In the wake of a United States Supreme Court decision in Mahmoud v. Taylor, requiring school districts to allow parents an opt-out opportunity to protect their children from lessons that violate their religious beliefs, the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty has released model policy and resources to assist both parents and school districts. While designed by a Wisconsin-based organization, the materials are designed for parents in every state.
According to a release from WILL as the 2025-2026 school year approaches, WILL is offering new resources to equip parents and help school districts comply with SCOTUS, including:
- Template Opt-Out Letter: A customizable, downloadable letter that parents can use to notify their child’s school of their decision to opt out of instruction on controversial topics, such as gender ideology, sex education, race instruction, religious rights or practices, mandated use of pronouns, and school gender identity policies.
- Template Notice Letter for Teachers: A practical tool that helps teachers provide families with advance notice of sensitive curriculum content and inform them of their opt-out rights. This resource supports educators in respecting parental rights and complying with the law – without adding unnecessary burden to their workload.
- Model School Board Policy: A ready-to-adopt policy framework for school boards to ensure district-wide compliance with Mahmoud v. Taylor. This model policy helps districts proactively align with the new legal precedent, reduce liability risk, and promote transparency with families. School boards committed to good governance will want to strongly consider adopting it.
- FAQ Explainer on Mahmoud v. Taylor: A plain-language summary of the case that sparked national attention. This FAQ explains what led to the lawsuit, what the U.S. Supreme Court held regarding the Free Exercise Clause and parental rights, and what the decision means for schools, teachers, and families moving forward.
Supreme Court ruling on opt-out provisions
As SCOTUSblog reported at the time, “At issue was a decision by Montgomery County Public Schools, which had introduced a series of LGBTQ+-inclusive picture books into its K–5 English Language Arts curriculum.
“The books include Prince & Knight, a fairy tale in which a prince falls in love with a male knight and they marry to widespread joy, and Born Ready, the story of a young transgender child named Penelope who tells their mother, ‘I don’t feel like a boy — I am a boy,'” SCOTUSblog Reporter Asma Uddin wrote. “Originally, parents who objected for religious reasons were allowed to opt their children out of instruction using the books. But in March 2023, the school board reversed course, banning opt-outs and stating that students and families ‘may not choose to opt out of engaging with’ these books, even when they conflict with religious teaching.”
The court held that mandatory inclusion of these books “combined with their moral messaging, the young age of the students and the refusal to offer opt-outs … created a substantial burden on parents’ ability to guide their children’s religious development.”
The court did not say that simply exposing children to ideas contrary to their faith is unconstitutional, Uddin wrote, “The key, he explained, is the combination of normative messaging and institutional reinforcement. The majority pointed not only to the content of the books, which portrayed same-sex marriage and gender transition as joyful and self-affirming, but also to the teacher guidance documents distributed by MCPS.
“Those documents instructed teachers on how to respond to student questions or objections. If a child said that ‘a boy can’t marry a boy,’ teachers were told to respond, ‘Two men who love each other can decide they want to get married.’ If a student said a character can’t be a boy if he was born a girl, the teacher should say, ‘That comment is hurtful.’ One prompt advised teachers to explain that ‘[w]hen we’re born, people make a guess about our gender and label us ‘boy’ or ‘girl’ based on our body parts. Sometimes they’re right and sometimes they’re wrong.’ Teachers were told to ‘[d]isrupt either/or thinking’ and were discouraged from presenting these topics as optional or neutral.”
WILL Education Counsel Cory Brewer said in the release that the new resources will help parents and school boards navigate the new landscape.
“As students head back to school, our new model policy and resources will empower parents to stand up for their rights and will equip school leaders to comply with new Supreme Court precedent,” Brewer said. “Parents, not government officials, have the fundamental right to direct the upbringing and education of their children, and that principle must be upheld in every school.”
