A claim much repeated is that "the baccalaureate service is believed to have originated at the
University of Oxford in 1432 when each bachelor was required to deliver a
sermon in
Latin as part of his academic requirements." However, it was "examinatory sermons" that were required of all Oxford bachelors before their "inception" or commencement; these were mentioned in a 1311 statute. The American
baccalaureate service is an outgrowth of the baccalaureate sermon. The earliest known held in the
United States is at the College of New Jersey (now
Princeton University) in 1760. Because of
United States Supreme Court rulings such as
Lee v. Weisman (1992) regarding the
separation of church and state at public school graduation ceremonies, baccalaureate services are usually unofficial, school-sponsored events at American
public schools. However, many have student-initiated services at private facilities not paid for with government funds, and as such are fully permitted by law. School-sponsored baccalaureate services for American public schools, on school grounds, occur rarely, though private schools affiliated with a denomination often hold them in the school's
chapel. == References ==