St. Michael-Albertville School District Must Respond to Suit Soon

The St. Michael-Albertville School District has until Monday, May 23 to respond in United States District Court/District of Minnesota to a lawsuit alleging it refused to accomodate a student pro-life organization during school hours. 

According to an order issued by Magistrate Judge Franklin L. Noel April 29, Distrct No. 885 was granted an extension of time to respond to the complaint, which was initially filed on April 7, 2011. 

According to court documents, Dr. Jim Behle, St. Michael-Albertville assistant auperintendent and the superintedent-elect for the district, was served a federal summons by courier Daniel Otto April 12. Behle received the summons on behalf of the school district.

By law, the entity named in the suit would have just 21 days to answer the complaint. The district asked for, and was granted, an extension on that deadline.

St. Michael-Albertville School District administrators were "taken by surprise" last month when they received word that the national attorneys from Alliance Defense Fund had helped file a lawsuit against the district in Federal Court. The suit alleges that the school district denied a pro-life student group, All Life is Valuable (ALIV), permission to meet in school facilities.  

The suit alleges that the group was not given equal access because it doesn’t “support the student body as a whole.” The suit also alleges that the school denied access to the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, a group district officials say has met on school grounds in the past.

Behle told Patch last month the student group initially approached STMA high school principal Dale Carlson in January, requesting permission to meet in the school and inquiring about the process of starting the group. Behle said Carlson did some checking and later got back to the student who inquired, telling him the group could meet before and after school just as their other student-initiated groups could do. The student had been hoping to get the group running by the end of the school year.

According to the complaint: “Plaintiffs ALIV Club and A.Z. [a minor] bring this suit because their pro-life student club, the ALIV (All Life is Valuable) Club, was not approved to become an officially recognized club. District officials denied the Club because it allegedly ‘does not support the student body as a whole.’ Apparently the Diversity club, the Environmental club, and the Anime club (among others), however, are deemed to ‘support the student body as a whole’ as they were all permitted to become officially recognized clubs.

UPDATE: The article has been updated to clarify the district would not allow the group to meet during school hours. St. Michael Patch regrets the omission and any confusion it might have caused.