More than 100 chaplains urge Texans not to hire school chaplains

[mwai_chat context=”Let’s have a discussion about this article:nn(RNS) — More than 100 chaplains signed a letter urging local Texas school boards to vote against putting chaplains in public schools, calling efforts to enlist religious counselors in public classrooms “harmful” to students and families.The letter comes just days before a bill allowing public schools to hire school chaplains becomes law in Texas, the first state in the country to pass such a measure. The legislation, which had been pushed by activists associated with Christian nationalism, gives the state’s nearly 1,200 school boards until March 1 of next year to vote on whether to employ chaplains.
The letter was organized by the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty and Interfaith Alliance as well as local advocacy group Texas Impact.
The chaplains who signed the letter, released Tuesday (Aug. 22), bemoaned the lack of standards for potential school chaplains aside from background checks, contrasting it with the extensive training required for health care and military chaplains. 
“Because of our training and experience, we know that chaplains are not a replacement for school counselors or safety measures in our public schools, and we urge you to reject this flawed policy option: It is harmful to our public schools and the students and families they serve,” the letter read.
While chaplains who operate in multi-faith environments are generally barred from proselytizing, the Texas bill, SB 763, outlined no such condition, leaving each school district to answer the question on its own.
“There is no requirement in this law that the chaplains refrain from proselytizing while at schools or that they serve stude …nnDiscussion:nn” ai_name=”RocketNews AI: ” start_sentence=”Can I tell you more about this article?” text_input_placeholder=”Type ‘Yes'”]