ANTONIA HYLTON: As classmates head to the library, this group of Whitehall School District students in Ohio put on matching shirts and board a bus and head half a mile down the road to church. There, elementary students like Emanuel and Savannah Brady pray --
CHILDREN: Amen.
HYLTON: And study Scripture. This is LifeWise academy, a nonprofit bringing the Bible back into the public school day.
CHILD: The learning really helps you learn about Jesus and what happened in the past.
HYLTON: How popular would you say it is at school?
CHILD: Mainly, like, the whole class is, like, over at LifeWise.
HYLTON: LifeWise started in 2018 with two schools. Today it partners with more than 300 schools in a dozen states. It's funded by private donations, and it's legal, so long as it's optional, off campus, and not during essential classes like math. Though to some it represents an increasingly blurry line between the separation of church and state. Doug Shoemaker, a Whitehall administrator, says the district has allowed this kind of program for decades.
DOUG SHOEMAKER: We neither discourage participation or reward or encourage it.
HYLTON: Dad Darryl Brady says LifeWise lessons positively motivate Emanuel and Savannah. Do you think church has a place in school?
DARRYL BRADY: I mean, we're trying to bring churches back into schools for a long time.
HYLTON: Some of these sessions take place when library periods would be happening in school. Are you worried about your kids missing out on that experience?
BRADY: Not at all. I mean, there’s 39 books in the Old Testament and 27 books in the New Testament.