The U.S. Supreme Court agreed Friday to hear a lawsuit involving two Catholic dioceses seeking to establish the nation’s first taxpayer-funded religious charter schools.

Last October, St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School in Oklahoma and its board of directors sued for Supreme Court review after the state Supreme Court refused to open the school. In its filing, the court agreed to revive the case and set a timeline that could lead to a decision by early summer.

Because the writ of cert granted one hour for oral argument, the petitioner’s brief was ordered to be filed on or before March 31 and not later than March 5. ordered to be submitted. RELATED: Supreme Court takes up religious parents’ challenge to schools requiring books celebrating gender transition

In June 2023, Oklahoma’s Virtual Charter School Board voted to approve the nation’s first taxpayer-funded religious charter school. However, a year later, the Oklahoma Supreme Court ruled the move unconstitutional.

As a result, Republican Attorney General Gentner Drummond blocked that funding, calling the decision an “irreparable violation of our individual religious liberties” and “an unthinkable waste of our tax dollars.” .

The state Supreme Court also found that the charter violated the First Amendment’s Establishment Clause.

“While St. Isidore cannot ignore its Establishment Clause obligations because it is a government agency and state entity, a central element of St. Isidore’s educational philosophy is to establish and operate the school as a Catholic school. is” wrote In that decision.

In a petition to the U.S. Supreme Court in October 2024, St. Isidore and the Charter School Board argued whether Oklahoma violated the Free Exercise Clause by excluding religious schools from the state’s charter school program. I asked justice to confirm this.

“This case presents an ideal vehicle for resolving a very important question,” according to the petition. “Nearly every state has freed privately operated charter schools from government interference to promote official independence, parental choice, and educational innovation.”

“As a result, charter schools have flourished. But tying them down with agency restrictions and mandates negates their very reason for existing and the “diverse education” they provide to families across the country. Option,” the petition read.

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