Arizona Laws 15-110. Rights of students at public educational institutions; limitations; definition
A. A public educational institution shall not discriminate against students or parents on the basis of a religious viewpoint or religious expression.
Terms Used In Arizona Laws 15-110
- Accommodation school: means either:
(a) A school that is operated through the county board of supervisors and the county school superintendent and that the county school superintendent administers to serve a military reservation or territory that is not included within the boundaries of a school district. See Arizona Laws 15-101
- Action: includes any matter or proceeding in a court, civil or criminal. See Arizona Laws 1-215
- Charter school: means a public school established by contract with the state board of education, the state board for charter schools, a university under the jurisdiction of the Arizona board of regents, a community college district or a group of community college districts pursuant to article 8 of this chapter to provide learning that will improve pupil achievement. See Arizona Laws 15-101
- Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
- Course: means organized subject matter in which instruction is offered within a given period of time and for which credit toward promotion, graduation or certification is usually given. See Arizona Laws 15-101
- including: means not limited to and is not a term of exclusion. See Arizona Laws 1-215
- Parent: means the natural or adoptive parent of a child or a person who has custody of a child. See Arizona Laws 15-101
- person: means an individual, partnership, corporation, association or public or private organization of any kind. See Arizona Laws 15-101
- School district: means a political subdivision of this state with geographic boundaries organized for the purpose of the administration, support and maintenance of the public schools or an accommodation school. See Arizona Laws 15-101
- United States: includes the District of Columbia and the territories. See Arizona Laws 1-215
- Writing: includes printing. See Arizona Laws 1-215
B. If an assignment requires a student’s viewpoint to be expressed in coursework, artwork or other written or oral assignments, a public educational institution shall not penalize or reward a student on the basis of religious content or a religious viewpoint. In such an assignment, a student’s academic work that expresses a religious viewpoint shall be evaluated based on ordinary academic standards of substance and relevance to the course curriculum or requirements of the coursework or assignment.
C. Students in public educational institutions may pray or engage in religious activities or religious expression before, during and after the school day in the same manner and to the same extent that students may engage in nonreligious activities or expression.
D. Students in public educational institutions may wear clothing, accessories and jewelry that display religious messages or religious symbols in the same manner and to the same extent that other types of clothing, accessories and jewelry that display messages or symbols are permitted.
E. This section shall not be construed to authorize this state or any of its political subdivisions to do either of the following:
1. Require any person to participate in prayer or in any other religious activity.
2. Violate the constitutional rights of any person.
F. This section shall not be construed to limit the authority of any public educational institution to do any of the following:
1. Maintain order and discipline on the campus of the public educational institution in a content and viewpoint neutral manner.
2. Protect the safety of students, employees and visitors of the public educational institution.
3. Adopt and enforce policies and procedures regarding student speech at school provided that the policies and procedures do not violate the rights of students as guaranteed by the United States and Arizona constitutions and laws.
4. Adopt and enforce policies and procedures that prohibit students from wearing any type of clothing, accessories and jewelry that is worn with the intent to convey affiliation with a criminal street gang as defined in section 13-105.
G. A student or a student’s parent shall not initiate legal action to enforce this section unless the student or the student’s parent has done the following:
1. The student or the student’s parent shall submit a complaint in writing with the specific facts of the alleged violation to the principal of the school. The principal shall investigate the complaint and respond in writing, including a description of any action taken to resolve the complaint, within fifteen days of receiving the written complaint.
2. If the action taken by the principal of the school does not resolve the complaint of the student or the student’s parent, the student or the student’s parent shall submit a complaint in writing with the specific facts of the alleged violation to the superintendent or designated administrator. The superintendent or designated administrator shall investigate the complaint and respond in writing, including a description of any action taken to resolve the complaint, within twenty-five days of receiving the written complaint.
3. If the action taken by the superintendent or designated administrator does not resolve the complaint of the student or the student’s parent, the student or the student’s parent may pursue legal action to enforce this section.
H. For the purposes of this section, "public educational institution" means any of the following:
1. A school district, including its schools.
2. A charter school.
3. An accommodation school.
4. The Arizona state schools for the deaf and the blind.