Ryan Walters looking to intervene directly in lawsuit against Catholic charter school

State schools Superintendent Ryan Walters is seeking to intervene directly in a lawsuit aimed at halting the creation of the nation's first religious charter school.

Walters said Thursday he was asking the Oklahoma Supreme Court to allow the Oklahoma State Department of Education "to defend its interest in distributing state aid without religious discrimination."

“This lawsuit is misguided in that it discriminates against some Oklahomans due to their faith, but also the fact that it is our agency that administers state aid for charter schools, not the Virtual Charter School Board,” Walters said. “Rather than enshrine atheism as a state sponsored religion, we are blessed that our Constitution guarantees religious liberty."

Attorney General Gentner Drummond sued the Oklahoma Statewide Virtual Charter School Board last month for approving the creation of a virtual Catholic charter school. A ruling could come from the court in a matter of weeks.

'A reckoning will follow' with state policy if charter school is approved, Oklahoma attorney general says

Drummond warned that approval of the Catholic charter school might eventually force Oklahoma to fund schools teaching Sharia law.

“Make no mistake, if the Catholic Church were permitted to have a public virtual charter school, a reckoning will follow in which this State will be faced with the unprecedented quandary of processing requests to directly fund all petitioning sectarian groups,” Drummond’s lawsuit stated.

“For example, this reckoning will require the State to permit extreme sects of the Muslim faith to establish a taxpayer-funded public charter school teaching Sharia Law.”

Gov. Kevin Stitt, a proponent of public funding for religious schools, called the lawsuit “a political stunt.” Walters also criticized the lawsuit when it was filed.

Drummond’s lawsuit at the Oklahoma Supreme Court was the second challenge lodged against the virtual charter school board for its June approval of a school, St. Isidore of Seville, that would receive public funding.

What to know about the multiple lawsuits filed to stop approval of St. Isidore of Seville

The first legal challenge came in July in a lawsuit filed in Oklahoma County District Court led by Americans United for the Separation of Church and State, the ACLU, the Education Law Center and Freedom from Religion Foundation.

Both lawsuits cited the Oklahoma Constitution, which contains a provision stating: “No public money or property shall ever be appropriated, applied, donated, or used, directly or indirectly, for the use, benefit, or support of any sect, church, denomination, or system of religion, or for the use, benefit, or support of any priest, preacher, minister, or other religious teacher or dignitary, or sectarian institution as such.”

Drummond noted that Oklahomans voted overwhelmingly in 2016 to retain that provision. That vote came a year after the Oklahoma Supreme Court ruled that the provision prohibited a Ten Commandments monument on state land.

“In sum, despite the clear and unambiguous language of Oklahoma’s Constitution and statutes, the will of Oklahoma’s voters who soundly rejected amending Oklahoma’s Constitution in 2016 to allow public money to be applied to sectarian organizations, and the legal advice by the chief law officer of this State, the Board members violated their plain legal duty to deny sponsorship of St. Isidore,” the lawsuit states.

Stitt, in a statement when the attorney general's lawsuit was filed, said: "AG Drummond seems to lack any firm grasp on the constitutional principle of religious freedom and masks his disdain for the Catholics’ pursuit by obsessing over non-existent schools that don’t neatly align with his religious preference."

More: One-of-a-kind Catholic charter school faces legal challenge in Oklahoma

The statement added: "His discriminatory and ignorant comment concerning a potential Muslim charter is a perfect illustration. The creation of St. (Isidore's) is a win for religious and education freedom in Oklahoma. We want parents to be able to choose the education that is best for their kids, regardless of income. The state shouldn’t stand in the way.”

St. Isidore was conceived by the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City and the Diocese of Tulsa. Their plan was to open for the 2024-25 school year with a first-year enrollment goal of 500 students.

The school would provide free, online education to students in all parts of Oklahoma. Although it would be expressly Catholic, the school’s contract stated no student would be denied admission on the basis of religion, lack of faith, sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression.

Catholic officials have argued that charter schools were never intended to be public schools, even though most of their funding comes from the state and federal government, and therefore should be free to adopt a faith like private schools. Generally, charter schools are granted more autonomy over their curriculum and hiring than traditional public schools.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Ryan Walters aims to intervene in suit against St. Isidore in Oklahoma