Released time
Released Time is a concept used in the United States public school system wherein pupils enrolled in the public schools are permitted by law to receive religious instruction. The principle is based on the constitutional right of parents to direct the religious education of their children.[citation needed] The original idea of released time in the United States was first discussed in 1905 at a school conference in New York City. The proposal was that public elementary schools should be closed one day a week in addition to Sunday so that parents who so desired could have their children receive religious instruction off the school premises. This idea was later implemented by Dr. William Wirt, an educator and superintendent of the school establishment of Gary, Indiana, in 1914. In the first years of Wirt’s implementation, over 600 students participated in off-campus religious education.
