Enfield Board Of Education Accepts Judge's Ruling On Graduation

The Enfield Board of Education agreed Thursday not to appeal a judge’s ruling that holding high school graduation ceremonies in a Bloomfield church violates the Constitution.

The 5-4 vote reversed the board’s April decision to hold graduations for the town’s two high schools in Bloomfield’s First Cathedral, a Baptist mega-church.

“Our clients are extremely pleased by this decision that honors the judge’s ruling,” said Andrew Schneider, executive director of ACLU- CT, which represented two high school seniors and their parents who said they would feel uncomfortable and unwelcome in the church.

The board also voted to hold the June 23 and 24 graduations on school property, either in the gymnasium or on the playing fields.

“We hope this puts an end to the divisive atmosphere that has prevailed in Enfield and brings certainty to the students’ graduation plans,” Schneider said.

Federal District Court Judge Janet Hall ruled Monday that holding the graduations at the church would amount to an endorsement of the Christian faith, which is not allowed under the First Amendment.

Graduations have traditionally been held at Fermi and Enfield High Schools, but were held at the Cathedral for the past few years. The board first voted in January not to hold graduation at the church, then reversed itself in April after being lobbied heavily by members of the Family Institute of Connecticut, a conservative Christian organization.

Schneider said that he hopes to resolve the graduation issue permanently with the board of education. The judge’s ruling applied only to this year’s ceremonies. “We are hoping to settle this matter with the school board so we won’t have to engage in future litigation,” he said.