New Berlin Eisenhower Moves Graduation Ceremony

Threatened with a lawsuit, New Berlin Eisenhower High School no longer will hold its graduation ceremony at Elmbrook Church.

Americans United for Separation of Church and State objected to public schools using the facility for commencement.

Americans United for Separation of Church and State sent letters to the Elmbrook, Mukwonago and New Berlin school district as well as Waukesha County Technical College, asking them to move graduation ceremonies to secular locations this year.

If the schools refuse, the organization said, it could go to court and ask for an injunction to stop them from holding their ceremonies at Elmbrook Church, said Alex Luchenitser, senior litigation counsel for the Washington D.C.-based group. The group argues that in holding graduation ceremonies in a church, public school officials violate the First Amendment's prohibition on state establishment of religion.

"There have been no Supreme Court cases that have dealt with this specific issue, but we think it's clear," Luchenitser said. "The principle that the Supreme Court has made clear is that school districts may not coerce students or students' family members to be exposed to religion at graduation."

...Mukwonago School District Superintendent Paul Strobel said he has received no complaints from parents about his district's decision to hold high school graduation at Elmbrook since 2007. Moving graduation to the church from Mukwonago High School's gymnasium means more family members have been able to attend the annual event, he said.

"It's worked out really well for us since that time," Strobel said. "We get comments every year about the quality of the facility, how comfortable people are. We can get over 3,000 people into that facility."

What a shame!

There haven't been complaints from parents or students, yet this anti-religion organization is targeting these school districts.

The schools are pleased with the facility. It's a quality place. People are comfortable there. It can accommodate thousands, meaning more family members and friends can attend.

New Berlin Eisenhower didn't want to take the chance on being sued.

From the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

New Berlin Superintendent Paul Kreutzer made it clear the only reason for the return of Ike's commencement to the school's football field was because the district didn't want to bear the possible expense of a lawsuit. Parents were notified of the decision Wednesday.

"From the beginning we have not been very happy to have to deal with this issue and our school district is less than enamored in working with the group from D.C.," Kreutzer said.

But he said the prospect of litigation was unappealing. "This is not a particular fight that we want to be making at this time," he said.

New Berlin is the only Waukesha County school that has switched venues from Elmbrook Church after concerns were raised about a potential First Amendment violation by Washington D.C.-based Americans United for Separation of Church and State in February.

..."We're certainly pleased that they agreed to comply with the Constitution and respect the rights of minority students that don't share the religious beliefs of the church," said Alex Luchenitser, senior litigation council for Americans United. "New Berlin's decision will ensure all the students are able to enjoy the graduation regardless of what their religious beliefs are."

Kreutzer said the district had to reprint graduation invitations because of the change. He said litigating the issue would have cost the district far more.

"We're not talking 1500 bucks here, we're talking tens of thousands," he said.

Terrific.

Commencement will be held at the football field.

Yeah, that's much more comfortable. Hope it doesn't rain. Hope it's not really hot and humid. Hope it's not really cold and windy.

Fewer people will be able to attend and witness the graduates being awarded for their achievements.

Certainly, Elmbrook Church is a much more comfortable facility for elderly relatives or people with disabilities to attend.

Graduation invitations have to be reprinted at a cost of "tens of thousands" of dollars. That's a very significant cost.

I can understand that Ike doesn't want to deal with a lawsuit, but I'm sorry school officials caved.

Churches are used for public activities all the time.

They are the sites of community meetings and political forums. Some are used for polling places.

Alex Luchenitser, senior litigation council for Americans United, must be thrilled that he managed to bully Ike into moving the ceremony, especially since the Supreme Court has never ruled on this specific issue.

How is holding a graduation ceremony at Elmbrook Church in violation of the Constitution?

The Establishment Clause doesn't come into play at all.

Elmbrook Church is merely the facility where the ceremony was to take place. It's a builidng being used for graduation. No religious service would be forced on anyone attending.

This isn't about separation of church and state.

It's BS to suggest that merely seeing a crucifix or other Christian symbols is in violation of one's civil rights.

I'm a Christian, but if Elmbrook Church were a synagogue or a mosque, I wouldn't feel threatened if I were attending a graduation ceremony there.

I wouldn't be going to the place for a religious service. I would be going to see someone special in my life be recognized for his or her achievement.

It's really too bad that Eisenhower buckled to the demands of this group.

This isn't a battle in the war on religion in society. It's just a whiny group's effort to make a lot of people uncomfortable and unhappy.

Americans United for Separation of Church and State should not have been granted this victory.