Oklahoma doesn't have minute of publicly funded instruction time to lend to sectarian studies

The desire to have the state help Oklahoma families make the best choices for their children is a noble cause. As a parent who has had children in both public and independent Oklahoma schools, I realize that choosing schools for our children is a privilege not available to every family. I also believe that keeping state-funded education secular in nature provides extensive positive outcomes for our society.

I appreciate the Oklahoma Supreme Court’s decision stating that it is unconstitutional for public funds to support a sectarian school because I believe such funding sets up the state to be endorsing one religion over others. I also appreciate the distinction the court made that individual families have opportunities to make choices for their children, including sending them to independent sectarian schools, through the Lindsey Nicole Henry Scholarships for Students with Disabilities (LNH) and the Oklahoma Parental Choice Tax Credit.

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From kindergarten through my bachelor’s degree, I attended publicly funded schools, including three years in Department of Defense Dependents Schools overseas. I believe school is where we learn a social contract for how to operate in our society. Most children spend more waking hours in school than in any other place of influence. With the highest enrollment of children in our state in publicly funded schools, schools are where we collectively shape our future. Ideally, through their publicly funded education, our children come to understand the U.S. Constitution, confidently explain the democratic process, clearly assert their opinions based on critical and inquisitive thinking, and earnestly listen to differing opinions with a goal of understanding and finding points of agreement and compromise. Considering Oklahoma’s nationally low standing in public education, we do not have a minute of publicly funded instruction time to lend to sectarian studies.

As a rabbi and professional educator, I often bemoan the lack of time children in my synagogue have for deep religious education. We have Sunday school for two hours a week, with an additional one hour for learning Hebrew. Balanced with our students' weekly school schedules, extracurricular activities and family time, I understand that Jewish children in Oklahoma City do not have the same depth of learning as children in more heavily populated communities who attend independent Jewish schools. I also understand that it is not the state’s responsibility to provide this learning. We work in partnership with parents and grandparents to teach their children that our private religious values intend to make us good neighbors and citizens in a diverse community. Is it a sacrifice to give up weekend time for religious education? Maybe. But values-based living is itself a sacrifice. Sometimes we humble ourselves and our personal desires for a greater good.

It is a privilege to live in a nation and a state that gives people of all religious backgrounds equal access to publicly funded education. I pray our secular education, prioritizing shared American values, leads us toward a more cohesive and respectfully diverse society.

Rabbi Vered Harris was ordained in 2000 and holds a master’s degree in Jewish education and a master’s degree in Hebrew letters. She served for 12 years as a congregational educator in Overland Park, Kansas, before moving to Oklahoma City in 2012 to serve as the spiritual leader of Temple B’nai Israel.