Statewide Charter School Board rescinds contract with religious charter school, but with a caveat

More than a month after an Oklahoma Supreme Court ruling, the Statewide Charter School Board voted Monday to obey the court's order to rescind its contract with St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School – but with a caveat.

The board voted 8-0 to rescind the contract, provided it will be reinstated if either the state court or the U.S. Supreme Court “reverses, vacates or otherwise nullifies” the state court’s current order. The motion adopted by the board was retroactive to June 25.

"Our board is always going to be in compliance with the court order," board Chair Brian Shellem said. "There were those that wanted to rush the process, but there was a process. This board will always respect the process. So that's what we did. You heard the motion – the contract will be in full force if the United States Supreme Court decides to overturn."

State schools Superintendent Ryan Walters, a strident proponent of the state’s contract with St. Isidore, did not attend the meeting, but John Tautfest – who leads the Oklahoma State Department of Education’s office of school choice – served as Walters’ proxy. Another board member, Brian Lepak, did not attend the meeting.

Walters did issue a statement about the vote, roundly criticizing the Oklahoma Supreme Court: "The Supreme Court has failed Oklahomans in their latest dismal ruling against parents and kids. They have chosen the path of liberal extremism and Marxism by depriving parents of a choice.  It’s shameful, but predictable from a failed judicial system. They do not represent conservative Oklahoma values.”

Shellem said the board was receiving legal advice from a conservative group, Alliance Defending Freedom, which had been representing the board's predecessor, the Statewide Virtual Charter School Board.

Asked if that caveat concerning the contract was legally enforceable, Shellem replied, "That's what the motion was and that motion carried, so we rescinded the contract. There's no question that's what happened."

A long legal battle over St. Isidore

St. Isidore is seeking to become the nation’s first Catholic virtual charter school, and the case is being eyed closely due to its religious overtones and potential for a precedent-setting ruling. The Oklahoma City Archdiocese, which operates St. Isidore along with the Tulsa Diocese, had no comment on the board’s vote to rescind the school’s contract with the state.

A local member of the Catholic clergy, Father Stephen Hamilton, the pastor of Saint Monica Catholic Church in Edmond, attended the meeting and led the invocation. He spoke with Shellem briefly before the meeting.

“While it is appalling that the Board took so long to recognize the authority of the Oklahoma Supreme Court, I am pleased that board members finally fulfilled their duty," Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond said in a statement. "The proposed state-sponsored religious charter school, funded by our tax dollars, represents a serious threat to the religious liberty of all four million Oklahomans.”

By a 3-2 vote last October, the Statewide Virtual Charter School Board approved the creation of St. Isidore, and Drummond quickly filed a lawsuit , saying such an agreement was unconstitutional. The state Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the case on April 2.

The state Supreme Court issued its initial ruling on June 25, ordering the Statewide Virtual Charter School Board, to rescind its contract with St. Isidore. But three days later, in the final meeting of that board before its dissolution, it failed to take action on the court order. The old board’s legal responsibilities now fall to the Statewide Charter School Board, which began operating July 1.

During the first two meetings of the new board , it did not vote to rescind the contract, citing a pending appeal by St. Isidore for a stay of the state court’s ruling. Last Monday, the state court denied the appeal . St. Isidore has indicated it intends to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to review the case, and at the most recent board meeting before Monday, on July 30, the board voted to join that appeal .

The archdiocese already has said St. Isidore wouldn't operate for the 2024-25 school year, as it awaits a decision from the U.S. Supreme Court. For the U.S. Supreme Court to take up the appeal, at least four of its nine justices would need to agree to hear the case.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Statewide Charter School Board rescinds contract with religious charter school, but with a caveat