PRESS RELEASE


 PRESS
RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Re:  Bible Literacy Project, Ala. HB 58

As State School Board members, we support
local control; we value the unique and very important role of the Bible
and its influence in literature, art,
music and history; and we fully concur with the current state policy
which allows for a high school elective in Bible literacy.  We
are, therefore,  very much concerned over  HB 58,  which mandates a
specific textbook,  produced by the Bible Literacy Project.  This
bill, announced in a press conference in the State Capitol on December 1
by Speaker of the House Seth Hammett and Rep. Ken Guin, caught state
school board members completely unaware. We feel HB 58 is on a fast
track to passage and wish to alert our state legislators and the general
public.

 
Our major concerns are:
 
(1) The bill mandates the use of only ONE
textbook, The Bible and Its Influence, written
by Cullen Schippe and Chuck Stetson, and published by BLP Publishing
(The Bible Literacy Project) in 2005. This book has not been reviewed by
any textbook committee or by our state or local school boards.  The
mandate of a single textbook is highly unusual and likely without
precedent in our state.
 
(2)  The bill is unnecessary if its purpose
is to establish approval of a high school elective in Bible literacy. 
There is already approval for such a course and in fact many schools in
Alabama are already successfully offering such a course.  Passage of HB
58 would preclude these schools from using their chosen curriculum and
force them  to use a book dictated by the legislature.
 
(3)  If the purpose of the bill is to avoid
lawsuits, then the bill is not only unnecessary but could be
counterproductive.  No one has successfully challenged the current
courses being offered in Alabama and no one has successfully challenged
The Bible in History and Literature from the
National Council on Bible Curriculum in Public Schools, which has been
in use nationally for over ten years and which has been selected by at
least four local school systems in Alabama.  We would not be the least
surprised if the passage of this bill results in a legal challenge and
resultant expense to the citizens of Alabama.
 
(4)  Unlike some other curricula chosen for
Bible literacy classes, The Bible and Its Influence
does not allow the students to use their own Bibles as their
textbook..
 
(5)  HB 58 infringes on local authority and
the authority of the state school board.
 
(6)  There is no teacher’s manual for this
curriculum. The Alabama textbook committee members always review the
teachers’ versions of the textbook because the teacher’s manual has
vital information not available in the student text which should be
considered in choosing the overall curriculum. 
 
We hope the sponsors of HB 58 will
reconsider their pursuit of mandating this specific textbook.  We will
be glad to furnish additional information including websites about the
Bible Literacy Project and its textbook.
 
                              Stephanie
Bell                                                      Betty Peters
                              3318 Lancaster
Lane                                             3507 Huntington Place
                              Montgomery, AL
36106                                          Dothan, AL 36303
                              Ph.  334
272-2777                                                 Ph. 334
794-8024, cell 334 701-9804
                              Email: 

swbell@knology.net                                   Email: 

bettyp@ala.net