When did Engel v Vitale begin?

Answer 1

Engel v. Vitale, (1962) began in the Union Free School District No. 9 in Hyde Park, New York, and was originally heard in the New York State court system.

More Information

Engel v. Vitale, (1962) was the first major constitutional challenge to the exercise of religion, specifically prayer, in public schools. The US Supreme Court held the practice to be a violation of the First Amendment Establishment Clause.

The case originated in the Union Free School District No. 9, in Hyde Park, New York, after parents of ten students objected to the New York Board of Regents' formal introduction of prayer into the schools and complained that directing the prayer to "Almighty God" was contradictory to their religious practices.

Case Citation:

Engel v. Vitale, 370 U.S. 421 (1962)

For more information about Engel v. Vitale, and the Supreme Court's views about prayer in public schools, see Related Questions, below.

Answer 2

The conflict that resulted in the US Supreme Court case Engel v Vitale began in 1958, when the Union Free School District No. 9 in Hyde Park, New York, began requiring its students to recite a short, non-denominational prayer written by the New York Board of Regents, the governing body for public schools in New York. The prayer was intended to enhance the students' "moral and spiritual training."

Regents' Prayer

"Almighty God, we acknowledge our dependence upon Thee, and we beg Thy blessings upon us, our parents, our teachers and our Country."

Ten parents of children in the school district objected to reciting the prayer on the grounds that invoking the name "Almighty God" violated their religious beliefs and practices, and unsuccessfully attempted to get the school board to change its position.

With assistance from the ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union), the parents filed suit against the school board, naming William J. Vitale, President of the school board as respondent (like a defendant) in the case.

Engel v. Vitale, was first heard in the Supreme Court at Special Term in Nassau County, New York (in New York, the Supreme Court is the trial court of the state judicial system). Judge Bernard S. Meyer rendered a decision favoring the New Hyde Park, NY, school district on October 5, 1959. The court held the Regents' Prayer was constitutional.

The case was subsequently appealed to the Supreme Court Appellate Division, Second Department which affirmed the lower court decision in 1960. It was upheld again by the New York Court of Appeals, the highest appellate court in the New York state judiciary, in 1961.

Engle finally appealed the case to the US Supreme Court, which agreed to determine whether the New York law allowing the Regents' prayer was constitutional under the First Amendment Establishment Clause.

Case Citation:

Engel v. Vitale, 370 U.S. 421 (1962)