
The emails and flyers distributed to promote the supply drive cited the same educational purpose. To be sure, there is evidence of a secondary, evangelical purpose as well, as I note infra in discussing the effect test. But giving defendants the benefit of the doubt concerning this prong, I do not find educational interests to be "a sham secular purpose," Santa Fe Indep. Sch. Dist ,
b. Effect
However, I find that defendants fail on the effect prong. As noted, the second prong of the Lemon test asks "whether, irrespective of government's actual purpose, the practice under review in fact conveys a message of endorsement or disapproval [of religion]." Lynch ,
In reviewing the alleged infringing conduct, the Court "must consider not only whether the government is actually acting neutrally, but also whether a reasonable observer, reasonably informed as to the relevant circumstances, would perceive the government to be acting neutrally."
*1212Utah Gospel Mission v. Salt Lake City Corp. ,
Defendants argue that the effects of the supply drive and the use of said supplies on the mission trip were not religious in nature. Instead, the District argues the effects were "an increased awareness of and appreciation for poverty in a Latin American country, and a feeling of pride that [DCSD schools] sought to help poor children in an area of the world they were studying in class." ECF No. 103 at 7. I find that while the District's engagement with the supply drive and correlated mission trip may have had these effects in part, the principal effect of the District's engagement with the Guatemala mission trip supply drive was the advancement of Christianity or the reasonable appearance of such. Capitol Square ,
The very concept of a mission trip has religious intimations. The Guatemala mission trip was overtly religious. It was organized by District students and teachers who are part of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes; it was planned through a Christian organization called Adventures in Missions: Christian Mission Trips; and the fundraising page for the trip noted "our group's primary goal is to share the love and hope of Jesus." ECF No. 1-55. In addition, the student organizer of the trip testified that "the plan was to ... introduce [children] to the Bible" and to "promote Christianity." ECF No. 47-23 at 89. It was no secret to the defendants that the supplies and money donated during the Cougar Run supply drive would be used to directly advance Christian goals.
There are cases holding that it is constitutional in some circumstances for public school students and teachers to exercise their religion and use public school spaces to do so before and after school hours . See Good News Club v. Milford Cent. Sch. ,
Further, school officials-including Ms. Zoe's son's teacher and Principal Gutierrez- used their official school email addresses to solicit monetary contributions and item donations for the Christian mission trip. ECF Nos. 1-21, 1-19. Flyers sent home with students in their "take home folders" noted that the District was "partnering with" the FCA for its mission trip. ECF No. 1-58. The email and flyer solicitations informed readers that checks to support the mission trip could be made payable to "Cougar Run Elementary."
Further, the supplies collected in the supply drive were clearly intended to be taken and used on the mission trip-the flyer stated that "FCA students will take [donated supplies] with them to run camps during their Spring Break mission to San Pedro"-and indeed the beads solicited in the supply drive and donated by Cougar Run students were apparently used to make "Salvation Bracelets" to tell the story of Jesus. ECF Nos. 47-19, 47-20. As such, the items collected at Cougar Run were used to directly promote a Christian message.
Finally, proceeds from the Cougar Run school newspaper were donated to the mission trip fundraising efforts. The District has permitted proceeds from the school newspaper to be donated to other causes in the past, such as to the Claire Davis Memorial Fund, but the issue here is that the money directly benefitted a Christian cause. ECF No. 50-20 at 2. The Establishment Clause prohibits government financial support of religions. Walz ,
In sum, this panoply of interactions between the District and religion rises to an unconstitutional level. Even giving the District the benefit of the doubt concerning whether promotion of Christianity was the District's primary actual purpose, "the practice under review in fact convey[ed] a message of endorsement" of Christianity. Lynch ,
c. Excessive Entanglement
Defendants fail on the final prong of the Lemon test as well. The entanglement prong mandates "that a challenged governmental action 'must not foster an excessive government entanglement with religion.' " Utah Gospel Mission,
The Court finds that defendants' actions amounted to "an excessive government entanglement with religion."
B. American Humanist Association's Standing.
AHA is also a named plaintiff, but its standing has not yet been determined. AHA asserts associational standing based upon Zoe's standing. An association may sue on its members' behalf when: "(a) its members would otherwise have standing to sue in their own right; (b) the interests it seeks to protect are germane to the organization's purpose; and (c) neither the claim asserted nor the relief requested requires the participation of individual members in the lawsuit." Colorado Taxpayers Union, Inc. v. Romer ,
However, I find that the AHA cannot meet the third element due to the relief requested in this case. Ms. Zoe sought (and as noted above, is entitled to) nominal damages and retrospective declaratory relief. "Whether an association has standing to invoke the court's remedial powers on behalf of its members depends in substantial measure on the nature of the relief sought." Warth v. Seldin ,
CONCLUSION
For the abovementioned reasons, the Court GRANTS plaintiff Jane Zoe's motion for summary judgment against defendants Douglas County School District RE-1, Douglas County Board of Education, and John Gutierrez in his official capacity. The Court holds that the constitutional rights of Ms. Zoe and her son guaranteed *1215by the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution were violated by those defendants. The Court denies defendants' motion for summary judgment as it relates to the Zoe plaintiffs but grants the motion as it relates to the claims of the American Humanist Association. The Court awards the Zoe plaintiffs their reasonable costs and attorney's fees pursuant to
The Court directs counsel to meet, confer and attempt in good faith to reach agreement on the form of judgment including reasonable amounts of costs and attorney's fees. If the parties cannot agree on the form of judgment within 21 days of the issuance of this order, they are directed to set a hearing, including evidence concerning costs and attorney's fees.
Defendants also sought summary judgment on four other grounds, but these grounds have either been expressly refuted (i.e. , Zoe's standing, which the Tenth Circuit affirmed) or were mooted by the Tenth Circuit's decision (i.e. , the EAA claim, which was dismissed for lack of standing; allegations regarding the charter schools SkyView Academy and Aspen View Academy, over which the Circuit noted Zoe has no standing to challenge; and a mission trip to Belize, over which the Court noted Zoe has no standing to challenge). ECF No. 50 at 1-2; Am. Humanist Ass'n ,
Reference
- Full Case Name
- AMERICAN HUMANIST ASSOCIATION, INC., Jane Zoe, individually and as parent on behalf of a minor v. DOUGLAS COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT RE-1, Douglas County Board of Education, Elizabeth Celania-Fagen, in her official capacity as Superintendent of Douglas County School District, John Gutierrez, in his official capacity as Principal of Cougar Run Elementary School, and Jerry Goings, in his official capacity as Principal of Highlands Ranch High School
- Status
- Published