Oklahoma’s debate over state-funded religious school comes before U.S. Supreme Court

A Court decision on a Catholic charter school could set a landmark precedent

OKLAHOMA CITY — An Oklahoma lawsuit coming before the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday could produce a landmark ruling on the role of religion in state-funded education.

At the center of the debate is St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School, a church-backed online charter school that was approved to open in Oklahoma until the state Supreme Court struck it down in June. It would be the first publicly funded charter school in the nation to adopt a religion.

The case questions whether charter schools, long considered public, are truly an arm of the government and whether states should be able to deny a school access to taxpayer funding because it is religious.

Oklahoma’s debate over state-funded religious school comes before U.S. Supreme Court • Oklahoma Voice