The Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) has warned of an organised, multi-state effort to establish publicly funded religious charter schools in the United States, arguing that the initiatives pose a significant risk to the integrity of the public education system.
The organisation, which campaigns for a strict separation between church and state, is closely monitoring new activity in Oklahoma, Colorado and Tennessee after the collapse of the St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School proposal. That case reached the US Supreme Court before ending in a 4–4 split, effectively blocking the school’s launch.
“This is a coordinated national campaign to turn public charter schools into publicly funded religious institutions, which under our First Amendment should be an oxymoron,” says FFRF Co-President Annie Laurie Gaylor. “Religious groups are trying every possible workaround to make taxpayers pay for their theology. FFRF will not let these unconstitutional plans proceed unchallenged.”
Oklahoma sees renewed efforts to secure approval for a religious charter school
Oklahoma is once again at the centre of the debate, less than a year after the state’s Supreme Court ruled the St. Isidore concept unconstitutional. The National Ben Gamla Jewish Charter School Foundation has announced plans to submit a new application to the Oklahoma Statewide Charter School Board.
Public statements indicate that the proposed institution would integrate Jewish teachings with state academic standards, promoting “Jewish religious learning and ethical development” as well as “deep Jewish knowledge, faith, and values.”
“This is not a secular charter school that is open to all students,” says FFRF Legal Director Patrick Elliott. “It is an expressly religious school seeking taxpayer support, which is the exact scenario Oklahoma’s highest court has already rejected.”
One of the initiative’s proponents, Brett Farley, previously served on the board of St. Isidore Catholic. FFRF argues that his involvement highlights a broader ideological effort. “The forces behind this effort don’t care whether the school is Catholic, Jewish, evangelical or otherwise religious,” says Gaylor. “The goal is not pluralism — it’s clearly to crack open the door to taxpayer-funded religious education nationwide.”
Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond, who successfully challenged the Catholic charter school, has confirmed he will oppose the new application.
Colorado initiative aims to create ‘public Christian school’ through alternative route
In Colorado, Riverstone Academy near Pueblo has attempted to position itself as a public school by partnering with a regional Board of Cooperative Educational Service. The school promotes a curriculum based on a “Christian foundation.”
The arrangement came under scrutiny after the board’s director referred to Riverstone as “Colorado’s first public Christian school.” An investigation by Chalkbeat Colorado uncovered emails indicating the approval was deliberate and supported by Alliance Defending Freedom, a conservative legal organisation.
According to reporting from Ann Schmike of Chalkbeat, the legal strategy sought to create a “parallel case” to the Oklahoma litigation, designed to provoke a federal challenge to restrictions on publicly funded religious schools.
Tennessee lawsuit over charter school ban raises national stakes
Tennessee has emerged as another focal point after Wilberforce Academy of Knoxville filed a lawsuit challenging the state’s prohibition on religious schools within its charter programme. The school, which describes itself as “unapologetically Christian,” argues that the ban violates the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment.
Court filings show the school intends to offer instruction grounded in “biblical foundations,” colonial-era religious teachings, Christian-infused civics and faith-based entrepreneurship education.
“This lawsuit is not about equal treatment. It’s about demanding taxpayer money to operate a religious school,” says Elliott. “Tennessee has every right, and indeed a constitutional duty, to keep its public charter system secular.”
With the next academic year approaching, Wilberforce is seeking a federal injunction to require the state to consider its application.
FFRF views the developments as part of a broader national strategy
FFRF argues that the initiatives in all three states reflect a coordinated effort to bring a new test case before the US Supreme Court. The organisation notes that the previous St. Isidore ruling might have been decided differently had Justice Amy Coney Barrett not recused herself due to earlier work with the Notre Dame law clinic involved in the matter.
“Charter schools are public schools. They must be secular, nondiscriminatory and open to all,” Elliott emphasises. “The First Amendment does not allow any state to take over religious instruction or turn public education into a vehicle for sectarian indoctrination.”
Gaylor cautions that the implications extend far beyond the individual cases. “This is about the survival of the wall between church and state in our public schools,” she says. “And FFRF will always be on the front lines defending it.”
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