AFT’s Weingarten on US Supreme Court Decision in Religious Charter School Case

WASHINGTON—AFT President Randi Weingarten issued the following statement after the U.S. Supreme Court rejected the establishment of a taxpayer-funded virtual religious charter school. The AFT filed an amicus brief in the two related cases before the court.

“Today, the court let the decision of the Oklahoma Supreme Court stand, which correctly upheld the separation of church and state and backed the founders’ intention to place religious pluralism over sectarianism. And we are grateful that it upheld the state’s highest court’s clear and unambiguous ruling to preserve and nurture the roots of our democracy, not tear up its very foundations.

“We respect and honor religious education. It should be separate from public schooling. Public schools, including public charter schools, are funded by taxpayer dollars because they are dedicated to helping all—not just some—children have a shot at success. They are the bedrock of our democracy, and states have long worked to ensure that they remain secular, open and accessible to all.

“Religious schools should be able to operate in the U.S., however today the court decided that they are not public schools, and that they shouldn’t be able to receive benefits and funding without obligations and responsibilities.”