This study investigated the beliefs of Georgia Public School board members regarding young earth creationism (YEC) and old earth creationism (OEC) and the association of these beliefs with the inclusion or exclusion of creationism in the district science curriculum of Georgia public schools. A random sampling (144) of 1,034 local school board members were invited to participate in the survey.
Data analysis indicated that school board members’ beliefs regarding school board members in YEC had a positive correlation while beliefs in OEC had a negative correlation with the permitted inclusion of creationism in the district science curriculum. However, no correlation was found between school board member beliefs in YEC/OEC and the required inclusion of creationism.
The results of this study provide insight into connections between beliefs of board members and the science/creationism issue which may translate into enlightened voting decisions.