Oklahomans challenging nation’s first religious public school declare victory, end lawsuit

OKLAHOMA CITY — Declaring victory in the legal effort to block what would have been the nation’s first religious public school, a group of Oklahoma faith leaders, public school parents, and public education advocates today filed a notice dismissing their lawsuit that sought to stop Oklahoma officials from sponsoring and funding St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School.

Today’s notice was filed with the District Court of Oklahoma County in the case OKPLAC Inc. v. Statewide Charter School Board. The substantive claims brought in the OKPLAC case were resolved when the U.S. Supreme Court, in May, let stand the Oklahoma Supreme Court’s June 2024 decision that it would be an unconstitutional violation of church-state separation for St. Isidore to operate as a religious public charter school. The Oklahoma Supreme Court’s decision was issued in a lawsuit similar to the OKPLAC case that was subsequently brought by Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond.

The plaintiffs in OKPLAC are represented by Americans United for Separation of Church and State, the American Civil Liberties Union, Education Law Center, and Freedom From Religion Foundation, supported by Oklahoma-based counsel Odom & Sparks PLLC and J. Douglas Mann.

‘We won’t let them turn Oklahoma’s public schools into Sunday schools.’

“Americans United is proud to work closely with Oklahomans to protect inclusive public education and religious freedom,” said Rachel Laser, president and CEO of Americans United. “While we celebrate victory in this case, AU continues to litigate two other church-state separation lawsuits in Oklahoma to stop Ryan Walters and his Christian Nationalist allies from imposing their religious beliefs on public school children. We won’t let them turn Oklahoma’s public schools into Sunday schools.”

“OKPLAC has been resolved to stand for students, taxpayers, and religious freedom from the beginning as the original plaintiff in a lawsuit opposing the state’s use of tax dollars to operate a religious public charter school,” said Misty Bradley, chair of OKPLAC, the Oklahoma Parent Legislative Advocacy Coalition. “We are grateful for the organizations and individuals who stood with us and for Attorney General Gentner Drummond’s successful efforts to uphold Oklahoma’s constitution and protect its taxpayers and public schools.”

“The very notion of a religious public school is a legal contradiction in terms,” said Daniel Mach, director of the ACLU Program on Freedom of Religion and Belief.  “We’re pleased that the courts stopped this direct assault on public education and religious freedom.  Public schools must remain secular and welcome all students, regardless of faith.”

“We are gratified that the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed Oklahoma Supreme Court’s ruling that charter schools, like all public schools, must be open to all students,” said Robert Kim, executive director of Education Law Center.  “We will continue to work with public school advocates, parents and faith leaders to ensure that all students across Oklahoma and the nation have the right to attend public schools without barriers to admission.”

“We are pleased that the courts have put a stop to the nation’s first religious public charter school,” said Annie Laurie Gaylor, FFRF co-president. “This outcome upholds the core constitutional principle of state-church separation and affirms that public schools should remain just that — public.”

First case to challenge Oklahoma’s approval of St. Isidore as a religious public school

The OKPLAC case was the first lawsuit to challenge the state’s approval of St. Isidore. It was filed in July 2023 on behalf of faith leaders, public school parents, and public education advocates who objected to their tax dollars funding a public charter school that intended to indoctrinate students into one religion, planned to discriminate against students, families and employees based on their religion and LGBTQ+ status, and wouldn’t commit to adequately serving students with disabilities.

The plaintiffs include OKPLAC (Oklahoma Parent Legislative Advocacy Coalition), Melissa Abdo, Krystal Bonsall, Brenda Lené, Michele Medley, Dr. Bruce Prescott, the Rev. Dr. Mitch Randall, the Rev. Dr. Lori Walke, and Erika Wright.

The plaintiffs also filed amicus briefs in the attorney general’s case, Drummond v. Oklahoma Statewide Virtual Charter School Board, with both the U.S. Supreme Court and the Oklahoma Supreme Court. The Oklahoma Supreme Court’s opinion incorporated many of the arguments made in the amicus brief that was submitted to it.

The team of attorneys that represented the plaintiffs was led by Alex J. Luchenitser of Americans United and included Luke Anderson of Americans United; Daniel Mach and Heather L. Weaver of the ACLU; Robert Kim, Jessica Levin, and Wendy Lecker of Education Law Center; Patrick Elliott of FFRF; Benjamin H. Odom, John H. Sparks, Michael W. Ridgeway, and Lisa M. Mason of Odom & Sparks; and J. Douglas Mann.

More information about the case is available here.