In April 2025, the Supreme Court will hear arguments about whether the nation’s first religious charter school can open in Oklahoma. The St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School would be funded by taxpayer money but run by a local archdiocese and diocese.
The case is often discussed in terms of religion, and a decision in the school’s favor could allow government dollars to directly fund faith-based charter schools nationwide. In part, the justices must decide whether the First Amendment’s prohibition on government establishing religion applies to charter schools. But the answer to that question is part of an even bigger issue: Are charters really public in the first place?
