Overview
- The Everett School Board agreed to the settlement that requires religious‑liberty training for board members, revisions to district policies on religious activities, a public written apology posted for six months and payment of $275,000 in attorney fees to the plaintiffs.
- The $275,000 payment will be drawn from the district’s general fund and will go to plaintiff Sarah Sweeny and the LifeWise nonprofit, a move that the plaintiffs’ lawyers say vindicates released‑time religious programs.
- LifeWise sued the district in December 2025 after the board imposed special rules it said singled out the program, including weekly parental reauthorization, exclusion from school fairs and flyer displays, and a requirement that students keep program materials sealed in their backpacks.
- Board member Charles Adkins publicly acknowledged he “holds animus” toward LifeWise during board meetings, language the district later called offensive in its apology and which plaintiffs used as evidence of hostility in the case.
- Monday’s settlement follows a partial April 24, 2026 injunction in favor of LifeWise and illustrates a wider trend of legal and financial exposure for districts that regulate off‑campus, parent‑authorized religious instruction, a practice that is constitutionally permitted when it is voluntary, off school property and receives no public funding.