When I was in fifth grade, this big blue bus would come to the school and pick up some kids who were interested in leaving the school to learn about the Bible. I would sit in Ms. Snyir’s class anxiously waiting for the announcement that would signify my leaving. 

When we would get to Crossroads Community Church, we would have interactive lessons with props like a bird puppet. I learned a lot about the Bible with stories of Joseph and David. 

I always wondered why administrators stopped offering that to me when I went to high school, and I wish that there was something like that offered to high school students.   

Bible class should be offered as an extracurricular class in public schools. 

This opportunity would allow youth to engage in Bible studies and the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment guarantees that there is a student right to express religion in public school that can not be taken away. 

Therefore, schools should be allowed to offer Bible classes because it is our freedom to exercise religion. 

Such a class would be an elective, so students could elect to take the class or not take the class. In a poll of 100 students, three-fourths said that there should not be Bible literacy classes in public schools, yet 70.6 percent of Americans prefer Christianity over other religions according to the Pew Research Center. 

So, why not offer elective course learning in a subject that nearly three-quarters of American identify with: Christianity. 

President Donald Trump supports the idea of Bible literacy classes. 

“Numerous states introducing Bible Literacy classes, giving students the option of studying the Bible. Starting to make a turn back? Great!,” President Donald Trump tweeted in January 2019.

Other schools around the country have changed laws to promote Bible literacy classes. 

“At least six states — Florida, Indiana, Missouri, North Dakota, Virginia, and West Virginia — have introduced legislation this year pushing for public schools to offer Bible Literacy classes,” Fox News reported earlier this year.

 The Michigan school code guarantees 2 hours every week to be released to practice religion with parental or guardian permission according to Act 451 of the Revised School Code. While students have the option of taking it off campus, it would be more convenient for students to have an on campus class. 

If the majority of the population identifies as Christian and the president support Bible literacy courses in schools, why not put an elective on the list of classes as a test and see if students sign up for it?