The courts have generally held school-sponsored prayer during regular school hours to be

In Engel v. Vitale (1962), the Supreme Court presented the argument that school-sponsored prayer was unconstitutional under a plain text reading of the First Amendment which forbids the establishment of a national religion.

Cases since then have focused on quasi-school sponsored prayer (cheerleaders praying before football games) but the general rule of law is that a school official cannot lead or sponsor prayer.