Bozeman Teen Gets Pledge of Allegiance Back in Schools
This is one impressive young lady. When 17 year old Lauren Gollofon realized that the pledge of allegiance wasn't taking place in local public schools in Bozeman- she didn't just complain, she did something about it.
Lauren is a senior at the Liberty Online Academy and is the President of the Gallatin Valley Turning Point Activism Hub, which is a part of Turning Point USA.
Gollofon: It actually all started with Monforton School, which is a smaller school district in Bozeman. I have two siblings that attend there. And my mom actually found out that the pledge wasn't being said there, and so she emailed their principal and got that changed. And then it got me thinking...I'm a former Bozeman High student, and I remembered the pledge only being said once a week at Bozeman high. So I reached out to a couple of my friends that go to both of the high schools here, and I found out that they were still only saying the Pledge of Allegiance once a week- even though House Bill 543 was passed and signed into law back in July, I believe, which makes it law that all of the public schools K through 12 have to say the Pledge of Allegiance every day.
She said the schools started doing the pledge once they were notified of the new law.
Lauren Gollofon: Once I found out that the pledge of allegiance is not being said every day, I first emailed the principal of Gallatin High School. I got a positive response from her. And then I think, two days later, I emailed the principal of Bozeman high, and the following Monday, actually, the Pledge of Allegiance was being said every day.
Why is the pledge so important?
Lauren Gollofon: I think it's really important to have the Pledge of Allegiance in our schools because patriotism is so on the decline in the United States. And I think, you know, when students say the Pledge of Allegiance, they're acknowledging the freedom and the values and also everybody who's died and fought for that flag.
If you know a young person in the Gallatin Valley who would like to get involved and assist Lauren in her efforts, here's how.
Lauren Gollofon: In addition to having thousands of high school and college chapters across the country, TPUSA has activism hubs that are open to any high school students, regardless of which school they attend. We meet twice a month at Black Bull Golf Club in Bozeman to learn about different political topics and issues. People can find us at @tpusagallatin on all social media platforms or go to www.tpusa.com/nfp to get involved.
Full audio of our chat with Lauren:
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