Supreme Court To Weigh Major Clash Between Church And State

The Supreme Court will weigh the fate of an Oklahoma religious charter school that has blurred the lines between church and state, justices announced Friday in an unsigned order distributed days after President Donald Trump was sworn into office.

Conservative legal organizations and authorities in eight conservative-led states have urged the high court to overturn an Oklahoma court ruling from last year that rejected plans to open the St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School.

State justices declared an Oklahoma charter school board’s contract agreement with the religious charter school was a violation of both the state and federal constitutions, in a ruling that divided prominent members of the state’s Republican Party.

That ruling was a critical step in efforts to create a test case that challenges the court’s conservative majority to weigh changes to its interpretation of the First Amendment’s Establishment Clause — and clears the way for a new form of public education supporters argue will advance religious freedom and school choice.

"This stands to be one of the most significant religious and education freedom decisions in our lifetime," Oklahoma Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt, a key political supporter of St. Isidore, said in a statement Friday. "I believe our nation’s highest court will agree that denying St. Isidore’s charter based solely on its religious affiliation is flat-out unconstitutional. We’ve seen ugly religious intolerance from opponents of the education freedom movement, but I look forward to seeing our religious liberties protected both in Oklahoma and across the country.”

The case will be decided by eight justices, as Justice Amy Coney Barrett plans to recuse herself. No reason was given for her decision.

The timing of the high court's decision was unusual, and suggests justices seek to hear the case this spring, in their final days of argument for the term.

Friday's announcement previews what is sure to be a tense courtroom debate between Oklahoma Republican Attorney General Gentner Drummond and a battery of conservative organizations and interests who have supported St. Isidore's march to the high court.

Drummond put himself at odds with Stitt’s administration and state schools Superintendent Ryan Walters shortly after his 2023 election when he scrapped a legal opinion that opened the door to publicly funded religious charter schools in Oklahoma. He then repeatedly stated his office’s opposition to St. Isidore when it was first greenlit by a statewide board.

"St. Isidore and the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City and the Diocese of Tulsa are grateful the U.S. Supreme Court has taken on our case," said Brett Farley, the executive director of the Catholic Conference of Oklahoma, in a statement. "We look forward to the opportunity to present the case to the highest court in the land, with hope we can soon provide a premium, virtual education to Oklahoma families."

Jim Campbell, the chief attorney for the conservative Alliance Defending Freedom organization that is representing Oklahoma's charter school board, said in a statement that there was "great irony state officials who claim to be in favor of religious liberty discriminating against St. Isidore because of its Catholic beliefs.”

Drummond's office, in a brief reply, said "the Office of the Attorney General looks forward to presenting our arguments before the Supreme Court."

Josh Gerstein contributed to this report.