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Craig and Joy Stevens raise goats and chickens on a 60-acre about 80 miles south of Oklahoma City 鈥� a 35-minute drive from the church where they attend mass every Sunday and more than an hour away from the closest Catholic school.

That鈥檚 why they鈥檝e applied to send their daughter Chloe to St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School, a first-of-its kind religious charter at the center of a national dispute over separation of church and state. 

Chloe is preparing for her confirmation at the end of April, a statement of her faith. Between Sundays, the family listens to a 鈥淏ible in a Year鈥� from a Minnesota priest with a large social media following. But her mother worries about students at her daughter鈥檚 public school being sexually active and wants her to get the 鈥渨holesome鈥� influences she thinks only a Catholic education would provide.

鈥淜ids at that school don’t have the same values that we have. They’re constantly on their phones,鈥� Joy said. 鈥淚’m not doing this to be some kind of trailblazer; I’m doing this for my kid.鈥�

Those are typically among the reasons many parents opt for private and faith-based schools. But on Tuesday, the Oklahoma Supreme Court will hear arguments in a precedent-setting case that examines whether publicly funded charter schools 鈥� which must uphold the same civil rights as traditional schools 鈥� can explicitly endorse religion. Republican Attorney General Gentner Drummond will that the state鈥檚 Virtual Charter School Board violated both state and federal law when it voted 3-2 to approve the school鈥檚 charter application last June. Attorneys for the school, however, say preventing it from opening this fall would be religious discrimination that flies in the face of recent U.S. Supreme Court opinions.

Parties in the case recognize the significance of the moment. 鈥淚t’s part of history, so I’m glad I’m going to be sitting there to watch how this unfolds,鈥� said Robert Franklin, chair of the virtual charter board and one of two members to vote against the application. He supports school choice, but said 鈥渋n Oklahoma we’re pushing this as far and as fast as we possibly can. I think it’s going to have some significant consequences.鈥�

Notably, none of members who voted in favor of the school remain on the board. Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt appointed two, and , to his administration. The third, Scott Strawn, left to work at Baylor University in Texas.

To many observers, Bobek, who Stitt previously appointed to the state board of education, should not have been able to vote on the application. Republican House Speaker Charles McCall appointed him to the charter board just days before the vote, replacing a retired superintendent. Franklin asked him to recuse himself, but Bobek refused. According to Drummond鈥檚 office, his appointment should until five months later.

One of the most outspoken evangelists for the school, state Superintendent Ryan Walters, also won鈥檛 be represented before the court. But that鈥檚 not for a lack of trying. Walters, who dismisses the separation of church and state as a 鈥�,鈥� failed three times to convince the court to carve out some time for the state education department during Tuesday鈥檚 oral arguments. He reasoned that since he supports the school, Drummond鈥檚 position isn鈥檛 the only one that matters. The school, however, joined Drummond in opposing the superintendent鈥檚 request, and Chief Justice M. John Kane turned Walters down.

The Catholic church鈥檚 effort to open St. Isidore 鈥� named for the of the internet 鈥� has split constitutional scholars and school choice experts from the start.

Religious freedom advocates say recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions laid the foundation for the nation鈥檚 first religious charter school. In Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue 鈥� a 2020 opinion about whether a family could use a tax credit scholarship at a faith-based school 鈥� the court said a 鈥渟tate need not subsidize private education. But once a state decides to do so, it cannot disqualify some private schools solely because they are religious.鈥�

That鈥檚 where the school鈥檚 argument breaks down, Drummond wrote in .

鈥淪t. Isidore is not a 鈥榩rivate school.鈥� Under Oklahoma law, it is [a] public school,鈥� he wrote. 鈥淭herefore, these recent U.S. Supreme Court cases have no relevance to this dispute.鈥� 

Despite Oklahoma being a deeply red state, its high court tends to lean . Regardless of how the Oklahoma justices rule, however, observers expect the issue to end up in federal court. 

Issues of discrimination

Drummond鈥檚 lawsuit is not the only effort to stop the school from opening Aug. 12. Public school advocates, parents and religious leaders filed in October against the charter board, Walters and the state education department. 

The case 鈥渞aises important issues鈥� about discrimination not addressed by Drummond鈥檚 lawsuit, said Alex Luchenitser, associate vice president of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, one of the organizations representing the plaintiffs.

The school, which is holding an until Wednesday, will accept students with disabilities, but its says that services or accommodations for students can鈥檛 be 鈥渋n opposition to church teaching.鈥� The Archdiocese of Oklahoma City declined to elaborate. In addition, the school might not accept students whose services would 鈥渟ignificantly alter the regular classroom process.鈥�

Last year, before the board approved the school, Andrea Kunkel, general counsel for a state school administrators organization, warned that charter schools can鈥檛 ignore special education law.

鈥淎lthough St. Isidore may not have readily available all services that future students may need, it has the legal obligation to either provide and pay for those services through a different model or arrange for them to be provided by someone else and pay for them,鈥� she wrote in a letter to the board. 

LGBTQ students can attend, but staff will only use pronouns and nicknames that match their biological sex at birth, a stance that echoes Walters鈥檚 position on gender identity issues. The state board passed a rule in October giving members final say over students鈥� requests to change sex or gender designations in school records. One transgender student is . The charter school will also enforce a dress code requiring clothing to 鈥渃orrespond to the student鈥檚 biological sex.鈥�

Those rules 鈥渁re strong grounds for blocking the planned operation and state funding of the school,鈥� Luchenitser said. Their case, he added, reflects the views of taxpayers, parents and others 鈥渨ho will be harmed if St. Isidore is allowed to operate and receive state funds.鈥�

No hearings have been held in that case, which is in state court, but last week, the defendants asked Judge Richard Ogden to dismiss it. 

St. Isidore鈥檚 student/parent suggests that students who don鈥檛 adapt well to online learning will be encouraged to return to their district schools. 

But Joy Stevens expects that her daughter, who has been homeschooled and attended another Oklahoma virtual charter school during the pandemic, will do well.

Like many students who prefer online school, Chloe has a hectic schedule. The 13-year-old is a competitive gymnast, spending several hours a week in training. She is learning to fly a plane and helps tend to her family鈥檚 farm animals and garden.

Her mother says the family would have used Oklahoma鈥檚 tax credit scholarship program to pay for private school tuition.

But 鈥渢here鈥檚 just no option out here,鈥� Stevens said. 鈥淚f Chloe is accepted or chosen in the lottery, it is a sure sign of God’s will for her and our family.鈥�

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