As Christian “release time” programs have had success in public schools, particularly in Ohio, The Satanic Temple (TST) is seeking to enter public schools with its own release time programming. Release time is a voluntary program students can sign up for during the school day when they can be taken to an off-campus site to participate in programs like the Christian LifeWise Academy, founded by Joel Penton. LifeWise has seen a huge explosion since 2019, when it began in two districts in Ohio to some 325 locations across 12 states in 2023. That success, however, has not come without controversy, with TST pushing back against such religious instruction. “We aren’t trying to shut the LifeWise Academy down. But I do think a lot of school districts don’t realize when they open the door for one religion, they open it for all of them,” warned June Everett, an ordained minister of TST in Ohio.

The move has resulted in TST creating the Hellion Academy of Independent Learning (HAIL), as an alternative to LifeWise, stating it had received requests from parents at Edgewood Elementary School in Marysville, Ohio. The program will be offered monthly to students. TST lauds it as “a program for students that allows them to learn about values such as empathy, compassion, and justice in a fun environment without religious pressure or coercion,” and explicitly states the program was created in response to the rise of Christian Release Time Religious Instruction (RTRI) programs. TST accused such programs as intimidating children who choose not to participate by issuing “warnings from their classmates that they will surely burn in hell for not participating.”

Penton affirmed his support of release time. “LifeWise isn’t fearful of other organizations offering [release time religious instruction]. We believe all families should have the opportunity to choose religious study during school hours and we trust parents to make the best choice for their children,” he said. He is encouraging Ohio to pass Ohio Bill 445, which “Requires school districts to adopt a policy authorizing students to be excused from school to attend a released time course in religious instruction.” Everett welcomes any push back from the program. “I’m actually a little surprised that things have gone viral in Ohio, because we actually had three after school clubs in Ohio. It seems to be our most popular state, so I was thinking maybe launching the HAIL program in Marysville, that everybody would sort of be over us. But apparently, they are not,” she said. She stated TST is in talks to start three more. TST programming only occurs in schools that offer Christian programming. “Our goal is never to aggressively grow our programs. Our goal is to just be there as an alternative for the people that want us there.”