Religious discrimination isn't religious freedom, says brief defending Colo. vouchers
ADF, allied attorney file brief on behalf of Christian schools, Catholic diocese
Monday, Apr 23, 2012
ADF attorney sound bite: Gregory S. Baylor
DENVER — An Alliance Defense Fund allied attorney together with ADF attorneys have filed a brief with the Colorado Court of Appeals in defense of a Douglas County voucher program that pays for students who attend “private school partners” rather than government-run schools.
Stuart Lark and ADF filed the friend-of-the-court brief on behalf of the Association of Christian Schools International, the Catholic Diocese of Colorado Springs, Shepherd of the Hills Christian School, Southeast Christian School, and Valor Christian High School in opposition to a lawsuit attacking the voucher program because it allows some private religious schools to participate.
“School districts should favor educational choices for parents and their children,” said Lark. “The Choice Scholarship Program does this in a manner that respects both the private religious choices of Colorado families and our country’s commitment to religious liberty. To say that religious schools cannot participate in the program even though they meet all other requirements is not constitutional; it’s discriminatory.”
Opponents of the program filed the suit Larue v. Douglas County School District after the school district implemented the program to allow for greater parental choice. The lawsuit claims that the inclusion of religious schools in the program violates state constitutional provisions governing the relationship between church and state.
The brief, however, explains that “[t]o exclude otherwise qualifying schools based solely on religious criteria is to engage in religious discrimination, and doing so requires governmental officials to make religious determinations for which they have neither the authority nor the competence.”
“Neither the U.S. nor the Colorado constitutions allow a school that meets all other qualifications to be excluded from a religiously neutral program solely because the school’s core values are grounded in religious convictions,” said ADF Senior Counsel Gregory S. Baylor. “These schools provide an excellent education that meets all state standards. They should be welcomed into voucher programs like this one so that students, the community, and the government will all benefit.”
ADF is a legal alliance of Christian attorneys and like-minded organizations defending the right of people to freely live out their faith. Launched in 1994, ADF employs a unique combination of strategy, training, funding, and litigation to protect and preserve religious liberty, the sanctity of life, marriage, and the family. There are more than 2,100 attorneys in the ADF alliance.
Stuart Lark and ADF filed the friend-of-the-court brief on behalf of the Association of Christian Schools International, the Catholic Diocese of Colorado Springs, Shepherd of the Hills Christian School, Southeast Christian School, and Valor Christian High School in opposition to a lawsuit attacking the voucher program because it allows some private religious schools to participate.
“School districts should favor educational choices for parents and their children,” said Lark. “The Choice Scholarship Program does this in a manner that respects both the private religious choices of Colorado families and our country’s commitment to religious liberty. To say that religious schools cannot participate in the program even though they meet all other requirements is not constitutional; it’s discriminatory.”
Opponents of the program filed the suit Larue v. Douglas County School District after the school district implemented the program to allow for greater parental choice. The lawsuit claims that the inclusion of religious schools in the program violates state constitutional provisions governing the relationship between church and state.
The brief, however, explains that “[t]o exclude otherwise qualifying schools based solely on religious criteria is to engage in religious discrimination, and doing so requires governmental officials to make religious determinations for which they have neither the authority nor the competence.”
“Neither the U.S. nor the Colorado constitutions allow a school that meets all other qualifications to be excluded from a religiously neutral program solely because the school’s core values are grounded in religious convictions,” said ADF Senior Counsel Gregory S. Baylor. “These schools provide an excellent education that meets all state standards. They should be welcomed into voucher programs like this one so that students, the community, and the government will all benefit.”
ADF is a legal alliance of Christian attorneys and like-minded organizations defending the right of people to freely live out their faith. Launched in 1994, ADF employs a unique combination of strategy, training, funding, and litigation to protect and preserve religious liberty, the sanctity of life, marriage, and the family. There are more than 2,100 attorneys in the ADF alliance.
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