# data[].attributes.body
a group of parents that included Steven Engel

the school board president William Vitale

# data[].attributes.body
The New York State Board of Regents authorized a short, voluntary prayer for recitation at the start of each school day. A group of organizations joined forces in challenging the prayer, claiming that it violated the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. The New York Court of Appeals rejected their arguments.

# data[].attributes.body
Does the reading of a nondenominational prayer at the start of the school day violate the "establishment of religion" clause of the First Amendment?

# data[].attributes.body
The state cannot hold prayers in public schools, even if participation is not required and the prayer is not tied to a particular religion.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Facts and Case Summary - Engel v. Vitale

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Facts A New York State law required public schools to open each day with the Pledge of Allegiance and a nondenominational prayer in which the students recognized their dependence upon God. The law allowed students to absent themselves from this activity if they found it objectionable. A parent sued on behalf of his child, arguing that the law violated the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment, as made applicable to the states through the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.