An Iowa legislator expresses her fears when it comes to the direction of hiring volunteer chaplains for school districts.

The Iowa Senate Education Committee was able to push House File 884 through the legislature prior to the deadline to the session’s second funnel this past Friday. The bill would allow public and private school districts to bring in a chaplain to work alongside students. Iowa District 14 Senator Sarah Trone-Garriott reveals that she was a hospital chaplain, who served in a pediatric hospital and adult hospital, with supervision and requirements. 

She notes that the first version of the bill didn’t have those same parameters, as the bill states that it prohibits standards of licensing, credentials, or endorsements from crediting bodies. Trone-Garriott elaborates that a second version of the bill came out that would require chaplains to be endorsed or certified by a national entity. However, she says that the only entity in the United States that would qualify is an advocacy group tied to Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, Oklahoma. 

Trone-Garriott acknowledges that Oral Roberts has a specific statement of faith attributed to it, which in turn would only allow people who align with that branch of Christianity to be eligible for the job. She doesn’t see this being the solution either.

“There’s a number of icky and troubling things about it (the bill), but it is unconstitutional to provide a preference or to promote a specific religious community in our public schools. So, it just got worse.”

Trone-Garriott describes that she attempted to file an amendment to stop leaders from trying to convert people to their religious traditions, but the amendment failed to pass. She adds that as a Christian pastor, she takes issue with it, but also believes it’s dangerous and unethical to push religious standards on people from different backgrounds. Those in favor of the bill say the measure is similar to chaplains serving in the U.S. Military and in hospitals.