by Jayla Ward • 3 minutes
In a major win for parental rights and religious freedom, a federal district court judge recently ruled that the State of New York cannot deny tuition reimbursement to families who want to send their children to religious schools. In the ruling, the judge cited two of First Liberty’s landmark Supreme Court victories.
A New York family decided to place their child in a religious special-needs school, but the state Board of Education denied them tuition reimbursement. After they sued, the court ruled that the Board’s actions were unconstitutional and violated the high court’s rulings in our Treat Children Fairly (Carson v. Makin) and Coach Kennedy (Kennedy v. Bremerton School District) cases.
This is not an isolated incident. Across the country, families are facing discrimination that’s preventing them from choosing a religious education, effectively forcing parents to choose between their children’s needs and their faith.
In California, two Jewish families wanted to send their disabled children to a private Jewish school that participated in a state-fund special education program. But the state denied them because the schools were religious. However, a federal appeals court judge ruled last year that the state’s decision was based on outdated precedent. Again, that judge referred to the standard the Supreme Court set in Carson, which held that states cannot discriminate against parents who want to send their children to religious schools under government student-aid programs. More broadly, Carson also made clear that faith-based organizations must be treated the same as others.
Despite these key victories, the battle to protect religious families and faith-based schools is far from over.
Earlier this year, First Liberty argued at a federal appeals court on behalf of our clients, Crosspoint Church and Bangor Christian School. Our legal team urged a federal appeals court to reverse a lower court decision that prevents religious schools from participating in the state’s school choice program.
After losing at the Supreme Court in Carson v. Makin, Maine passed a new law creating a workaround. It stated that schools would be eligible for funds only if they agreed to the state’s preferred ideology. This would force them to violate their conscience and faith.
“Maine excluded religious schools from its school choice program for over 40 years, but the U.S. Supreme Court made it clear in Carson v. Makin that such religious discrimination is unconstitutional,” said First Liberty Senior Counsel Jeremy Dys. “Now, our clients would be punished with heavy fines if they hold to their religious beliefs.”
We’re fighting a similar battle in our California Charter Schools case.
First Liberty recently petitioned the 9th U.S. Court of Appeals to review the case en banc, before a full panel of judges. We’re challenging a lower court decision that allows California to discriminate against families who choose faith-based curricula in homeschool aid programs.
The parents we represent—John and Breanna Woolard, Hector and Diana Gonzales, and Carrie Dodson—are all devout Christians who are raising school-age children and whose Christian faith is central to who they are.
Our clients educate their children completely at home, at their own kitchen tables. California offers a program through its online charter schools in which families can access public funds to choose homeschool curriculum, other instructional materials, and extracurricular activities for their children.
But the state says parents are not allowed to choose any religious curriculum or school materials—not even historical works by Jonathan Edwards or Easter-themed Legos. Additionally, the schools refuse to issue credit for coursework that originates from a religious curriculum, a religious publisher, or that reflects a religious perspective.
We filed a federal lawsuit arguing that the government is treating religious families more harshly than everyone else by excluding them from a publicly available benefit, which is unconstitutional.
Religious Americans should not be penalized or discriminated against because they choose a religious education. The Supreme Court has made it clear that families have a right to equally participate in state programs without facing religious discrimination.
Carson set a landmark precedent that protects families, allowing them to pursue the best educational option without government interference. Our Supreme Court victory was crucial. Many states are moving in a positive way for religious freedom and education. But our work is not finished.
Clients like Bangor Christian and the Woolard, Gonzales, and Dodson families are still counting on your support. Religious schools should be treated the same as everyone else, and families should be free to choose the educational option that’s best for them without government interference.
Can our clients count on your support to win their cases? Please give to First Liberty today.
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