Although the majority of Americans believe public schools should rent to churches, the New York Department of Education seems intent on evicting more than 160 religious organizations from public schools on Feb. 12, according to LifeWay Research.

In a recent study by LifeWay Research, two-thirds of Americans said they believed that public schools should rent to churches and other community groups. But in the New York subset, the differences are smaller: 49 percent believed that public schools should rent to churches and other community groups. Twenty-seven percent were okay with schools renting to community organizations, but not churches, and almost 20 percent would prefer schools to not rent to any community organization at all.

Last December, the Supreme Court refused to review an appeal of the ban, which a lower court said was necessary to prevent schools from becoming state-endorsed houses of worship. They issued a Feb. 12 move-out date for all religious organizations using public schools.

The ban can be reversed by Mayor Michael Bloomberg, but so far he has remained silent.

LifeWay Research President Ed Stetzer said the ban has considerable implications for churches in urban contexts and new start-up congregations."Historically schools have been welcoming locations to churches, especially in larger urban centers where schools are in the heart of the communities," he said. "A trend of banning church use of public schools could have significant implications."

Those who support the ban claim that it will preserve the separation of church and state and prevent any accidental association of the state with a religious viewpoint.

But those in opposition claim that it violates the free exercise clause in the Constitution. They also point out that accommodating diverse views is not the same as endorsing them.The ban will be the first of its kind in America; currently, no other state bans religious organizations from using public schools.