LOCAL EDUCATION · INDIANA

Mt. Vernon Released-Time Religious Instruction Tracker

Mt. Vernon’s E200 combines mandatory qualifying release with a local route to optional secondary-school elective credit. The official policy was revised August 11, 2025. It does not establish that LifeWise or another named provider is currently operating.

By WorthFighting.org · Research baseline: October 8, 2026

DOCUMENTED STATUS

Adopted — credit policy documented; operation unverified

Policy, provider plans, facility permission and actual operation are tracked separately. Research baseline: October 8, 2026.

BASELINE08OCT 2026

Current status and local rules

Local evidence dashboard
Question	Finding	Source
Policy	E200 — Religious Release Time and Credit for Religious Education. Page navigation abbreviates the title to Credit for Religious Education.	Document / record
Latest documented policy action	Revised August 11, 2025; originally adopted September 21, 2020. Vote tally not located.	Document / record
Provider and participating schools	Not named in E200; no official current provider agreement, participating-school list or attendance report located.	Document / record
Consent / release procedure	Written parental notice valid only for that school year; principal and family/provider collaborate on least-disruptive timing.	Document / record
Local screening / insurance	E200 applies expanded criminal-history and child-protection-index checks to relevant employees/contractors and requires provider liability coverage for off-property services or transport.	Document / record
Academic credit	Local policy authorizes consideration of up to two total elective credits. A course is not automatically approved or credited.	Document / record
Transportation / location	Reviewed E200 does not name a transporter or approved site. Its insurance provision covers off-property services/transport; that is not permission to use a particular facility.	Document / record
Make-up work	No released-time-specific deadline found in reviewed E200 or §19. Confirm assignments and assessment arrangements with the school.	Document / record
Weekly legal ceiling	State law: elementary up to 120 minutes per week; public secondary up to the time equivalent of one elective course per week. This is a ceiling, not a verified local timetable.	Document / record
Attendance	State law grants the same attendance credit as public-school attendance for the same duration; provider records must be available to attendance officers.	Document / record
Provider eligibility	State law covers instruction conducted by a church, association of churches, or an association organized for religious instruction and incorporated under Indiana law.	Document / record
Public funding	State law prohibits supporting the religious-instruction entity wholly or partly with public funds.	Document / record
State reporting / registration	Section 19 requires inspectable attendance records; it does not specify a dedicated statewide provider registry, periodic program return or insurance dollar minimum.	Document / record

How the elective-credit route works

A family seeking credit needs a separate school evaluation. E200 uses secular transfer-course criteria, including instructional hours, syllabus, assessment and teacher licensure. The decision must be neutral toward religious content and denomination. The policy first directs students to seek time outside instructional time during the instructional day; otherwise release remains subject to the statutory ceiling. Read the adopted credit policy.

Attendance credit simply accounts for time away from school. It does not mean that a religious course has earned graduation credit. No approved local course list, student credit award or provider-specific approval was located.

Documents to confirm with the school

Provide annual written notice identifying the student and proposed instruction, then confirm the release period, departure and return process, destination, transportation and missed assignments. The policy refers to Form C175-E; the tracker does not reproduce an unverified form. For credit, request the current course-review process and required syllabus or assessment documentation.

For provider safeguards, request the applicable attestation or documentation procedure. E200 establishes requirements; it does not demonstrate that any named provider has completed them. E200.

Which Mt. Vernon does this cover?

This page covers Mt. Vernon Community School Corporation in the Fortville area of Indiana. It does not cover other districts named Mount Vernon. A LifeWise listing bearing that name elsewhere cannot establish local participation here.

Board actions and implementation timeline

Dated local record
Date	Record type	Finding
September 21, 2020	Policy history	Original adoption date printed in E200; original text and vote not reconstructed. Source
July 1, 2025	State amendment	P.L.194-2025 changes secondary time limit and adds conditions for optional credit. Source
August 11, 2025	Policy revision	Revision date in current E200. Recorded vote tally not located. Source
October 8, 2026	Research check	Current official policy reviewed; named-provider operation remains unverified. Source

How current Indiana law applies

Section 20-33-2-19 requires qualifying release after written parental notice, collaborative least-disruptive timing, provider attendance records and equivalent attendance credit. Elementary release is capped at 120 minutes weekly; secondary release is capped at one elective course time-equivalent weekly. No public funding may support the entity. Optional secondary academic credit has separate board-policy, screening and insurance conditions.

Official 2026 Code · Indiana law, credit, transportation and district comparison. Local requirements and unknowns above are labelled separately from state law.

Frequently asked questions

Does Mt. Vernon allow religious-education academic credit?

E200 permits consideration of up to two total elective credits under secular criteria. Approval of a particular course or a student's credits was not verified. Source

Is LifeWise operating in Mt. Vernon CSC?

The reviewed policy does not name LifeWise. Current operation and participating schools were not established by the district records located. Source

Are background checks required only for credit?

The state credit subsection has screening conditions. Mt. Vernon's E200 also places checks and insurance in its local release requirements. Source

Does a parent need to renew notice?

The statutory notice lasts only for the school year in which it is provided. Source

Source and document library

Page research baseline: October 8, 2026. Source type and document vintage are shown below. A provider statement, agenda and final adopted policy establish different facts.

Mt. Vernon CSC — E200 Religious Release Time and Credit for Religious Education
Official adopted district policy. Adopted September 21, 2020; revised August 11, 2025. Includes a local elective-credit policy and provider screening/insurance requirements. No named provider.
Indiana Code 2026 §20-33-2-19
Current official statute. Full rendered IGA section inspected October 8, 2026. Amendment history ends P.L.194-2025, SEC.4; no 2026 amendment listed. Subsections (a)–(e) govern release; (f) governs optional secondary credit.
State Board of Accounts — June 2025 School Bulletin
State agency enactment summary. Page 22 identifies P.L.194-2025 / SEA255 and July 1, 2025 effective date. Historical implementation source, read against the 2026 Code.

Update log and next records

October 8, 2026 — Phase 12 Indiana publication. Compared current 2026 Code with dated local evidence. Published four district trackers and a 15-district research register; policy, provider and operation are recorded separately.

Next review: enacted law, final local policies, current forms, signed provider agreements, screening/insurance documentation and dated school activity. No automatic monitoring is active. Submit a documented correction.