Student disciplined after refusing world-religions assignment on Islam
Caleigh Wood, an 11th grader at La Plata High School in Charles County, Maryland, received a failing grade in 2014 after refusing on religious grounds to complete a world-history assignment on the Five Pillars of Islam and the shahada. She sued in 2016; the Fourth Circuit ruled against her in 2019 and the Supreme Court declined review.
In her 2014–15 world-history class at La Plata High School, junior Caleigh Wood objected to assignments covering the Five Pillars of Islam and the Islamic statement of faith (shahada), saying they violated her Christian beliefs. The school refused to provide an alternative and she received a zero. Represented by the Thomas More Law Center, she sued in 2016 alleging Establishment Clause and Free Speech violations. The Fourth Circuit ruled 3–0 against her in Wood v. Arnold, 915 F.3d 308 (4th Cir. 2019), holding the lessons had a secular educational purpose; the Supreme Court denied certiorari later that year.