CV NEWS FEED // State officials in charge of Colorado’s new universal preschool program dropped a ban against religious instruction on Wednesday, deciding instead to allow publicly-funded preschools to include religious activities during class.
According to Chalkbeat, a nonprofit news source reporting on children’s education, Colorado’s $322 million preschool program provides tuition-free education to over 60% of the state’s preschoolers. The program includes over 1,900 schools statewide, but also includes 40 faith-based preschools that were previously required to avoid religious instruction during class.
Chalkbeat reported that the program launched in August, but that state officials “ran out of time to make rules” about religious lessons at publicly funded preschools. Until October, schools were only told that religious instruction was “prohibited,” but the lack of official rules gave them freedom to use religious topics in their lessons.
In October, Colorado officials proposed a complete ban on religious lessons in universal preschools. Two months later, conservative advocacy group Advance Colorado threatened to file a religious discrimination lawsuit if lawmakers adopted the ban.
In addition, Catholic News Agency reported that the Archdiocese of Denver and two Catholic preschools recently filed religious discrimination complaints against the state.
“Colorado did not have to create a universal preschool funding program, but in doing so it cannot implement that program in a way that excludes certain religious groups and providers based on their sincerely held religious beliefs,” the lawsuit stated, according to CNA.
The lawsuit also argued that the program’s rules are unconstitutional by requiring religiously affiliated schools to accept students or prospective employees regardless of “sexual identity.”
“Abiding by Catholic teaching on these issues would violate the department’s ban on sexual orientation and gender identity ‘discrimination,’ though plaintiffs do not believe adhering to these beliefs constitutes discrimination,” the lawsuit stated.
Chalkbeat reported that the state advisory committee will consider the new rules on January 11. If approved, the state will adopt them in February.
