The case, in the research
SchoolPrayer is needed.
Reasons to advocate for elected SchoolPrayer and Bible reading are quite numerous and run the gamut from improving students’ self-worth, to improving student relationships and behavior, to minimizing or preventing crime in school, to helping prevent teen suicide.
When we took prayers out of schools, guns came in schools… Don’t tell me about no separation of church and state. State is the body. Church is the heart. You take the heart out of the body, the body dies.New York City Mayor Eric Adams, February 2023
What the research shows
Students’ religious faith is an asset for schools
Researcher George Barna found that, “About three fourths of all people who have consciously, intentionally, and personally chosen to embrace Jesus Christ as their Savior did so before their 18th birthday” (The First Year of Launching A High School Ministry: The Launch Box, pg. 13).
First Liberty’s Jorge Gomez provided numerous stats on the positive benefits of religion in schools. In Motivating Public Schools to Welcome Religious Expression (June 2, 2023), Gomez wrote, “Students’ religious faith is an asset for schools. Research shows religion has a positive effect on academic achievement.”
Gomez cited research by Dr. William Jeynes, California State University, Long Beach, who conducted a meta-analysis of 30 studies involving more than one million students, learning what factors best reduced the student achievement gap. The study found, “Of all the variables…religious faith had the highest effect.”
Ilana Horwitz, a researcher at the Stanford University Graduate School of Education, determined that “Religious students benefit because the faith community and the school community both build characteristics that help students’ develop. Both institutions want students to respect authority, be conscientious, cooperative and kind. Both want students to have a sense of purpose in life.”
The other side of the ledger
What our young people are carrying
Contrasting the positive factors of religious education, popular cultural trends have substantial deleterious effects on young people.
Of high school students felt persistently sad or hopeless; 23% drink alcohol, and 16% use marijuana. Young people have increased feelings of isolation and self hatred.
Dr. Daniel Amen, physician and psychiatrist, “How to Raise Mentally Strong Kids,” Fox & Friends Weekend, May 20, 2023Of high school females and males, respectively, persistently sad or hopeless. These feelings of hopelessness have increased by 60% over 10 years.
Centers for Disease Control, 2021Of US female teenagers who have attempted suicide, and who have considered suicide, respectively.
Youth Risk Behavior Survey 2021, CDCThe spike in the teen suicide rate between 2007 and 2017. Suicides in young people age 10 to 24 increased 47% from 2000 to 2021; for every completed suicide, an estimated 100 to 200 attempts.
CDC teen suicide trend data, 2007–2021The increase in overdose deaths among persons aged 14 to 18 from 2019 to 2020, and a further 20% from 2020 to 2021.
CDC overdose data, 2019–2021Shootings with deaths or injuries at elementary and secondary schools since 2000. From 2020–21 there were 93 school shootings with casualties.
School shooting statistics as compiled in Gomez, First Liberty, June 2, 2023Asked whether online experiences are meaningful replacements for in-person experiences: 50% of Gen Z and Millennials agreed, versus 19% of Gen X, Boomers and Matures.
Generational survey reported in Gomez, First Liberty, 2023In 1998, 62% said religion was very important, declining to 39% in 2023. Patriotism fell from 70% to 38% over the same period.
National values polling, 1998 vs 2023, as reported in Gomez, First LibertyNew sexually transmitted infections in 2018 in the United States, about half in people between the ages of 15 and 24.
CDC National Center for Health StatisticsStatistics above are drawn from the cited reports and articles referenced in SchoolPrayer’s research materials; a full source register with links is available on request.
Good news: there is something a school community can do, and it’s fully legal. SchoolPrayer is Legal →
In their own words
Student testimonies
“I have learned that I am not alone.”
Jaylin
Read Jaylin’s testimony
Every morning me and my friends go to Mr. Peterson’s room to start our day off the right way. When I walk in there, I know it’s going to be a good day. We start off with writing prayer requests on a piece of paper, then we put it into what we call our prayer box. Then, at 7:40 Mr. Peterson closes the door and shares an encouraging word from the Lord. Lastly, we pray over the box and over ourselves. After I leave the room, I feel an ultimate peace over me, and I know it’s from the Lord. I used to have a lot of anxiety and feeling lonely and depressed in school, but after we started meeting in the morning I have learned that I am not alone.
“This group has allowed my days to be so much brighter.”
Josiah
Read Josiah’s testimony
Mornings are really hard for me. It means a lot to me that one of our teachers would care enough about us to make sure we start our day on the right foot. Prayer has been a solid foundation for me and I have always tried to start my day with prayer, but with this group, I have the ability to do it every day. This group has allowed my days to be so much brighter. My confidence and faith in the Lord are at their peak.
“The morning prayer we hold at school has been the highlight of many days for me.”
Cate
Read Cate’s testimony
The morning prayer we hold at school has been the highlight of many days for me. It is great to start the day praying with others that have the same intentions to glorify God. It also is a way we can have others pray for us and gather together to pray for strength to minister to others in our school.
“It has helped me so much with my anxiety and the stresses of school.”
Shay
Read Shay’s testimony
Why is starting off your day with prayer so beneficial? It’s because you’re starting the day off talking to your Father. It has helped me so much with my anxiety and the stresses of school. I’ve seen such an improvement in my attitude as well. I know God is working on the prayers we place in the prayer box and I have peace knowing they will come to pass in His perfect timing. I highly recommend starting your day off speaking to the Lord.
Fifteen minutes can change a morning.
The need is real, and so is the answer. Start a SchoolPrayer meeting in your school.
