                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

INSTRUCTION IN HISTORY AND PRINCIPLES OF FLAGS OF UNITED STATES AND VIRGINIA;
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE TO AMERICAN FLAG; GUIDELINES DEVELOPED BY THE BOARD (§
22.1-202)

A. Instruction in the history and principles of the flag of the United States
and the flag of the Commonwealth shall be given in one or more grades in every
school division. The instruction shall include the pledge of allegiance and the
appropriate etiquette and conventions for respecting the dignity and appropriate
display of such flags.
			In recognition of the civic heritage of the United States of America, all
students shall be required to learn the Pledge of Allegiance and to demonstrate
such knowledge.

B. To promote compliance with constitutional restrictions as well as observance
of constitutional rights, the Board of Education shall, in consultation with the
Office of the Attorney General, develop guidelines on constitutional rights and
restrictions relating to the recitation of the pledge of allegiance to the
American flag in public schools.
			The Board&#8217;s guidelines shall include, but shall not be limited to,
provisions which address the following: the initiative and involvement of local
school boards, individual schools, administrators, teachers, and students; the
propriety and constitutionality of any recitation or participation requirements;
appropriate etiquette and conventions for respecting the dignity and appropriate
display of the flag of the United States and the flag of the Commonwealth; and
relevant state and federal constitutional concerns, such as freedom of speech
and religion.
			These guidelines shall not be subject to the requirements of the
Administrative Process Act (&#xA7; 2.2-4000 et seq.). However, to provide
appropriate opportunity for involvement by the general public, teachers, and
local school boards, the Board of Education shall conduct public hearings prior
to establishing such guidelines. Thirty days prior to conducting such hearings,
the Board shall give written notice by mail of the date, time, and place of the
hearings to all local school boards and any other persons requesting to be
notified of the hearings and publish notice of its intention to hold such
hearings in the Virginia Register of Regulations. Interested parties shall be
given reasonable opportunity to be heard and present information prior to the
adoption of such guidelines.

C. Each school board shall require the daily recitation of the Pledge of
Allegiance in each classroom of the school division and shall ensure that the
flag of the United States is in place in each such classroom. Each school board
shall determine the appropriate time during the school day for the recitation of
the Pledge. During such Pledge of Allegiance, students shall stand and recite
the Pledge while facing the flag with their right hands over their hearts or in
an appropriate salute if in uniform; however, no student shall be compelled to
recite the Pledge if he, his parent or legal guardian objects on religious,
philosophical or other grounds to his participating in this exercise. Students
who are thus exempt from reciting the Pledge shall remain quietly standing or
sitting at their desks while others recite the Pledge and shall make no display
that disrupts or distracts others who are reciting the Pledge. School boards
shall provide appropriate accommodations for students who are unable to comply
with the procedures described herein due to disability.
			The school board&#8217;s code of conduct shall apply to disruptive behavior
during the recitation of the Pledge in the same manner as provided for other
circumstances of such behavior.

D. The Office of the Attorney General shall intervene on behalf of local school
boards and shall provide legal defense of the provisions of this section.

HISTORY: Code 1950, § 22-165; 1980, c. 559; 1996, cc. 122, 124; 1998, c. 128;
2001, c. 666.