OKPLAC, Inc. v. Statewide Virtual Charter School Board

The ACLU, Americans United for Separation of Church and State, Education Law Center and Freedom From Religion Foundation represent the plaintiffs in OKPLAC, Inc. v. Statewide Virtual Charter School Board. They are assisted by Oklahoma-based counsel Odom & Sparks PLLC and J. Douglas Mann.

The lawsuit demonstrates that the Oklahoma Statewide Virtual Charter School Board violated the Oklahoma Constitution, the Oklahoma Charter Schools Act, and the board’s own regulations when it approved St. Isidore’s application for charter-school sponsorship on June 5, 2023. Reasons that the application was unlawful include:

• St. Isidore plans to discriminate in its policies and practices based on religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, and other protected characteristics. Students could be denied admission, disciplined, or even expelled if they or their family members are LGBTQ+, a different religious faith, or do not otherwise conform to certain Catholic religious beliefs.
• St. Isidore reserves the right to discriminate against students on the basis of disability and failed to show that it would provide adequate services to students with disabilities.
• St. Isidore plans to provide a religious education and indoctrinate its students in Catholic religious beliefs. The school’s application states that the school will “participate in the evangelizing mission of the [Catholic] Church” and will fully incorporate the Church’s teachings “into every aspect of the School,” including “all subjects” taught and all activities offered.
• The Archdiocese of Oklahoma City will have control over the school in violation of board regulations that require a charter school to be independent of its educational management organization.

The plaintiffs are asking the District Court of Oklahoma County to block (1) St. Isidore from operating as a charter school, (2) the charter school board from entering into or implementing any contracts with St. Isidore, and (3) the state from funding St. Isidore.

The plaintiffs in OKPLAC, Inc. v. Statewide Virtual Charter School Board include OKPLAC Inc. (Oklahoma Parent Legislative Action Committee), Melissa Abdo, Krystal Bonsall, Leslie Briggs, Brenda Lené, Michele Medley, Dr. Bruce Prescott, the Rev. Dr. Mitch Randall, the Rev. Dr. Lori Walke, and Erika Wright.

Defendants in the lawsuit are the Statewide Virtual Charter School Board; its five members; the Oklahoma State Department of Education; State Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters; and St. Isidore of Seville Virtual Charter School, Inc.

Separately, the Oklahoma Attorney General filed a petition with the Oklahoma Supreme Court challenging the approval of the same school, St. Isidore. Many of the same plaintiffs in our OKPLAC case filed an amicus brief in support of the Attorney General's petition on December 27, 2023.

Resources:

• Media kit that includes photos and descriptions of the plaintiffs.