Abbreviation | SSA |
---|---|
Motto | Empowering Students for a Secular Future |
Formation | November 21, 2001 |
Type | non-profit |
Legal status | corporation |
Purpose | scientific rationality, secularism, and human-based ethics |
Headquarters | Los Angeles, California |
Region served
|
United States |
Official language
|
English |
Key people
|
Kevin Bolling, Executive Director Evan Clark, Chair of the Board of Directors |
Staff
|
12 |
Website | http://www.secularstudents.org/ |
The Secular Student Alliance (SSA) is a US-American educational nonprofit organization whose purpose is to educate high school and college students about the value of scientific reason and the intellectual basis of secularism in its atheistic and humanistic manifestations. The SSA also offers these students and their organizations a variety of resources, including leadership training and support, guest speakers, discounted literature and conference tickets, and online articles and opinions.
In 1999, the students on the Executive Council of the Campus Freethought Alliance, along with some other students, faculty advisors, and off-campus supporters, decided that a national student organization needed autonomy (the Campus Freethought Alliance was governed by the Council for Secular Humanism). Therefore, in April 2000, a majority of the members of the Campus Freethought Alliance Executive Council decided to become independent from the Council for Secular Humanism. The Secular Student Alliance was thus founded in May 2000 by eight student leaders from the grassroots secular movement. It was organized under the nonprofit corporation laws of the State of Ohio on November 21, 2001. The corporation's principal office is located in Columbus, Ohio.
The SSA is an independent, democratically structured organization in the U.S. that promotes freethinking high school and college students. The SSA was formed "to organize, unite, educate and serve students and student communities that promote the ideals of scientific and critical inquiry, democracy, secularism, and human based ethics".
In January 2012, the SSA had over 312 affiliates in North America and abroad, including groups in Africa, Europe, Asia and Australia.
In June 2013 the SSA announced that with the Freedom from Religion Foundation, it will work on educating students on their rights and will assist with rectifying violations.