SUMMARY: Make-A-Wish Alabama has been granting wishes for children with critical illnesses since 2012. Seven-year-old Claude Barnes, diagnosed with leukemia at age two, battled through three years of chemotherapy while also facing renal failure. After completing his treatment, Claude received a special wish—a dream playground built at his home by Make-A-Wish. Claude enjoys playing on the playground, especially pretending he’s a soldier on the ladder. Make-A-Wish Alabama continues to support children like Claude, and a virtual telethon on July 30th will raise funds to help grant more wishes for children in need.

The Red Couch

Source

by Anna Barrett, Alabama Reflector
May 7, 2025

A bill that would require local school boards to adopt policies on extending academic credit for “religious instruction” outside the classroom failed an Alabama House committee on Wednesday.

SB 278, sponsored by Sen. Shay Shelnutt, R-Trussville, is identical to HB 342, sponsored by Rep. Susan DuBose, R-Hoover, that failed the House Education Policy Committee on April 2. DuBose presented the legislation to the House State Government Committee.

“This bill simply allows public school students to enrich their school opportunities with an optional religious class. The bill simply requires our school districts to create a policy that allows students to attend an off campus religious class during the school day,” DuBose said.

The Senate passed the legislation 25-6 on April 22 after the Senate Education Policy Committee approved it with one “no” vote.The Legislature passed a law in 2019 that allows school boards to adopt a policy on released time religious instruction (RTRI). The 2025 legislation would mandate such policies.

But House members have been far more skeptical about the legislation, citing pushback from school superintendents. 

Sunnie Cotton, the director of LifeWise Academy in Alabama and a proponent of the legislation, called it a parental rights bill.

“This bill strengthens parental rights and protects religious freedom while giving parents the choice to provide religious instruction for their children during the school day,” Cotton said. 

According to LifeWise’s sample curriculum, the organization teaches the Christian belief that “God created all things good” to a list of virtues that the nonprofit describes as “LifeWise qualities.” Cotton said the organization is operating in about 600 schools nationwide and is prepared to launch over 900 programs this year.

DuBose claimed 4,500 Alabama parents have signed a petition in support of the legislation. DuBose has not presented the petition when requested Wednesday.

Ryan Hollingsworth, executive director of the State Superintendents Association, has been a consistent opponent of the legislation. Hollingsworth said Wednesday he is not convinced that the petition has been signed by Alabama parents.

“I don’t believe those are verified as being the parents of Alabama students in public schools if they are,” Hollingsworth said. “Even if they are, we have about 725,000 students, so that’s about a half of 1% of folks that have signed it.”

He said the bill is lacking key definitions of religious instruction, core instruction and sponsoring entity. 

“We have 1,080 hours in the school year to cover everything the state board requires,” Hollingsworth said. “There’s 8,760 hours in the calendar year. That means the parent has the responsibility of the child about 88% of the time.” 

Scott Suttle, St. Clair County Board of Education president and Alabama Association of School Boards (AASB) president-elect, echoed similar concerns. He said the legislation is government overreach in schools.

“Our local leaders have been abundantly clear that we don’t want another overreach into our school systems,” Suttle said. “It works as it is. Let’s please leave it as it is.”

Sally Smith, executive director of the AASB, said after the bill failed that she is thankful the committee listened to school board leaders.

“We are pleased with the committee outcome. We think that the law as it is is working fine,” she said in an interview after the meeting.

Jennifer Riggs, a mother from Huntsville, brought her son to the meeting, like she did at the Senate Education Policy Committee public hearing on April 15. She said the program has helped her children learn about the Bible in public schools since they cannot afford to send their four children to private school.

“Five days per week, seven hours per day, and in public school, the Bible is not being taught. We believe a release time for religious instruction program would bridge that gap,” she said. “I believe this is legislation that upholds parental rights by allowing us to choose Bible education for our children without having to incur the financial burdens of private school.”

Rep. Marcus Paramore, R-Troy, who also serves on the House Education Policy Committee, said he would not support the legislation because of its failure in the first committee.

“So here we are in another committee trying to get a bill that was voted down, back out and on the floor in a different format,” he said. “I just want to make some comments and make it clear for what Mr. Hollingsworth said earlier this has already been before a body in this house once this year, and here we are again.”

The committee had a tie vote on the legislation 4-4 with Paramore; Rep. Russell Bedsole, R-Alabaster; Rep. Barbra Boyd, D-Anniston; and Rep. Marilyn Lands, D-Huntsville, opposing it. In order for the legislation to receive final approval from the House, a House committee would have to approve the legislation on May 14, the final day of the 2025 session.

Alabama Reflector is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Alabama Reflector maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Brian Lyman for questions: info@alabamareflector.com.

The post New committee, same result: Religious instruction bill stalls in Alabama House appeared first on alabamareflector.com

Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.

Political Bias Rating: Center-Right

The article provides a factual report on a proposed bill in Alabama regarding religious instruction in public schools, including perspectives from both supporters and opponents of the legislation. While the article presents various viewpoints, including those of Republican sponsors and opponents like the State Superintendents Association, the tone of the article, its focus on religious instruction as a parental rights issue, and the inclusion of quotes from conservative figures align the piece with a Center-Right perspective. It does not explicitly advocate for one side but frames the issue in a manner that resonates with conservative values surrounding parental rights and religious freedom.

by Anna Barrett, Alabama Reflector
May 6, 2025

The Alabama House of Representatives passed a bill Tuesday that allows high school juniors and seniors to enroll full time in college if they are not involved in extracurricular activities.

SB 196, sponsored by Sen. Arthur Orr, R-Decatur, allows students to “move on when ready” from high school. Rep. Matt Woods, R-Jasper, who carried the legislation in the House, said it is modeled after a similar program in Georgia that has operated for more than 20 years.

“I believe it will be a great option for students that are not participating in their extracurricular activities in high school that are very bright and are ready to move on and pursue their academic goals,” Woods said. 

Woods said the program is different from dual enrollment, a program where students can complete college courses for high school credit while still being enrolled in high school classes.

“They would no longer be enrolled in high school, they would be enrolled in college,” Woods said, responding to a question from Rep. Laura Hall, D-Huntsville, on the difference between the programs. “They would earn credit back for high school credits for their high school graduation requirements.”

The legislation passed with a House committee substitute that states that students enrolled in the program will not be counted as a high school dropout. The substitute also clarifies that students in the program cannot come back to high school to participate in extra curricular activities. 

The substitute also added reporting requirements to determine the success and use of the program. The substitute passed 100-1. 

“We have an opportunity to give our students, who are very bright and ambitious and not constrained with all the extracurriculars of high school, a chance to advance their academic careers at a faster pace,” Woods said.

The bill passed 100-2. It goes to the Senate for concurrence or conference committee. There are two days left in the legislative session.

Alabama Reflector is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Alabama Reflector maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Brian Lyman for questions: info@alabamareflector.com.

The post Alabama House OKs bill allowing high school juniors, seniors to enroll full-time in college appeared first on alabamareflector.com

Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.

Political Bias Rating: Center-Right

This content showcases a legislative development led by Republican lawmakers in Alabama supporting a program that expands educational options for high school juniors and seniors. It reflects a pro-education reform stance often associated with center-right priorities, emphasizing individual choice, acceleration of academic progress, and less focus on traditional extracurricular involvement. The tone is factual and supportive of the bill without exhibiting strong partisan rhetoric, aligning it more closely with moderate conservative or center-right viewpoints.