Curriculum, Books and Privacy

Q: What are my options if a class, activity, or assignment conflicts with my religious beliefs?

In 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court issued an important opinion entitled Mahmoud v. Taylor, 606 U.S. 522 (2025), which held that the federal constitution requires that public schools must allow parents to opt their children out of curriculum (whether classroom instruction, activities, or assignments) that conflict with a parent’s religious beliefs.

You may need to be proactive about seeking out information concerning curriculum and reading lists and demanding the right to opt-out of religiously objectionable content. Ask before the start of the school year if the school has not sent information to you.

While Mahmoud protects religious-based objections, some schools go beyond that and may have policies and practices to also address non-religious based objections. Be proactive in seeking out these policies.

Q: What support will be provided to my child if we opt out? What activities are provided and who oversees the activities?

Ensure that the child’s grades are not negatively affected by the opt-out.

Know and understand your rights concerning your child’s access to library books or other materials that you may find objectionable. In some states, your rights extend beyond religious objections and in some instances schools/districts themselves may have policies that allow you to limit your child’s access to certain materials even if state law does not require it.

Some states may require schools to post their library catalog online and allow parents to instruct the school as to titles their child is not allowed to access.
Some states have processes for reviewing materials when a parent objects
Some states may require opt-ins from parents for certain materials (esp. Sexually explicit materials or materials that might otherwise be potentially objectionable or harmful)

Familiarize yourself with your rights under the federal Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA). The PPRA protects privacy in many areas, For covered entities like state and local educational agencies and other programs receiving USDOE funding, “[i]t governs the administration to students of a survey, analysis, or evaluation that concerns one or more of the following eight protected areas:

political affiliations or beliefs of the student or the student’s parent;
mental or psychological problems of the student or the student’s family;
sex behavior or attitudes;
illegal, anti-social, self-incriminating, or demeaning behavior;
critical appraisals of other individuals with whom respondents have close family relationships;
legally recognized privileged or analogous relationships, such as those of lawyers, physicians, and ministers;
religious practices, affiliations, or beliefs of the student or student’s parent; or,
income (other than that required by law to determine eligibility for participation in a program or for receiving financial assistance under such program).”

https://studentprivacy.ed.gov/topic/protection-pupil-rights-amendment-ppra