Kelly Lichter, Collier County School Board chair, during the discussion of an invocation. (Image: CCSB)
Dec. 17, 2023 by David Silverberg
On Tuesday, Dec. 12, the Collier County School Board rejected the concept of holding a religious invocation before its meetings by a vote of 3 to 2.
At issue was adoption of protocols that would govern an invocation policy. Chair Kelly Lichter (District 3), Stephanie Lucarelli (District 2) and Erick Carter (District 4) voted against adoption of the protocols. Jerry Rutherford (District 1) and Tim Moshier (District 5) voted for the protocols.
With the protocols rejected, the invocation idea was completely laid to rest, at least for the next year.
The lengthy debate over an invocation, proposed by Rutherford, had dominated three meetings of the Board. More than just a question of whether there would be a public prayer prior to Board meetings, it went to the heart of whether there should be a separation of church and state in school affairs—or, by implication, in any public affairs at all. As such it elicited much public comment and raised community passions.
Arguments and explanations
In its previous monthly meeting the Board voted to have staff draft an invocation policy. The staff drafted the policy but also a separate set of protocols, rules that would govern the policy itself. These included compiling a database of religious assemblies eligible to provide speakers and rules for selecting a speaker, the invocation itself and conduct at Board meetings. The protocols had to be adopted in order to have a policy and therefore an invocation.
The Board currently has a moment of silence for prayer or contemplation before its monthly meetings.
After public comments both for and against an invocation, each of the school board members explained their positions.
Rutherford argued that church and state had only been separated in the United States since a 1947 Supreme Court decision and that previously public prayer was not a problem. He also argued that public prayers allowed him to hear other people’s prayers. “I want to listen to other people’s prayers. I think prayers have a lot of power,” he said.
He continued: “There’s a lot of things we should look at when you’re thinking about prayers. I want to see them in our schools and in our nation because if we get attacked by other nations, you will have prayers, I guarantee you.”
Moshier pointed out that the school board building was named for Rev. Martin Luther King, a religious leader. “We should honor him with prayer,” he said. “We should honor that before school board meetings.”
Lucarelli said she had agonized and prayed over the issue and had wanted to keep an open mind about invocations. “I’ve been on board with [the discussion]. But I realize that I’m just trying to convince myself that this is going to be OK,” she said.
She felt that the invocation was intended to demonstrate in public that some people were more pious others, what is known as “virtue signaling.”
“At the end of the day I believe this is misguided. I really feel that it is virtue signaling. I really don’t want this board to engage in something that others may use for nefarious purposes,” she observed.
Carter was chiefly concerned with the logistics of invocations and ensuring that they weren’t used to attack people or other religions. He was also concerned that invocations be held well before the formal start of meetings so that students would not be present. Arranging that was difficult because students are frequently in the chamber well before meetings are called to order.
Lichter was clearly ready for the end of the day, a phrase she used several times in her remarks. She noted that discussion of invocations had dominated three Board meetings and been a massive distraction from the core mission of the Board to educate Collier County’s children. “…That’s really disappointing considering our board created five clear policies right out of the gate of what we want to do, what our focus is,” she said.
“At the end of the day, I feel if there’s a need or an agenda from a board member that wants to push this invocation I think perhaps meeting at the flagpole [outside the School Board building] well in advance of a school board meeting and inviting people to attend to pray if that’s something [they want to do]. But we have spent so much time and resources on this issue and I just can’t get behind it. I really think the more we continue to talk about it, the further I am in wanting to proceed forward with [a final vote].”
She continued: “But at the end of the day, for me, I don’t see how this impacts student education and that is our number one priority, is the academics for our kids.”
She then called the vote. Rutherford was confused by the procedure, as he was at many other points in the meeting.
In a subsequent public end of the year message Lichter wrote: “While I originally did support an invocation, it became clear to me that after much discussion, this did not fit in with our board priorities. Based on feedback I received since the vote, it seems for many that this was nothing more than virtue signaling and another opportunity to say, ‘I’m more Christian than you.’ It’s no surprise that the comments made about my decision are far from the ‘Christian’ values they hold so dear.”
Click here to see the entire 2-hour, 56-minute meeting.
Liberty lives in light
© 2023 by David Silverberg