Oklahoma board votes down Catholic charter school but the process isn't over yet

With the eyes of the nation watching its decision, a state school board in Oklahoma voted against what could be the first religious charter school in the country, but the process isn't over yet.

The Oklahoma Statewide Virtual Charter School Board voted unanimously on Tuesday to disapprove an application to create St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School.

Board members turned down the application not on constitutional grounds but because of questions over the school's governance structure, its plan for special education students, and its ability to prevent commingling of private and public funds, among other logistical concerns.

The Archdiocese of Oklahoma City will have the chance to address the board's questions and resubmit its application. Board members would have 30 days after receiving the updated application to decide whether to approve or reject it.

The question of whether the board would agree to direct taxpayer funds to a religious school is still unanswered.

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Legal challenges on the decision are likely next

A legal challenge is likely to follow whichever decision the board makes, potentially from the Catholic Church or from a group opposing the concept of a religious public school.

St. Isidore of Seville would be a free, publicly funded charter school educating students online in all parts of Oklahoma. The school would promote, teach and enforce Catholic doctrine, including the church’s beliefs on sexual orientation, gender identity and morality.

The board's decision not to approve the first draft of a school's application wasn't a surprise, said Brett Farley executive director of the Catholic Conference of Oklahoma, which represents both the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City and the Diocese of Tulsa.

"This is fairly normal for their application process," Farley said. "It gives us more time to address their concerns, and so we'll do that and come back and present those and see where we go."

Attorney General Gentner Drummond warned the school would create a “slippery slope” toward state-funded religion.

Drummond withdrew an opinion from his predecessor, John O’Connor, who gained nationwide attention in December for declaring recent U.S. Supreme Court rulings compel Oklahoma to allow religious charter schools.

Board members voiced concern they could lose legal representation from the state and face personal liability in a lawsuit over the matter.

The board's counsel, Deputy Attorney General Niki Batt, said the Attorney General's Office represents state board members as long as they follow applicable state law and the legal issue is within the scope of their board position.

Oklahoma law explicitly states no public money could be applied to support of any religion, Batt said.

Members of the board appeared concerned they might have to shoulder legal fees themselves if their vote contradicts that.

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Board member Scott Strawn, recently appointed by Gov. Kevin Stitt, said the risk of losing representation from the Attorney General's Office "feels like it it's intended to chill" any disagreement with Drummond's opinion.

"Candidly, it feels like — intentional or not — that we’re basically being told make a decision against the advice of the attorney general and you may or may not have immunity," Strawn said during the meeting.

Superintendent Ryan Walters voiced support for St. Isidore of Seville

State schools Superintendent Ryan Walters said he and the Oklahoma State Department of Education would support board members who vote in favor of opening the Catholic virtual school, though his ability to provide free legal representation is unclear.

Walters and the governor have endorsed St. Isidore of Seville as a way to expand religious liberty and school choice.

Attending the meeting as a non-voting member of the board, the state superintendent urged board members to approve the application and blamed opposition to the school on anti-Catholic leftists.

"You’ve heard from some radical leftists that their hatred for the Catholic church blinds them in doing what’s best for kids," Walters said to the board. "Their hatred for the Catholic Church has caused them to attack our very foundational religious liberties and attack this school and this application."

Board Chairperson Robert Franklin responded to Walters, saying "no disrespect to you, but I didn't hear a radical position nor did I hear an attack on the Catholic Church."

Multiple opponents of St. Isidore of Seville spoke at the meeting. They contended funding a religious school with taxpayer dollars would violate the foundational concept of separation of church and state, which is enshrined in both the U.S. and Oklahoma Constitution.

The thought that faith-based public schools would expand religious liberty is “absurd,” said Clark Frailey, lead pastor of Coffee Creek Church in Edmond and co-founder of Pastors for Oklahoma Kids.

Frailey, who denied any anti-Catholic sentiment, questioned whether a religious school would be welcoming to students of a different faith.

“Every religion is convinced they have the one true path or story most of the time,” Frailey told The Oklahoman. “So, if you are creating a school that is indoctrinating kids into that (faith), you’re definitely going to be teaching them the church they go to is false or, if their parents aren’t religious, that there’s something wrong there.”

It is unclear whether the Catholic virtual school would abide by federal regulations that protect LGBTQ+ students from discrimination in public schools.

Farley, of the Catholic Conference of Oklahoma, said it’s “too early to even say” whether openly gay or transgender students would be admitted to St. Isidore of Seville.

More than 9,000 students attend Catholic schools in Oklahoma. Most of these schools operate in the Oklahoma City and Tulsa metropolitan areas.

A statewide virtual school could serve students in areas where no Catholic schools exist, said Lara Schuler, senior director for Catholic education at the Oklahoma City archdiocese.

“If we’re competing against all other virtual schools but all of the other ones are free, that’s a problem," Schuler said while presenting to the board in February. "The taxpayer dollars are paying for all of those other ones, but our parents are paying taxes, too.”

Reporter Nuria Martinez-Keel covers K-12 and higher education throughout the state of Oklahoma. Have a story idea for Nuria? She can be reached at nmartinez-keel@oklahoman.com or on Twitter at @NuriaMKeel. Support Nuria’s work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma board votes against nation's first religious charter school