Jewish Group Moves To Open Religious Charter School in Oklahoma, Possibly Giving the Supreme Court Another Chance To Weigh in

A legal battle over the creation of the nation’s first religious charter school may wind up before the U.S. Supreme Court again, as a Jewish foundation is hoping to open a religious charter school in Oklahoma. The Supreme Court heard arguments on the question of whether taxpayer funds can go to religious charter schools. But in May, the justices were deadlocked on the question of whether Oklahoma could establish a Catholic charter school, St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School, leaving in place a ruling by the Oklahoma Supreme Court that blocked the establishment of the charter school. A Jewish organization, the National Ben Gamla Jewish Charter School Foundation, is taking steps that might pave the way for the question of religious charter schools to wind up before the high court again.The foundation runs six Hebrew-English charter schools in Florida, but those institutions have not adopted a religion. The group submitted a letter of intent to apply for charter authorization for a virtual school in Oklahoma.The group says the school will provide students with a “rigorous, values-based education that integrates general academic excellence with Jewish religious learning and ethical development.”A member of St. Isidore’s board of directors, Brett Farley, is listed as part of the proposed Jewish charter school’s team. The Statewide Charter School Board would have to approve the charter for the Jewish school.In 2023, the board voted to approve St. Isidore’s charter. However, the Republican attorney general of Oklahoma, Gentner Drummond, sued to block the school’s creation, saying it “violated the religious liberty of every Oklahoman.”The state’s high court blocked St. Isidore. In June 2024, writing for the majority, Justice James Winchester said the school “will be acting as a surrogate of the state in providing free public education as any other state-sponsored charter school,” in violation of state and federal laws.Lawyers for St. Isidore argued that the school did not violate the Establishment Clause because it could not be considered a “state actor” since it was developed by the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City and the Diocese of Tulsa, not the state. It also would have employed private individuals as opposed to state employees, and it would have been operated as a private entity.It is unclear whether the state charter school board will vote to approve the Jewish charter school.A spokeswoman for Mr. Gentner told the Oklahoma Voice about the idea of a Jewish charter school, “This matter has already been resolved after the state Supreme Court’s ruling to prevent taxpayer-funded religious charter schools was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court earlier this year.”“Our office will oppose any attempts to undermine the rule of law,” she added.While Mr. Drummond’s office signaled it would oppose the creation of a Jewish charter school, or any religious charter school, Oklahoma’s governor, Kevin Stitt, has expressed support for the idea of a religious charter school.After the U.S. Supreme Court was deadlocked in the St. Isidore case, Mr. Stitt said in a statement, “There will be another case just like this one, and Justice Barrett will break the tie. This is far from a settled issue. We are going to keep fighting for parents’ rights to instill their values in children and against religious discrimination.”The new effort to launch a Jewish charter school may wind up before the Supreme Court again, as religious liberty advocates are hoping that the high court will rule in favor of taxpayer funds going to religious charter schools.

Jewish Group Moves To Open Religious Charter School in Oklahoma, Possibly Giving the Supreme Court Another Chance To Weigh in

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