By L. Parsons Official letters of apology have been issued by the Winslow Unified School District Governing Board and the Superintendent, Kathryn Zanin following a mandatory meeting for staff. The letters were drafted as a response to complaints filed by WUSD teachers with Americans United (AU), a national non-profit group dedicated to upholding the separation of church and state and WUSD staff members following the meeting held July 30, in which eight members of the local clergy sermonized the staff. According to a statement by AU, “More than a dozen staff members from the northeastern Arizona (Winslow) district contacted Americans United after they participated in a “Back to School Kick Off” event at which the district invited Christian pastors to speak. Ministers stated Bible quotes, Christian prayers, requests that participants raise their hands to show their belief in God and pronounced that God would protect them from COVID-19. Liz Hayes, the assistant director of communications for AU said, “(The) school district has apologized to faculty and staff for turning a district-sponsored staff event into a Christian worship service. The apologies, issued by the Winslow Unified School District No. 1 governing board and Superintendent Kathryn Zanin on Aug. 5, came a day after Americans United for Separation of Church and State had demanded them on behalf of staff members whose religious freedom was violated.” Zanin’s apology read in its entirety, “I would like to take this time to sincerely apologize for the events occurring during the district kick-off celebration. Each person was given the parameters of three to five minutes to provide a word of encouragement to the entire staff. I am truly sorry for the events of the day and assure this will never happen again.” The governing board also released an apology signed by each member. It said, “We had no prior knowledge of the specific agenda set forth by the Superintendent. We believe that our staff has the freedom to choose their own ideology and life principles.” Their letter also acknowledged the fact that the meeting was, “inappropriate.” AU Senior Litigation Counsel Kenneth Upton stated, “The law is clear that school districts cannot sponsor or endorse any religious activities. It strains credulity to think that any public school official wouldn’t know they were crossing a line when inviting multiple faith leaders to preach at a district-sponsored event.” The meeting was held at the Performing Arts Center at Winslow High School, with an option to attend by way of the video conferencing service Zoom. Historically, the event features a keynote speaker offering motivational encouragement to district employees to have a productive and successful school year. The subject matter and blatant religious overtones at this year’s event caused some members of the district staff to walk out of the auditorium. Upton said, “Public schools must be inclusive spaces that welcome and respect the diverse religious beliefs of all students and staff.” One of those teachers to file a complaint was Sharon Vasquez, Winslow Education Association President. She said, “Our teachers are offended and wronged. I was totally embarrassed and honestly, the preachers were kind of scary.” She continued, “To be honest, I feel like there is a double standard here. If I invited eight clergy men into my classroom to speak for three to five minutes to my students, how long would I have my job?” Vasquez recorded the entire meeting. She said, “In a nutshell, one of the clergies said that we were sinners and COVID has been given to us as punishment. He also told us to raise our hands if we were believers.” What was presented was typical of clergy in a church setting. As Vasquez said, “This is what they do. They speak and teach about religion. There is no way the superintendent didn’t realize that was what was going to happen by inviting them to this meeting.” Upton released a statement saying, “We applaud Winslow Unified’s educators, who understand their constitutional rights to religious freedom and bravely came forward when those rights were violated by their employer. This burden should not have been placed on them as they were already under the strain of preparing for a new school year amid the coronavirus pandemic. Americans United will hold district officials to their promise that Winslow Unified’s faculty and staff will not be proselytized or forced to participate in religious activities ever again.” According to the AU, they have not yet received an official response from WUSD, “We’ll evaluate that before deciding how to proceed,” said Hayes. Upton concluded, “This situation could have been easily avoided, especially since such obvious violations of church-state separation can embroil school districts in costly, prolonged court battles. We urge Winslow Unified, and all public-school districts, to review their practices and ensure they’re protecting the religious freedom of all students and staff.” Attempts have been made by The Tribune to reach the governing board members as well as Superintendent Zannin. Zanin’s media relations department head, Ty Hancock explained that Zanin had visited the school sites and made apologies. In an email response to a request for an official statement, he said, “Now, more than ever, is a great time to spread positivity through our community and highlight the exceptional work that is being accomplished.” No response has been returned by the board. The apology letters are available for viewing on the district website at www.wusd1.org and on their Facebook page.
