CV NEWSFEED // The Oklahoma Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled that St. Isidore of Seville Catholic School, the nation’s first Catholic charter school, is unconstitutional. The case was decided during Religious Freedom Week.
The school was initially approved in June of 2023 and was slated to open for the Fall semester of 2024 with 200 Oklahoman families already enrolled.
St. Isidore of Seville was to function as an online virtual school with a Catholic curriculum for rural students in Oklahoma.
The position of St. Isidore of Seville as a private charter school would mean that it would be entitled to receive taxpayer dollars from the state with the institution itself still running independently from the state.
When the initial plans for the school were announced, the Dioceses of Oklahoma City and Tulsa received considerable pushback from politicians and public education groups.
Tuesday’s Supreme Court opinion asserted that charter schools in Oklahoma must be “nonsectarian in their programs, admission policies, and other operations.”
The court claimed the charter school violated the Establishment Clause in the Constitution and the First Amendment. According to the court’s decision, the school could not function as a private charter and receive state funding without violating state and federal law:
St. Isidore cannot justify its creation by invoking Free Exercise rights as a religious entity. St. Isidore came into existence through its charter with the State and will function as a component of the State’s public school system.
Traditionally, charter schools are publicly funded institutions of education that remain independent of state influence on curriculum and instruction.
In a joint response to the ruling, Archbishop Paul Coakley of the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City and Bishop David Konderla of the Diocese of Tulsa stated:
Today’s ruling is very disappointing for the hundreds of prospective students and their families from across the state of Oklahoma who desired the educational experience and promise of St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School.
“We will consider all legal options and remain steadfast in our belief that St. Isidore would have and could still be a valuable asset to students, regardless of socioeconomic, race, or faith backgrounds,” the clerics added.
Oklahoma Attorney General Genter Drummond, a Republican, called the decision “a tremendous victory for religious liberty.”
“The framers of the US Constitution and those who drafted Oklahoma’s constitution clearly understood how to best protect religious freedom,” Drummond stated, “by preventing the State from sponsoring any religion at all.”
The Archdiocese of Oklahoma City and the Diocese of Tulsa have yet to announce an intent to appeal.
