Oklahoma Supreme Court overturns Catholic charter school • Oklahoma Voice
OKLAHOMA CITY – The Oklahoma Supreme Court has rejected the existence of a publicly funded Catholic charter school in the state.
In a majority opinion released Tuesday, six of the state’s nine justices agreed with Attorney General Gentner Drummond that the contract establishing St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Charter School must be overturned.
The ruling prevents St. Isidore from opening its first school year, which would have been only weeks away, as more than 200 students had already applied to enroll. Catholic leaders say they will explore “all legal options” going forward.
St. Isidore, a virtual charter school, would teach Catholic doctrine and require attendance at Mass. State funding of such a school would violate both the ban on a state-recognized religion and the U.S. Constitution, the majority of the court ruled.
Judge James R. Winchester wrote the opinion, echoing some of the attorney general’s language, saying that allowing a state-funded religious school would create a “slippery slope.”
This vicious cycle would lead to the “destruction of the freedom of Oklahoma citizens to practice their religion without government interference,” Winchester wrote.
Judges Yvonne Kauger, James E. Edmondson, Douglas L. Combs, Noma Gurich and Richard Darby concurred. Chief Judge John Kane IV dissented.
Associate Chief Justice Dustin P. Rowe agreed only that the state constitution requires charter schools to be nonreligious, but dissented from the rest of the majority opinion.
Judge Dana Kuehn dissented from the entire ruling, saying the decision was “destined to meet the same fate” as other rulings later overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court that bar private religious schools from receiving public funds.
“The conclusion of a contract with a private company with religious ties does not automatically establish a state religion, nor does it favor one religion over another,” Kuehn wrote.
Drummond called the ruling a “tremendous victory for religious freedom.”
“The framers of the U.S. Constitution and those who drafted the Oklahoma Constitution knew exactly how to best protect religious freedom: by preventing the state from promoting any religion at all,” he said in a statement.
The Archdiocese of Oklahoma City and the Diocese of Tulsa founded the school and received approval from the Oklahoma Statewide Virtual Charter School Board last year to open St. Isidore as a state-funded institution.
Archbishop Paul Coakley and Bishop David Konderla said the ruling was “very disappointing to the hundreds of prospective students and their families across the state of Oklahoma who have desired the educational experience and promise of St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School.”
“We will explore all legal options and remain committed to our belief that St. Isidore has been and can be a valuable asset to students, regardless of their socioeconomic, racial or religious background,” Coakley and Konderla said.
The Attorney General filed a lawsuit against the school and the Statewide Virtual Charter School Board and asked the Supreme Court to intervene. He oral statements made in court on April 2nd.
Drummond claimed the school was in clear violation of state laws prohibiting state-funded schools from adopting a religion.
He said the approval of a school like St. Isidore would open up the possibility for public schools to teach other religious beliefs such as Sharia or Satanism.
“While I understand that the governor and other politicians are disappointed with this outcome, I hope the people of Oklahoma can be happy that they will not be forced to fund radical religious schools that violate their beliefs,” Drummond said.
Governor Kevin Stitt and State School Superintendent Ryan Walters have been vocal in their support of the Catholic charter school as a way to provide families with more educational opportunities.
Stitt expressed his hope that the U.S. Supreme Court would review the case and overturn the ruling.
“I am concerned that we have sent a disturbing message that religious groups are second-class participants in our educational system,” the governor said in a statement. “Charter schools are incredibly popular in Oklahoma – and we are simply saying: We cannot decide who gets state funding based on the religious status of a private institution.”
Archdiocesan officials said St. Isidore is open to students of all faiths and no faith, but will create a Catholic environment in every way. They describe the school as a “true instrument of the Church” and will participate in the Catholic Church’s mission of evangelization.
Opening St. Isidore as a free, virtual school would allow the church to educate students in all parts of the state, especially in areas where there is no Catholic school, archdiocese officials said.
Lawyers for the school and the Statewide Virtual Charter School Board argued that charter schools are private institutions and, unlike public schools, are free to adopt a religion. Charter schools are run by a nonprofit board subject to state oversight and have more freedom to decide their teaching methods.
The court rejected the notion that charter schools are anything but public. Charter schools rely on state funds to operate, and Oklahoma law defines public schools as “any free school financed by public taxes.”
Although they are granted more flexibility, state law requires charter schools to comply with all laws “in the same manner as a school district.”
“The Legislature created Oklahoma’s charter schools, and Oklahoma law treats them as public schools and government entities,” Winchester wrote. “…They are creatures of state law and may operate only under the authority granted to them by the state through their charters. St. Isidore will act as a proxy for the state and provide free public education, like any other state-supported charter school.”
St. Isidore also meets the criteria of a “government actor” under at least two tests the U.S. Supreme Court has developed to determine whether an entity acts as an arm of the government. The justices concluded that St. Isidore meets the “interconnection test,” which asks whether the entity is intertwined with government policy or whether the government is involved in the entity’s management or control.
The school also meets the “public function” test because St. Isidore will provide free public education, a responsibility that rests solely with the state under the Oklahoma Constitution, the report said.
The judges concluded that St. Isidore also violates the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which prohibits the government from establishing a religion.
“The educational philosophy of St. Isidore is to establish and operate the school as a Catholic school,” Winchester wrote. “Under both state and federal law, the state has no authority to establish or fund St. Isidore.”
A separate lawsuit against the school is pending in the District Court of Oklahoma CountyA coalition of Oklahoma parents, religious leaders and education activists was the first to sue the school, claiming it discriminates against LGBTQ+ students and staff, fails to adequately serve children with disabilities and unlawfully indoctrinates a religion.
They are represented by a team of lawyers from Americans United for Separation of Church and State, the American Civil Liberties Union, the Education Law Center and the Freedom from Religion Foundation, as well as local legal counsel.
A three-day hearing is scheduled for late July in the case to determine whether St. Isidore is eligible to open a clinic and receive state funding. It is unclear what impact the Supreme Court ruling will have on that lawsuit.
Legal organizations welcomed the court’s decision on Tuesday, calling it a protection of public education and the separation of religion and state.
“Charter schools are public schools that must be secular and serve all students,” they wrote in a statement. “St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School, which seeks to discriminate against students, families and staff and indoctrinate students into a religion, cannot operate as a public charter school.”
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