Where I go to church, nobody checks your credentials at the door.
In America, religion has served as a cultural and moral glue far more than local schools have. I'm going by my own rural/small town background. It's the only background I've got, but it's shared by a lot of Americans.
It should not be overlooked in discussions like this that the modern contempt for faith just might be one factor that influences issues like violence, nihilism, and drug use.
I'm sorry Mary Anne, but I suspect your current views of American organized religion might be similar to someone's views of black people who lives next door to a crack house in Detroit.