FILE - Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis answers questions from the media, March 7, 2023, at the state Capitol in Tallahassee, Fla. Florida school districts can opt to allow volunteer chaplains under a bill signed Thursday, April 18, 2024, by DeSantis, who dismissed critics who say religion shouldn’t be mixed with public education. TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida school districts will soon have the option of allowing volunteer chaplains to counsel students under a bill signed Thursday by Republican Gov.
DeSantis stressed that the program is voluntary. Schools don’t have to have a chaplain and students don’t have to work with them. Parental permission would be required if they do. Supporters in Florida argued the legislation will provide another resource for children and pointed out that chaplains already serve in other government roles by working with police and serving in the military. The Legislature itself hosts a chaplain of the day when it’s in session and there’s a non-denominational chapel in the state Capitol.