Federal court allows Tennessee parents & faith leaders to oppose Wilberforce Academy

KNOX COUNTY, Tenn. — Five taxpayers in Knox County, Tenn., who support public education and church-state separation have been granted permission by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee to intervene in Wilberforce Academy of Knoxville v. Knox County Board of Education. The court determined that these taxpayers, all parents of current or former Knox County public school students, had a legal right to participate in the lawsuit, which centers on the constitutionality of a religious public charter school attempting to open in Knox County. These taxpayers are now intervenor-defendants in the lawsuit.

No other party defending Tenn. law forbidding religious public charter schools

In response to their motion filed last week, the court ruled that the parent taxpayers “demonstrated direct and concrete interests in: (1) preventing the potential unlawful use of taxpayer funds to establish religion and (2) ensuring that their children’s education is not diminished by the diversion of funds to religious schools.” The court also noted the serious stakes of the case and the fact that no other party planned to defend the constitutionality of Tennessee law forbidding religious charter schools.

The intervenors are represented by Americans United for Separation of Church and State, the Education Law Center, American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU of Tennessee, Freedom From Religion Foundation, the Southern Poverty Law Center, and the law firm Morrison Foerster pro bono. The counsel team issued the following statement:

No opposition to taxpayers’ participation in Wilberforce Academy lawsuit

“There is no question that Knox County taxpayers, including our clients, have a substantial interest in preventing their tax dollars from illegally funding a religious public school. Likewise, public school parents have a clear interest in preventing already-scarce funding from being diverted away from their children’s schools to pay for religious instruction.

“We are pleased that neither side opposed our clients’ participation in the Wilberforce Academy lawsuit, and that the court immediately recognized our clients’ right to assert a vigorous defense of the laws forbidding religious public education.

“Someone needs to stand up for the cherished and longstanding American principle of church-state separation and for the public schools that are the cornerstone of our democracy. We’re proud to represent these clients, who have stepped up to do just that.”