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Schools are required to allow students to be released for religious programs. This does not mean schools do not have the ability to create policies that protect the school's instruction time.
Read more about "May" and "Shall" state laws

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299.1D Absences related to courses in religious instruction.

1. Section 299.1 shall not apply to a child while the child is attending a course in religious
instruction that is provided by a private organization if all of the following requirements are
satisfied:
a. The child's parent, guardian, or legal or actual custodian of the child, if the child is
not an emancipated minor, or the child, if the child is an emancipated minor, must submit a
notification to the public school or accredited nonpublic school informing the school that the
child will attend a course in religious instruction during the school day.
b. The course in religious instruction must not require the child to be absent from school
for more than five hours per week.
c. The private organization that provides the course in religious instruction must maintain
attendance records and must make the attendance records available to the school district
or accredited nonpublic school to verify when the child is attending a course in religious
instruction.
d. Transportation related to the course in religious instruction must be provided by the
private organization, the child's parent, guardian, or legal or actual custodian, or the child.
e. The private organization must make provisions for and assume liability for the child
while the child is attending the course in religious instruction.
f. The school district or accredited nonpublic school must not expend any moneys
related to the course in religious instruction, not including de minimis administrative costs
associated with processing notifications received under paragraph “a” and tracking the
child's attendance to ensure compliance with this section.
g. The course in religious instruction must not be held on school district property unless
authorized by the board of directors of the school district pursuant to section 297.9.
h. The child must agree to make up any school work that the child does not complete
while attending the course in religious instruction.
2. Each school district and each accredited nonpublic school shall, upon the request of a
child's parent, guardian, or legal or actual custodian, if the child is not an emancipated minor,
or the child, if the child is an emancipated minor, excuse the child from attendance for at least
one hour per week, but for not more than five hours per week, so that the child can attend a
course in religious instruction if all of the requirements under subsection 1 are satisfied.
3. A child's parent, guardian, or legal or actual custodian of the child, if the child is not
an emancipated minor, or the child, if the child is an emancipated minor, who alleges that
a school district has violated this section may bring a civil action for injunctive relief and
actual damages against the school district. If the child's parent, guardian, or legal or actual
custodian, or the child, is the prevailing party in a civil action instituted pursuant to this
subsection, the court shall award reasonable court costs and attorney fees to the child's
parent, guardian, or legal or actual custodian, or the child, as applicable.

299.12 Failure to attend.

a. “Chronically absent” means any absence from school for more than ten percent of the
days or hours in the grading period established by a public school; provided, however, that
an absence from school that is related to attending a course in religious instruction pursuant
to section 299.1D shall not count toward this amount.

All school districts, regardless of whether they are required by law to allow released time, should implement good policy and be prepared for when a released time program may approach the district. The time to set the policy is before an active program is pressuring the district. Research polices the district can implement to protect teachers' and students' instruction time. Set polices that limit disruptions to students and the ability for proselytization to occur, impacting other students of faith or no faith. A more detailed write-up on school board policies can be read here.