Documentary looks at growing support for off-campus religious education for public school students
Correction appended
“Why does it seem that wherever the government is, God can’t be? Why is it that hurting kids can’t turn to the healing power of the Bible during the school day?”
That’s the question posed by a new documentary that examines the growing movement to allow students in public schools to attend off-campus religious studies during the school day that are privately funded and approved by their parents.
Produced by Ohio-based LifeWise Academy in partnership with Fathom Entertainment, “Off School Property: Solving the Separation of Church and State,” directed by Nate Lundquist, delves into the historic role of the Bible in American public education and its removal in the 1960s, exploring the societal impacts and the push for its return through released time religious instruction (RTRI).
The documentary features prominent Evangelical voices, including George Barna, cultural researcher and founder of the Barna Group; Alisa Childers, Christian apologist and author; Vishal Mangalwadi, Indian philosopher and author; Kelly Shackelford, constitutional scholar and CEO of First Liberty Institute; and John Stonestreet, national speaker and president of the Colson Center for Christian Worldview.
A trailer for “Off School Property” calls the Bible “the most transformative book in all of human history, banned from the one place we educate 90% of our population.”
“For much of American history, the Bible was a foundational text in public education, used for teaching both reading and moral lessons,” the film’s press release states.
Joel Penton, founder and CEO of LifeWise Academy, emphasized the demand for such programs. “Every day, families are reclaiming the opportunity to incorporate faith into their child’s school day,” Penton said in a statement provided to The Christian Post. “The desire to give kids something that’s often missing from their education — wisdom, a moral foundation and character building — is gaining tremendous momentum. That’s why states throughout the country are responding to the community-driven movement to incorporate Bible education during school hours by making released time religious instruction available to every child.”
Last month, Texas lawmakers passed a bill allowing students to receive religious instruction off-campus during the school day for a limited time, while another bill passed in May requires the display of the Ten Commandments in every public school classroom.
The documentary’s release marks the latest push for LifeWise Academy into the culture wars of Bible instruction in public schools. Founded in 2019, the organization, which facilitates Bible education during school hours through RTRI programs by busing students to off-campus locations for lessons, received the 2025 Heritage Innovation Prize for Empowering Parental Choice from The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank.
In May, LifeWise Academy released a poll which found 78% of American voters support teaching moral and character education to public school students during school hours under religious release time laws.
“Off School Property: Solving the Separation of Church and State” is set for a nationwide release on Oct. 23.
Correction: This article, originally published on July 29, 2025, has been corrected to show that the LifeWise initiative is not about teaching biblical education in public schools; it is about allowing students in public schools to have access to off-campus religious education during the school day.
