Senior White House Faith Office Adviser Paula White-Cain announced that the Trump administration plans to release new guidelines to uphold prayer rights within public schools. This follows the creation of a religious liberty commission which received “heartbreaking” testimonials from students facing discrimination.

During an appearance on “CUOMO,” White-Cain highlighted incidents where students were barred from practicing their faith, such as a girl prohibited from wearing a mask with “Jesus loves me” written on it, and a student instructed to pray only behind closed doors during a medical emergency near a school.

White-Cain remarked on the concern of the government acting as the “biggest weaponizer and discriminator” against religious rights under the First Amendment, citing frequent examples of religious discrimination encountered during the prior administration.

The commission heard testimony from students of multiple faiths, including Jews, Muslima, Christiana and Sikhs, White-Cain said.

New DOJ guidance will protect prayer rights for all faiths equally

White-Cain said the administration would protect religious liberty for all faiths equally.

She mentioned further instances of alleged discrimination, like a valedictorian who was forced to eliminate religious references from their graduation speech or otherwise forfeit their speaking opportunity. She indicated that these situations mirror thousands of similar cases nationwide.

According to White-Cain, the Department of Justice is set to form task forces focused on tackling antisemitism, anti-Christian bias, and other types of religious discrimination in educational settings.

Existing laws permit both individual and group prayer in schools provided it does not interfere with educational processes, while still prohibiting school-led prayer to ensure the separation of church and state is maintained.

Ed Dept to debut guidance ‘protecting’ prayer in schools: Trump

The Department of Education will soon issue new guidance protecting “the right to prayer” in America’s public schools, President Donald Trump announced Monday while speaking at the Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C.

Trump, addressing an audience at a White House Religious Liberty Commission hearing, doubled down on his religious beliefs and reiterated claims that the separation of church and state punishes religious students.

“To have a great nation, you have to have religion,” Trump said. “I believe that so strongly.”

The hearing featured testimony from children and parents who claimed their religious freedom had been stifled in public school settings, as well as statements from commission members.

Trump said his administration is working to push the United States’ “identity as a nation under God.”

“America was founded on faith … When faith gets weaker, our country seems to get weaker,” Trump said.

He also outlined his intentions to scrap the Johnson Amendment — a ban on political campaign activity by nonprofits, including churches, established in 1954.

Prayer in public school has come up repeatedly in legal cases over the years, including during a high profile case in 2023 in which the Supreme Court’s conservative majority ruled in favor of a high school football coach who was reprimanded for leading postgame prayers on the field’s 50-yard line.

Following that ruling, the Biden administration’s Department of Education issued new guidance that stated school employees could engage in prayer during the workday but could not compel students to join in prayer or other religious activity.

Multiple red states have tried to increase the amount of Christian teachings in public schools in recent years, with Oklahoma mandating that every classroom include a Bible and Louisiana, Arkansas and Texas requiring displays of the Ten Commandments, though those laws have suffered setbacks in the court system.

What is the White House Religious Liberty Commission?

Trump established the commission in May. It’s comprised of up to 14 members, appointed by the president, whose goal is to “serve as educated representatives of various sectors of society” in discussions about “religious liberty for all Americans.”

Members are tasked with making a “comprehensive report” about the nation’s religious pluralism and ways to preserve it.

Notable names participating in the commission include “Dr. Phil” McGraw, Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson and New York Archbishop Cardinal Timothy Dolan.

Patrick supports prayer and the posting of the Ten Commandments in public schools, while McGraw praised Trump for bringing religion “back to the White House.”

The commission will last until July 4, 2026, unless Trump extends its term. 

‘s Anna Kutz and partner The Hill contributed to this report.