HIGH POINT, N.C., April 23, 2015 – Mallory Drummond, a senior at High Point University, recently presented her paper at the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication conference held in Knoxville, Tennessee, on March 27.
Her presentation, titled “To Pray or Not to Pray: Sectarian Prayer in Legislative Meetings,” is about the constitutionality of prayer in legislative meetings, specifically prayers that favor one religion over others. The research focused on two particular cases that presented some confusion on how the courts should rule on these issues, one of which is from Forsyth County.
“Prayer in public places has been a popular topic of debate for quite some time,” says Drummond. “Recently there have been cases addressing prayers being said at public school football games and even in the classroom. It is important for people to be informed on the legal aspects of this debate and understand the history of prayer in the United States.”
Drummond wrote the paper for her media law class last fall. She says her professor, Dean Smith, encouraged her to submit it and was extremely supportive throughout the whole process.
Drummond will graduate in May with a bachelor’s degree in communication, with a focus in electronic media, and will pursue a career in video production.