The United States Supreme Court is set to consider the constitutionality of the nation’s first religious charter school.
Originating in Oklahoma, this case focuses on St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School and its application for public funding through the state’s charter school program.
Although charter schools operate independently from the public school system, they are funded with taxpayers’ dollars and are free for any student to attend.
Oklahoma’s top court stuck down the school’s application to participate in the charter program this past June, arguing that charter schools must be non-sectarian — or non-religious — due to their relationship to the government.
The case effectively comes down to a disagreement over which part of the First Amendment is most applicable in this scenario — the right to freely exercise one’s own religious beliefs without discrimination, or the guarantee that the government will not establish an official religion, often referred to as the separation of church and state.
As explained in the 27-page ruling, the Oklahoma Supreme Court is of the belief that allowing St. Isidore to participate in the state’s charter school program would result in the State of Oklahoma effectively contracting for religious “teachings and activities” through the school.
“St. Isidore came into existence through its charter with the State and will function as a component of the State’s public school system,” the decision said. “This case turns on the State’s contracted-for religious teachings and activities through a new public charter school, not the State’s exclusion of a religious entity.”
The First Amendment’s Establishment Clause bars the government from making any laws “respecting an establishment of religion.”
The court went on to argue that allowing a religious charter school in the state would “create a slippery slope” that could lead to “the destruction of Oklahomans’ freedom to practice religion without fear of governmental intervention.”
Vice-Chief Justice Dana Kuehn dissented, arguing that barring St. Isidore from participating in the charter school program “based solely on religious affiliation” would represent a violation of the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment.
The Free Exercise Clause states that the government cannot make any laws “prohibiting the free exercise [of religion].”
Representing St. Isidore in this lawsuit is the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), which describes itself as “one of the leading Christian law firms committed to protecting religious freedom, free speech, marriage and family, parental rights, and the sanctity of life.”
The ADF petitioned the Supreme Court to consider this case in October of 2024, arguing that the both the school and Oklahoma parents were being “penalized for seeking to exercise their religion.”
On Friday, the Supreme Court announced that they would agree to hear the case.
Justice Amy Coney Barrett has recused herself from the case, although a reason for this decision was not given.
The New York Times reported, however, that Justice Barrett is close friends with a Notre Dame professor who helped advise the St. Isidore legal team.
“Oklahoma parents and children are better off with more educational choices, not fewer. There’s great irony in state officials who claim to be in favor of religious liberty discriminating against St. Isidore because of its Catholic beliefs,” said ADF Chief Legal Counsel Jim Campbell in a statement Friday.
“The U.S. Constitution protects St. Isidore’s freedom to operate according to its faith and supports the board’s decision to approve such learning options for Oklahoma families,” Campbell said. “We’re pleased the U.S. Supreme Court will hear this case, which is of the utmost import to families and children in Oklahoma and throughout the country.”
Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond has not issued a public press release addressing the Supreme Court’s decision to take up this case of the publication of this article.
St. Isidore was set to open in August and would be managed by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Oklahoma City and the Diocese of Tulsa. Officials have said that the school would accept students of all faiths.
Similar concerns regarding alleged religious discrimination in Maine were brought before the Supreme Court in 2022 with respect to the state’s longstanding Town Tuitioning program, which allows students from districts without a public school to attend the public or private school of their family’s choosing.
The plaintiffs in the case were challenging the state’s requirement that schools must be non-sectarian in order to participate, meaning that families did not have the option of sending their children to religious schools through the Town Tuitioning program.
The Court ultimately struck down this part of the law, arguing that the provision violated the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment.
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In light of this decision, Maine Attorney General Aaron Frey issued a statement doubling down on the State’s position that religious schools should be excluded from the Town Tuitioning program because of their religious beliefs, labeling them as “fundamentally at odds with values we hold dear” and “inimical to a public education.”
Frey then vowed to explore ways to avoid allowing religious schools to participate in the program despite the Court’s ruling.
These statements, coupled with changes made to the Maine Human Rights Act in 2021, have since prompted further lawsuits against the state alleging that deliberate efforts were made to subvert the Supreme Court’s decision and continue barring religious schools from participating in the program.
