Alabama lawmaker revives bill to allow chaplains in public schools

An Alabama representative is pushing for chaplains to be allowed in public school. 

Rep. Mark Gidley, R-Hokes Bluff, prefiled HB 8 for the 2026 legislative session, which starts in January. It would allow school boards to decide whether to allow campus chaplains and teachers in public school.

Gidley has filed similar legislation in the past. The most recent version cleared the House with a vote of 91 to 4 in April but did not make it to the Senate Education Policy Committee. He said in an interview Monday that getting the bill in earlier will give it a better chance to pass.

“We were a little bit late getting it on the floor this past year. It didn’t fail in the Senate because of any problems, it just ran out of time. So I think getting it in earlier is going to help us to be able to work it through both chambers this year,” he said.

Gidley’s goal for the chaplains is that they go to the schools as needed to provide services and support for the faculty and staff in schools. He said this could help teachers in rural counties who lack resources for mental health services.

“It could be a resource they could tap into when they may not be able to tap into other resources that could offer support,” Gidley said.

Critics of the legislation said the measure would violate the separation of church and state in schools.

Each local board of education would vote on whether to approve volunteer chaplains for schools under the measure. If approved by the board, volunteers would have to complete a “recognized chaplain training program” and a background check.

The legislation specifies that schools cannot accept a volunteer who’s been “adjudicated or convicted of an offense that requires registration as a sex offender.” 

Sen. Rodger Smitherman, D-Birmingham, backed a similar bill last year. SB294 was passed by the Senate, but it failed to get House approval.

He said in a phone interview Thursday that chaplains are needed in schools.

“We have many situations in our schools that require a need for counseling and for support — not only for students, but for staff and teachers as well,” he said.

Chaplains would provide “support, services and programs” as requested by teachers under the measure. But Smitherman said these types of motions are not meant to replace guidance counselors.

“Some of these situations need additional assistance in the areas that those chaplains can provide,” Smitherman said. “And the guidance counselor is not for the teachers and the staff workers, so this will make it available to them as well.”

Gidley said guidance counselors and chaplains serve different functions within the school.

“They’re not even in the same category and so it’s totally absurd to even think that one would replace the other,” he said. “These chaplains are strictly there for moral, and if need be, spiritual guidance. Whatever the situation is, if somebody needs a confidential nonpartisan place to share something they could be dealing with, I think that could be extremely helpful with our teachers and administrators in the school system.”

The Alabama Legislature will begin meeting Jan. 13.