Mid Vermont Christian School v. Bouchey
Description: Vermont officials are denying Mid Vermont Christian School and its students from participating in the state’s tuition program and sports league because of their religious beliefs. Vermont, through its Agency of Education and Vermont Principals’ Association, requires private, religious schools like Mid Vermont Christian to adopt the state’s view on human sexuality and gender—namely, that sex is mutable and biological differences do not matter—as a condition to participate in the state’s tuition program and athletic association. Doing so violates the First Amendment rights of Mid Vermont Christian, its students and families, and other faith-based schools by preventing them from practicing their religious beliefs about sexuality and gender.
VT Christian school challenges discriminatory state funding program and expulsion from state athletics
WHO: Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys
WHAT: Available for media interviews following oral arguments in Mid Vermont Christian School v. Bouchey
WHEN: Immediately following hearing, which begins at 9:30 a.m. EDT, Friday, April 19
WHERE: U.S. District Court for the District of Vermont, 11 Elmwood Ave., Burlington. To schedule an interview, contact ADF Media Relations Specialist Jacqueline Ribeiro at (202) 961-9396.
BURLINGTON, Vt. – Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys representing Mid Vermont Christian School and two families will be available for media interviews Friday following oral arguments in federal district court in their lawsuit against Vermont officials for denying the Christian school and its students from participating in the state’s tuition program and sports league because of their religious beliefs. ADF attorneys filed a federal lawsuit in November.
Vermont, through its Agency and Board of Education and Vermont Principals’ Association, requires private, religious schools like Mid Vermont Christian to adopt the state’s view on human sexuality and gender—namely, that sex is mutable and biological differences do not matter—as a condition to participate in the state’s tuition program and athletic association. Doing so violates the First Amendment rights of Mid Vermont Christian, its students and families, and other faith-based schools by preventing them from practicing their religious beliefs.
“No religious school or the families that go there should be punished simply for holding to their religious beliefs,” said ADF Legal Counsel Jake Reed, who will be arguing before the court on behalf of the school and families. “Vermont keeps orchestrating new ways to discriminate against religious schools—despite recently paying thousands of dollars in settlement fees over such discrimination. Ignoring U.S. Supreme Court and Second Circuit precedent, the state continues its infamous record of trying to exclude religious schools and families, so we are urging the court to uphold constitutional protections by guaranteeing the school can fully participate while still adhering to its religious beliefs.”
Mid Vermont Christian School is a faith-based pre-K-12 school located in Quechee whose religious beliefs drive and form the foundation for everything it does. Last year, Vermont’s Agency of Education refused to designate Mid Vermont Christian as an approved independent school because of those beliefs, which meant the school could not participate in the state’s Town Tuitioning Program. That program pays for students residing in school districts that do not operate public high schools to attend an approved private school of the students’ choice. The State tried to walk back its denial from last year, but it still has not granted the school fully approved independent status and the school and its families do not know whether they will be able to participate moving forward.
Additionally, the VPA kicked Mid Vermont Christian out of the state’s athletic association because the school declined to play a girls’ basketball game against a male because it believed doing so violated its religious convictions. Although the VPA has historically prohibited boys from playing on girls’ sports teams “to protect opportunities for girl athletes,” it recently adopted policies that allow males to participate in girls’ sports and is demanding Mid Vermont Christian girls’ teams play against teams with male athletes. The VPA refuses to let the school back in unless it capitulates and agrees to force its girls to compete against males.
When the school reluctantly forfeited a girls’ high school basketball game against a team that had a male athlete playing for them, the VPA kicked Mid Vermont Christian out of the association. Now, despite 28 years of prior participation in the league, the school cannot compete in any VPA activities effectively blacklisting the school from all state-sponsored events in the state. The VPA is going so far as to exclude Mid Vermont Christian and its students from participating in academic competitions like the Geo-Bee, Science and Math Fair, and Debate and Forensics League, all because the school believes biological differences between boys and girls matter.
Michael Tierney and Gretchen Wade are serving as local counsel in the case, Mid Vermont Christian School v. Bouchey.
Alliance Defending Freedom is an alliance-building, non-profit legal organization committed to protecting religious freedom, free speech, parental rights, and the sanctity of life.
# # #
Photos
Previous News Releases
Legal Documents
Related Resources
ABOUT Ryan Tucker
Ryan Tucker serves as senior counsel and director of the Center for Christian Ministries with Alliance Defending Freedom. He oversees all litigation efforts to maintain and defend the constitutionally protected freedom of churches, Christian ministries and religious schools to exercise their rights under the First Amendment. Prior to joining ADF, Tucker engaged in private practice for over 16 years with a litigation boutique law firm in San Antonio, Texas, eight of those as a partner. His portfolio included all aspects of civil litigation, both state and federal, with a particular focus on commercial and complex business disputes. Tucker earned his Juris Doctor at Baylor Law School, where he was a senior editor of the Baylor Law Review. He obtained his bachelor of business administration in management at Texas A&M University, where he graduated cum laude. A member of the state bar in Texas and Arizona, Tucker is admitted to practice in the U.S. Supreme Court and multiple federal district and appellate courts.
ABOUT Jacob Reed
Jacob Reed serves as legal counsel for the Center for Christian Ministries with Alliance Defending Freedom. Reed litigates on behalf of churches, Christian ministries, and religious schools to defend their constitutionally protected rights under the First Amendment. Before joining ADF in January of 2021, Reed was an associate attorney at Baker Dublikar in northeast Ohio. Reed earned his law degree summa cum laude from the University of Akron School of Law in 2019. While in law school, Reed was president of the Akron Law Christian Fellowship, was an associate editor on the Akron Law Review, and received certificates in trial advocacy/dispute resolution and constitutional law. He graduated from Kent State University summa cum laude in 2016 with a B.A. in political science–American politics. Reed is admitted to the Ohio and Virginia bars and multiple federal courts.