DECEMBER 2024 | Volume 2 | Number 11
For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace”
– Isaiah 9:6
Blessed Advent and Merry Christmas to you all (in advance)!
In this December edition of the ACCS Legal Update, we will discuss a developing discrimination lawsuit against two Christian law students in Virginia, as well as several connected stories related to school safety at private schools.
Cerankosky v. Washington
Early last month, Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) filed a discrimination lawsuit on behalf of Selene Cerankosky and Maria Arcara, two third-year law students at the Antonin Scalia Law School at George Mason University. The suit stems from no-contact orders issued against the two students by the university.
The orders were issued after the students expressed concerns over a proposal to install tampon dispensers in men’s restrooms on campus. Their concerns were solicited in a group text chat by their student representative. The group was asked to text back any school-related concerns they wished to have taken before the administration. Cerankosky and Arcara agreed that the tampon proposal was alarming, as it would create logical precedent for allowing men in women’s restrooms.
Their comments were indeed taken to the administration, but not in the way they intended. The student representative responded by chastising them for bigotry and notified the school administration. Two weeks later, in October, a school official issued no-contact orders against both students, prohibiting them from any contact with the student representative.
ADF further notes, “The orders apply both on and off campus, and they have no termination date. Neither student was given notice or a chance to defend herself or her statements before the no-contact orders were issued. The orders cannot be appealed.”
ADF filed a lawsuit on behalf of the students, alleging violation of their First and Fourteenth Amendment rights.
California Assembly Bill 68 & School Safety
On December 4, a 56-year-old man shot two kindergarten students at Feather River Adventist School, in Oroville, California. The shooter, who died at the scene from an apparently self-inflicted gunshot wound, previously wrote that he was acting in response to “America’s involvement with Genocide and Oppression of Palestinians.” That tragic shooting led California Assemblyman Bill Essayli to repropose his previously rejected Assembly Bill 68, which would require armed guards, or School Resource Officers, to be stationed at every public school in California. The bill would also require the state to provide funding for those officers.
On December 16, yet another school shooting occurred at Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wisconsin, leaving two dead and seven more wounded.
Both of these recent shootings have again highlighted the larger issue of school safety. While the first school shooting in America occurred in 1764, the modern problem is typically marked by the Columbine High School tragedy of 1999. School shooters targeting Christian schools, including the 2023 attack at The Covenant School in Nashville and the two mentioned above, have been a more recent development, and it has brought greater attention to security at private Christian schools.
Because state legislation such as California Assembly Bill 68 do not require safety standards or security personnel for private schools, consideration of the issue remains with each school board and administration. You can look for more discussion pertinent to school safety in future issues of the ACCS Legal Update.
Now What?
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Cerankosky v. Washington is a reminder of the need to diligently teach ourselves, our students, and our children what legal rights we have under the rule of law. This important lawsuit would likely have gone unfiled if Cerankosky and Arcara were unaware of their rights. Further, the overstep and abuse of Title IX by George Washington University’s administration deserves to be challenged.
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In light of the recent school shooting tragedies at Christian schools in Tennessee, California, and Wisconsin, it is incumbent upon every school board and administration to consider best practices to ensure safety for their students and teachers.
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Finally, and most importantly, let us pray for the Lord’s peace and comfort to rest with those affected by these recent tragedies.
Grace & Peace,
Brian Phillips, Ed.D.
If you are in search of legal advice for you or your school, please consider the following resources: Brotherhood Mutual and Alliance Defending Freedom
Brian Phillips is the pastor of Holy Trinity Reformed Church (CREC – Concord, NC), teaches Rhetoric at Oaks Classical Christian Academy (Albemarle, NC), and is Board Vice Chairman for New Aberdeen College. Brian has also served as the Director of Consulting for The Circe Institute, Head of Upper School at Covenant Classical School (Concord, NC), and was an adjunct faculty member of Belmont Abbey College.
Dr. Phillips has an M.A. in Theological Studies, an M.A. in Classical Studies, an Ed.D. in Classical Education, and completed paralegal training at Duke University. He is also the author/editor of several books, including Sunday Mornings: An Introduction to Biblical Worship and the Canon Classics Guides to Dante’s Inferno and the Meditations of Marcus Aurelius. Brian and his wife, Shannon, live in North Carolina with their four children and their German Shepherd, Ajax the Great.