MO SB1238

Public school teachers in Missouri would be required to provide instruction on the positive impacts of religion on American history when teaching American history, covering 19 specified topics

Public higher education instructors may (but are not required to) provide the same instruction on religion's positive impacts in American history courses

Required topics include the religious history of the Pilgrims, appeals to divine power in the Declaration of Independence, George Washington's views on religion and morality, Benjamin Franklin's appeal for prayer at the Constitutional Convention, and the role of the Ten Commandments in shaping American law

Instruction must cover religious influences on civil rights through figures like Booker T. Washington, Frederick Douglass, and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., as well as the impact of religious leaders like Billy Graham

Additional mandated topics include the history of "In God We Trust" as the national motto, the origins of church-state separation with Roger Williams, and the influence of clergy members who signed founding documents