Press Release  AG Campbell Urges U.S. Supreme Court To Reject The Creation Of A Taxpayer-Funded Religious Charter School

Boston — Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell today joined a coalition of 17 other attorneys general in filing an amicus brief in Oklahoma Statewide Charter School Board v. Drummond, urging the U.S. Supreme Court to reject the creation of the nation’s first publicly funded religious charter school. In their brief, the coalition asks the court to uphold a ruling by the Oklahoma Supreme Court, which found the school’s approval unconstitutional.

“Massachusetts is home to some of the country’s best charter and traditional public schools, and it’s a fundamental constitutional principle that these institutions remain free of cost, open to all students, and free from religious instruction,” said AG Campbell. “I’m proud to join my colleagues in standing up for the First Amendment, which firmly rejects the notion of taxpayer-funded religious schools.”

The case centers on St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School (St. Isidore), which the Oklahoma Statewide Charter School Board approved in 2023 to operate as a public charter school with a religious mission. In 2024, the Oklahoma Supreme Court struck down that decision, finding it violated state law and both the state and federal constitutions. The School Board and St. Isidore’s supporters appealed the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court, which will hear the case later this month.

The attorneys generals’ brief, which supports Attorney General Gentner Drummond of Oklahoma, explains that charter schools, like all public schools, must remain secular under the First Amendment. They are not private contractors or religious institutions, but part of the public education system, created to give parents and educators a greater role in shaping schools while still following constitutional rules. That includes being open to all students, charging no tuition, and staying free of religious instruction.

Charter schools in every state are required to remain non-religious, and the brief explains that allowing religious charter schools would override those laws and force states into an impossible position. States could be required to provide religious instruction in public schools or shut down charter school programs entirely to avoid violating the Constitution. The attorneys general argue that the choice of how to structure and govern public schools should remain with the states, not the federal courts.

The brief also warns that changing the legal status of charter schools could destabilize how they are funded and operated. Many states and key stakeholders rely on charter schools being public institutions, and a ruling that reclassifies them as private could disrupt billions of dollars in public education investment.

Joining Massachusetts in filing the brief, which is led by Attorney General Weiser of Colorado, are attorneys general from Arizona, California, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, and Washington.

###