Students at Mansfield High School in Mansfield, La., are no longer being subjected to prayer each day at mandatory morning assemblies.
FFRF Staff Attorney Sam Grover wrote to the Desoto Parish School System in August 2015 objecting to the school's practice of selecting a student to lead the prayer, which was projected to all students in the room. Students were also reportedly required to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance.
"The Supreme Court has continually and consistently struck down prayers offered at school-sponsored events, even when led by students," Grover said. A public school "must not organize a means for students to promote a decidedly religious message to a captive student audience, thereby isolating and excluding those students who are non-Christian or nonreligious."
On Nov. 19, FFRF's complainant confirmed that a moment of silence had replaced the prayers, and no students were being forced to stand for the pledge.