The Unconstitutional Ban on Religious Charter Schools

On May 22, the Supreme Court let stand, by a divided vote and without opinion, a decision of the Oklahoma Supreme Court blocking what would have been the nation’s first religious charter school. The school, St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School, is a joint project of the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City and the Diocese of Tulsa. It sought to participate in Oklahoma’s charter school program in order to deliver a high-quality virtual Catholic education across the large rural state, where many children lack access to brick-and-mortar Catholic schools. The Court’s decision has no precedential weight, and the question presented in the case—whether laws prohibiting religious charter schools violate the First Amendment’s Free Exercise Clause—will undoubtedly be relitigated in the months and years ahead.