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Jess Geren鈥檚 four children are regular churchgoers 鈥� they participate in Christian youth groups and study the Bible at home. When LifeWise Academy, a fast-growing program that allows students to leave school during the day for religious instruction, came to Ayersville Local Schools, their northwest Ohio district, she saw it as a chance to spread the gospel.

鈥淚t’s not my kids that I worry about,鈥� she said. 鈥淭his is their opportunity to be a light. Their mission field is the public school.鈥�

For many other Ohio parents, that鈥檚 a problem. 

Since he was 8, Cherie Khumprakob鈥檚 son, now 11, has been receiving written invitations from classmates to join them at LifeWise. She found one in his backpack.

鈥淗e hates getting these notes from his friends and having to tell them 鈥楴o鈥� repeatedly,鈥� said Khumprakob, who lives in the Columbus area. 鈥淭raining kids to pressure their friends into religious activities while at public school, during school hours, crosses a line.鈥�

The opposing views illustrate the tension in Ohio and other states where LifeWise is rapidly expanding. The organization expects to serve close to 100,000 kids in 34 states this school year. It has 1,600 employees and runs its own fleet of eye-catching red buses. 

Founded in 2018, LifeWise is the most visible group behind a movement to spread off-campus religious instruction during the school day. Since 2024, the nonprofit has successfully lobbied for legislation in Indiana, Iowa, Ohio, Oklahoma and Texas mandating that districts allow students to attend LifeWise or similar programs. Some say the requirements violate the separation of church and state. 

鈥淭hat鈥檚 a big shift,鈥� said Mark Chancey, a religious studies professor at Southern Methodist University in Dallas. 鈥淭his whole mandatory aspect is historically something different.鈥� 

In a moment when Republicans are fighting to hang the 10 Commandments on classroom walls and squeeze biblical passages into reading lessons, LifeWise has taken these programs in a more evangelical direction. The organization faces pushback from parents and district staff who think Bible study should be relegated to afterschool hours. LifeWise programs that reward students with items like candy and encourage kids to recruit their friends have proven particularly divisive. 

But those are the strategies LifeWise recommends as a way to increase participation. 鈥淪end students back to school with 鈥業nvite a Friend鈥� flyers,鈥� urges a on 鈥渂oosting enrollment.鈥� A says treats are 鈥渇un incentives鈥� that are meant to foster a 鈥減ositive and engaging learning environment.鈥�

鈥淢ost students who enjoy a sport, activity or program will talk about it with their friends and encourage them to give it a try as well,鈥� said LifeWise spokeswoman Christine Czernejewski. 鈥淟ifewise is no different.鈥�

蜜桃影视 found examples of financial transactions between districts and LifeWise that could create the appearance of promoting the program. Especially in Ohio, LifeWise often enjoys strong support from school officials; one superintendent warned staff to avoid such activity while the district was 鈥渦nder the radar.鈥� 

Supporters argue that LifeWise and similar classes respect the First Amendment鈥檚 Establishment Clause because they require parent permission, don鈥檛 meet on school grounds and aren鈥檛 supposed to rely on school resources for support.

Some districts are putting 鈥渢acks on the road so the big red bus loses air in the tires鈥� just because the program teaches the Bible, said Jeremy Dys, senior counsel with First Liberty Institute, a law firm specializing in religious freedom cases.

The 46,000-student Columbus, Ohio, district from sending kids back to school with any 鈥渕aterials, snacks, clothing, candies, trinkets or other items.鈥� Then the legislature amended the law to say districts can鈥檛 prevent organizations from distributing educational materials, but have some discretion over limiting non-educational items like treats. For now, Dys, who represents LifeWise, is waiting to see whether the new restrictions interfere with the program. 

鈥淭here’s just a lot of animosity and hostility towards religion,鈥� he said. But recent Supreme Court decisions, like one siding with a football coach who held mid-field prayers and another allowing parents to opt their children out of hearing LGBTQ-themed story books, have expanded religious influence at school. 鈥淭he courts 鈥� have basically been telling school districts, 鈥楥ool it.鈥� 鈥�

In total, 16 states require districts to allow students to participate in religious studies during school hours, but a few, like Pennsylvania and New York, have had such laws on the books for years. Some states aren鈥檛 ready to take that leap. Legislation requiring districts to release students stalled this year in , and . 

At an education subcommittee hearing in February, Georgia state Rep. David Clark, a Republican running for lieutenant governor, said the programs could solve one of the most pressing issues facing public schools 鈥� enrollment loss.

鈥淲e have thousands of students leaving public schools. It could be private school; it could be home school,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 think this 鈥� protects our public schools, because it allows parents, [if] they want the religious studies, they can sign their kid up.鈥� 

Clark alluded to data suggesting that attendance increases and behavior improves in schools with LifeWise programs. The findings, from a sponsored by , are frequently cited by LifeWise founder Joel Penton and officials who to school boards across the country. 

But some researchers say the report鈥檚 conclusions overstate the program鈥檚 benefits. Charles Riedesel, a computer scientist at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, called the work 鈥渟hoddy.鈥� For one, it included the COVID year, a time when states changed how they tracked attendance because so many students were learning remotely.

鈥楤lows my mind鈥�

Even though the legislation failed in Georgia, LifeWise still has programs in about six districts statewide, and church leaders are .

On a sunny Friday morning in October roughly an hour outside Atlanta, about 20 Cartersville Elementary fifth graders piled onto a LifeWise bus for a short drive to a local church. Ebby McCoy said she was missing a computer class, but likes how the LifeWise lessons 鈥済o a bit deeper鈥� into the Bible than what she learns in church.

Former elementary school teacher Danielle Ruff energetically led the kids through a fast-paced lesson on the 10 plagues that the Bible says God inflicted on Egypt for keeping the Jews enslaved. As she spoke, students connected puzzle pieces linking the disasters in order 鈥� water turning to blood, frogs infesting homes and gnats 鈥渂iting them like crazy,鈥� Ruff said. 

鈥淭he next set of plagues only happen to the Egyptians. They don鈥檛 happen to the Israelites,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t blows my mind every time.鈥�

Jason Morrow, a LifeWise board member, was among several volunteers on hand to help kids locate Bible verses. He called the program a 鈥渢ouchpoint during the week鈥� that teaches his daughter, one of the fifth graders, that faith is 鈥渘ot just a Sunday weekend thing.鈥� 

But Clay Willis, who works at the church hosting the program, said LifeWise leaders try to respect the school鈥檚 boundaries. For one, they don’t hand out candy. 

鈥淚f we sugar them up, that鈥檚 not the best way to serve the teachers,鈥� he said. 

鈥業t鈥檚 insulting鈥�

Supporters of LifeWise and similar programs point to a 1952 Supreme Court decision, , that legalized the practice. But the fact that these programs pull kids out of school during the day offers critics their leading argument. During a meeting last fall, Amber Skinner, a board member in the Worthington, Ohio, district, near Columbus, said checking students in and out of school for their LifeWise session is disruptive and eats up staff time. 

鈥淭eachers who are funded with taxpayer dollars鈥� spend time providing a lot of 鈥渉ands-on assistance鈥� to elementary students who need help signing themselves out, she said. 

The classes, usually held once or twice a week, often coincide with non-core offerings like art and music. Some educators think students are losing out on important material. 

Alan Limke, a retired STEM teacher from the Milton Union district, outside Dayton, kept a list of the lessons that students missed every Tuesday when they left for LifeWise. They included simple circuits, building and launching foam rockets and 3-D modeling. Leading up to the 2024 solar eclipse, when Milton was in the path of totality, he planned a month of activities, including a visit from a mobile planetarium. 

鈥淚t’s insulting,鈥� said Limke, who grew up Catholic, but now considers himself an atheist. 鈥淚 work very hard to come up with lessons that are rigorous and fun and important.鈥�

While LifeWise requires parent permission, specific procedures vary by district, according to Czernejewski, the organization鈥檚 spokeswoman. In Ayersville, Ohio, the district Geren鈥檚 children attend, the initial permission form remains in effect year to year unless a parent requests a withdrawal. That seems wrong to Nick Sullivan, whose oldest daughter wanted to stop attending after fifth grade. 

鈥淵ou鈥檝e got to send in a paper stating that you do not want your kid to attend LifeWise or they’re going to automatically enroll them,鈥� Sullivan said. He thinks schools should require the permission slips annually, just like other paperwork. 

Sullivan withheld his daughter鈥檚 name to protect her privacy. Now an eighth grader, she told 蜜桃影视 she found the LifeWise lessons repetitive and said the instructors 鈥渨ould give us a full bag of candy鈥� for reciting Bible verses. 

鈥淚 was supposed to be in study hall and they kept on sending me whether I liked it or not,鈥� she said.

鈥楥rossing the line鈥�

Experiences like those contribute to the growing opposition to LifeWise. The , formed in 2023, keeps a lookout for incidents where they think school officials inappropriately promote the program or allow LifeWise too much access. They鈥檝e found school officials who tout LifeWise in newsletters or post photos on social media with the group鈥檚 leaders. Other examples they鈥檝e gathered since 2023 include:

• Continental Elementary in northwest Ohio shared a video of a LifeWise representative on its Facebook page in 2022. The woman displayed baked goods students could choose from if they attended a LifeWise fundraiser. 鈥淲e have yummy brownies, cookies with M&M’s,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 just so beautiful.鈥� The district did not respond to questions about the video. 

• The Culver district in Indiana, west of Fort Wayne, held a LifeWise-related assembly during school hours last year that caught the attention of attorneys at the Freedom from Religion Foundation. The organization, which advocates for church-state separation, reminded Superintendent Karen Shuman of the district鈥檚 policy stating that 鈥渘o solicitation for attendance at religious instruction shall be permitted on [district] premises.鈥�
  
  In an email to 蜜桃影视, Shuman said the district is 鈥渘ot conducting Lifewise programs鈥� and that she had 鈥渘o idea鈥� what the assembly was about. 

• The Supreme Court said religious instruction during the school day should be held off school grounds. The Elmwood Local Schools, south of Toledo, rents space to LifeWise near a school. Superintendent Tony Borton said the lease 鈥渉as not been an issue in our community.鈥� But last year, he warned against mentioning LifeWise during high school announcements after someone complained, according to an email the Secular Education Association obtained through a public records request. 鈥淲e are crossing the line with these type things,鈥� Borton wrote. 鈥淚 am trying to reign in [sic], with the hope we can do more later when we are not under the radar.鈥�

A 74 analysis of data from GovSpend, a company that tracks government purchases, turned up a few additional examples of expenditures that could raise questions. In 2022, Ohio鈥檚 Franklin Monroe school district paid , a basketball spinning performer, $800 for a 鈥淟ifeWise assembly.鈥� A LifeWise representative, initiated the event, according to district emails. The district did not respond to questions about it. 

Another Ohio district, River View, cut a check for $2,000 to LifeWise earlier this year. The funds came from community members donating to the organization, but were improperly routed through the district, said district Treasurer Kara Kimes.

鈥淚’d like to get these funds cleaned up ASAP as donations that are directly for Lifewise shouldn’t be flowing through the district,鈥� she wrote to another staff member in an email 蜜桃影视 obtained through a public records request.

Czernejewski, the LifeWise spokeswoman, said the organization does not advise local school districts, but that its 鈥渞ole is to operate in compliance with applicable laws.鈥� She added that she was unaware of school officials promoting the program, noting that LifeWise can submit announcements to district newsletters, just like other community organizations.

鈥楧evelop good relationships鈥�

Off-site religious studies during the school day date back to the early 1900s when the offered 鈥渟eminary鈥� classes to students in Granite, Utah. 

Around the same time, a Gary, Indiana, an off-site religious studies program, and the concept began to grow across the country.

One of the longest-running examples is , based in South Carolina, the first state to allow districts to award elective credit for such programs. Like the lawmaker in Georgia, Executive Director Ken Breivik said the classes allow parents who can鈥檛 afford private school 鈥渢o get some sort of religious experience.鈥� But he thinks forcing districts to release students can spark a 鈥渧isceral reaction鈥� from school leaders and prefers not to talk much about LifeWise.

鈥淲e are just a different organization. We have never done a school board presentation,鈥� he said. He will ask districts to allow a small pilot program before spreading to multiple schools. 鈥淲e work really hard to develop good relationships with the schools we serve.鈥�

In January, Penton, LifeWise鈥檚 founder, joined a to discuss an unlikely competitor in , outside Columbus: Hellion Academy for Independent Learning, or HAIL. The Satanic Temple sponsors the program as an alternative to Christian groups meeting during the school day. The organizers鈥� intent, Penton said, is 鈥渢o rattle people鈥� and get districts to stop releasing students for any religious instruction.

HAIL, which focuses on secular humanism rather than Satan worship, began as parent Susannah Plumb鈥檚 response to her kids鈥� classmates leaving school for , a Pennsylvania program.

鈥淚t’s not in-your-face proselytization, but little kids don’t understand. They see Johnny get on the bus once a week 鈥� and go on a field trip,鈥� Plumb said. 鈥淢y kids felt left behind.鈥�

HAIL meets at a nearby library, where the kids conduct science experiments, launch community service projects and paint 鈥渒indness stones鈥� to place in a local park at the end of the year. But she said the program wouldn鈥檛 exist if Joy El, LifeWise and others didn鈥檛.

鈥淚 believe in the separation of church and state, but I also believe in plurality,鈥� she said. 鈥淲hen there’s one, there needs to be another.鈥�

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