Nonsectarian institutions aresecular institutions or other organizations not affiliated with or restricted to a particular religious group.[1][2]
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Many North American universities identify themselves as being nonsectarian, such asBoston University,Cornell University, andDalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. Some private primary and secondary schools in the United States also self-identify as being nonsectarian, such asGermantown Academy inFort Washington, Pennsylvania, the oldest nonsectarian school in the United States.[3][citation needed]
Pi Lambda Phi is acollege socialfraternity founded by Frederick Manfred Werner, Louis Samter Levy, and Henry Mark Fisher atYale University in 1895. It was founded as the firstnonsectarian fraternity, "a fraternity in which all men were brothers, no matter what their religion; a fraternity in which ability, open-mindedness, farsightedness, and a progressive, forward-looking attitude would be recognized as the basic attributes."[4] The first collegiate nonsectarian sorority to welcome women of all faiths and backgrounds wasPhi Sigma Sigma. Founded by ten women on November 26, 1913, atHunter College in New York, Phi Sigma Sigma now has chapters across the United States and Canada.Delta Phi Epsilon sorority, founded in 1917, was the first nonsectarian social sorority founded at a professional school.[5]
A 1956 amendment to theConstitution of Virginia allowed for tuition grants to be paid by the state tononsectarian private schools.[6]Blaine amendments to thirty-eight state constitutions forbid direct government aid to educational institutions with a religious affiliation. The typical wording, "religious sects or denominations," is most often used to challenge support to Catholic parochial schools (38% of private school attendance); Protestant schools with an undifferentiated "Christian" often get a pass.[7] These schools often claim both "nonsectarian" and "Christian" in their promotional materials. The United States Department of Education differentiatesChristian fromConservative Christian in its analyses.[8]
Organizations that are explicitly nonsectarian include theApex Clubs of Australia, those participating in theEthical Culture Movement, theNational Jewish Medical and Research Center, and the Tibetan Buddhist Center of Philadelphia.
InNorthern Ireland, nonsectarian refers to groups identifying themselves as neitherRepublican orUnionist, such as theAlliance Party of Northern Ireland,Green Party Northern Ireland,People Before Profit or thePolice Service of Northern Ireland.
Affiliated religious schools belong to associations of schools with a specific religious orientation other than Catholic or conservative Christian. Unaffiliated religious schools have a religious orientation or purpose but are not considered Catholic, conservative Christian, or affiliated religious. Nonsectarian schools do not have a religious orientation or purpose.