Supreme Court to Weigh Religious School Tuition Access in Colorado Case
Supreme Court to hear case on whether Colorado’s preschool program unfairly restricts religious schools.
2 min read
Colorado’s ‘universal’ preschool program is at the center of a legal battle over religious freedom, as the Supreme Court prepares to hear arguments in St. Mary Catholic Parish v. Roy. The case centers on whether the state’s tuition assistance program unfairly penalizes religious schools that require families to support their religious mission.
Religious Schools Face Tuition Assistance Limits
Daniel and Lisa Sheley, a Catholic couple, chose a Catholic preschool for their children, only to find that their religious choice cost them over $12,000 in tuition assistance. The state’s program, which provides funding for 15 hours of weekly preschool through public, private, and religious providers, includes conditions that the Sheleys argue force them to abandon their religious practices.
Colorado’s program requires participating schools to offer equal enrollment opportunities regardless of protected characteristics, including religion, sexual orientation, and gender identity. However, the Catholic schools in question require families to support their religious mission, including Church teachings on marriage and sexual identity. The plaintiffs argue that these conditions prevent them from accessing the state’s benefits while remaining faithful to their beliefs.
State Defends Its Conditions as Neutral
Colorado maintains that it welcomes religious instruction and religious providers, but objects to enrollment restrictions that require schools to provide publicly funded services without excluding families based on protected characteristics. The state argues that specialized services for children with disabilities and low-income families promote equal opportunity rather than hinder it.
The Tenth Circuit upheld the state’s challenged requirements, and Colorado seeks the Supreme Court’s approval to maintain that ruling. The case tests how the Court will apply previous rulings, including Carson v. Makin, where it struck down a Maine law that excluded religious schools from a tuition-assistance program.
Religious Mission and Government Funding
Catholic schools exist to teach Catholicism and help parents raise children within the faith. Officials who welcome religious schools should recognize that their beliefs shape how they operate, including the commitments they seek from families. The government’s invitation to participate in funding should respect the reasons families choose those schools, especially when those reasons concern the faith they hope to pass to the next generation.
The Supreme Court’s decision could set a precedent for how far officials may go in regulating religious participation through public funding. The case highlights the tension between government spending power and religious freedom, a central issue in American jurisprudence.
Source: PJ Media
