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Saturday, February 8, 2025
First Christian Good News Clubs in Hawaii Schools after Court Victory
By News Release @ 12:29 PM :: 1879 Views :: Education K-12, First Amendment, Religion

Good News Club Approved for Hawaii School After Injunction

from Liberty Counsel, Feb 3, 2025

KAILUA-KONA, HI – For the first time since Hawaii public schools resumed hosting after school programs following the COVID-19 pandemic, Child Evangelism Fellowship (CEF) has now been approved to start a new Good News Club in one of the state’s elementary schools after being repeatedly and unlawfully denied in other parts of the state. The approval comes after Liberty Counsel recently won a permanent injunction on behalf of CEF Hawaii against the Hawaii State Department of Education. The injunction requires that Hawaii school officials give CEF’s after-school Bible clubs equal access like other similarly-situated clubs on public school campuses throughout the state. 

Last week, Kealakehe Elementary School on Hawaii’s Big Island agreed to host a Good News Club after granting CEF after-school access to its facilities. The Good News Club will have equal access at the school alongside other after-school groups, such as the Boys & Girls Club, A+ After School Programs, and others. 

Prior to the pandemic, CEF Hawaii had active Good News Clubs in over a dozen schools on Oahu and other islands. However, schools restricted after-school programs during the pandemic. Once these programs were fully restored in 2022, the Hawaii State Department of Education, through four of its Superintendents and other officials, repeatedly denied CEF’s requests and appeals to restart its programs in six different elementary schools while allowing access for other similar groups. During the lawsuit, Hawaii’s Department of Education conceded that one school denied CEF Hawaii use of its facilities based on religion, while another school’s denial was due to a “misapplication” of school policies. The permanent injunction secured CEF protection for the Good News Clubs from viewpoint discrimination and requires Hawaii school officials to make timely responses regarding future facility-use applications submitted by CEF Hawaii.

CEF has also resubmitted a facility-use application to Kohala Elementary, one of the six schools who had previously denied a Good News Club. The school has until February 18, 2025 to make a timely response to the request according to the injunction’s mandated timeline for responses.

CEF Hawaii is a Christian non-profit organization and a subsidiary of Child Evangelism Fellowship Inc., an international non-profit worldwide children’s ministry. CEF Good News Clubs positively impact the lives of children and their families. Good News Clubs typically meet once per week, immediately after school, and are led by trained and vetted local community volunteers. The clubs provide religious and other teaching and activities to encourage learning, spiritual growth, and service to others, as well as social, emotional, character, and leadership development. Good News Clubs do not charge a fee and welcome children with written permission from parents. There are currently 3,041 Good News Clubs in public elementary schools across the United States, including several in Hawaii schools.

Liberty Counsel represents CEF nationally and has never lost a case involving Good News Clubs. 

Liberty Counsel Founder and Chairman Mat Staver said, “Child Evangelism Fellowship and its Good News Clubs have a right to use school facilities with other after-school programs. The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that public schools cannot discriminate against Christian viewpoints regarding use of school facilities. Child Evangelism Fellowship gives children a safe space that offers moral and character development from a Christian viewpoint. Good News Clubs should be in every public elementary school.”

Liberty Counsel provides broadcast-quality TV interviews via Hi-Def Skype and LTN at no cost.

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We Just Reset the Landscape in Hawaii

from Liberty Counsel, Nov 27, 2024

A country generally gets the government it deserves, because it often represents the people and their culture. Our culture is deeply broken. To change the culture, the best place to begin is with youth ages 4 to 14.

The Aloha state had been discriminating against Child Evangelist Fellowship (CEF) Good News Clubs (GNC) — until now! We just won a statewide injunction!

CEF counters the anti-God culture, teaching children to build their lives not on the base of anti-Christian lies, but on a solid foundation of the Word of God. As we wrap up this case, we are preparing another lawsuit against a school district in California. In that district, every view is welcome — except for the Christian club. We intend to change that, but we need your help.

To change a government, culture itself must be changed.

Radical, anti-God forces have known this for ages. Secularists continue to push for earlier and earlier access to our children, knowing that if they change children’s fundamental values, they will change society and culture. First came the institution of kindergarten, where children as young as 5 were put into government schools.

Once that became normalized, the leftists pushed for even younger access to our children’s malleable minds. “Pre-K” for 4-year-olds was proposed and adopted. Now the left is increasingly demanding children as young as 3 be included in their government schooling.

Now that both mothers and fathers tend to work outside the home, the government has charge over our children for most of the day. And as you can see from the radical ideals being instilled in our children, the left’s attempts to change our culture have been very successful.

But a Christian cultural revolution is rising ...

Child Evangelism Fellowship has been working to build a strong, godly foundation in children through its Good News Clubs. These after-school programs provide children with biblically based spiritual education that includes moral and character development. Several thousand Good News Clubs operate in elementary schools from coast to coast.

More than 87% of school administrators say the Good News Clubs are a positive experience for their school. Yet sadly, a growing number of anti-Christian school administrators are fighting to keep Good News Clubs OUT of their after-school programs. And this fight has increased since the COVID lockdowns.

Prior to COVID-19, CEF Hawaii had active Good News Clubs in the state. When the lockdowns were lifted, the after-school clubs returned in 2022.

However, the Hawaii State Department of Education, through four of its superintendents and other officials, denied every request CEF submitted over the last three years while approving non-Christian groups to meet.

That is blatant religious discrimination . . . and Liberty Counsel just stopped it in its tracks.

In January 2024, Liberty Counsel filed a lawsuit on behalf of CEF Hawaii against Hawaii’s Department of Education and six elementary schools that discriminated against Good News Clubs.

During the lawsuit, Hawaii’s Department of Education even admitted that the Good News Clubs were denied based on religion.

WE WON!

On November 19, 2024, Liberty Counsel won a permanent injunction for the entire state of Hawaii, ensuring that CEF clubs will have equal access to all public school facilities, just like any other group. No longer can the state of Hawaii discriminate against Christians! Praise the Lord!

As a result of our lawsuit, the State of Hawaii may no longer discriminate against these after-school Bible clubs. The injunction means that CEF Good News Clubs must be given equal access just as other similarly situated clubs have on public school campuses throughout the state.

Political engagement is critical. But the most important work we can do to change the culture is to reach the youth with the Good News of Jesus.

Liberty Counsel has never lost a Good News Club case. As of today, every public school in Hawaii is NOW open for the Good News!

We are fixing America’s culture, and I hope you will join us.

As you know, Liberty Counsel never charges for our legal work. Instead, our clients — like CEF — rely on you, the faithful Liberty Counsel supporter, to fund the fight for religious freedom. We need YOUR HELP to continue providing this lifesaving legal work to rescue our children. Every donation made today will be DOUBLED by a special Challenge Grant.

“Train a child up in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it” (Prov. 22:6).

Mat Staver
Founder and Chairman
Liberty Counsel

TAKE ACTION

There’s another way you can help build godly foundations in our children that will grow into indestructible fortresses based on the Word of God — Covenant Journey Academy. God-honoring homeschooling is easy and affordable. Learn more at CJ.Academy.

Change the culture in your hometown! Consider forming a Good News Club in YOUR local elementary school. We can help.

CP: Hawaii must allow Good News Club at every public school: court | Education

CW: Good News Club Granted Equal Rights in Hawaii Schools - Milton Quintanilla

FW: Court Orders Hawaii to Allow Good News Clubs at Every Public School – Faithwire

CBN: Court Orders Hawaii to Allow Good News Clubs at Every Public School | CBN News

DC: Stop, and Let Me Tell You: Good News Clubs Win Victory in Hawaii - Daily Citizen

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