San Diego Superior Court Judge John Meyer on Monday rejected a claim that a yoga program offered at Encinitas, CA, elementary schools endorses religion and denied a request to suspend the classes.
Stephen and Jennifer Sedlock, who have children enrolled in the district, filed the lawsuit against the Encinitas Union School District earlier this year. The suit sought to have the program suspended and claimed the classes violated constitutional protections against governmental establishment of religion by promoting Hindu religious beliefs and practices and discriminating against other religions.
Students at the district's nine elementary schools attend 30-minute yoga classes twice per week as part of a comprehensive health and wellness program. The classes are funded by a $533,000 grant from the Jois Foundation, which is affiliated with a local yoga studio.
District officials said that children were allowed to opt out of the classes and the cultural and religious context of yoga was removed from the program, according to news reports. Dean Broyles, the attorney who represents the Sedlocks, argued that Ashtanga yoga, the style being taught, is inherently religious.
"I recognize that most people in America do not view or identify yoga as a religious practice," Broyles said in a statement. "However, such opinions are not based on fact, but are based primarily upon a lack of knowledge or ignorance about yoga and its relationship with Hinduism."
The judge questioned the validity of the information that suggests yoga is religious, saying much of it seemed to come from inaccurate Internet sources, the Los Angeles Times reported.
"It's almost like a trial by Wikipedia, which isn't what this court does," Meyer said.
Broyles is expected to appeal the case, which he says has far-reaching impacts.
"This is not the end of the road for this case or the last word regarding the fate of yoga in public education," Broyles said. "This is only the beginning."