Attorney For Oklahoma Charter Board Speaks To Reporters Outside Supreme Court

Attorneys and members from the Oklahoma charter board speak to reporters outside the Supreme Court as it debates a case on religious charter schools.

Transcript

00:01Oklahoma families deserve more options for education, not fewer.

00:07Education in our country is lagging and we need diverse, high-quality options.

00:13That's why our client, the State Board, approved St. Isidore because it submitted a very strong proposal.

00:20In fact, the two Catholic organizations that founded St. Isidore operate their own schools

00:26and in those schools they have achieved a 100% graduation rate and a 98% college placement rate.

00:33And that's exactly what the State Board wants in its state.

00:36More opportunities for high-quality education just like that.

00:41In this case today, the court was asked to decide a very simple question.

00:45The question is whether the state can create a program, invite private groups to participate,

00:51and tell religious groups and religious groups alone that they can't be a part of the program.

00:56The simple answer to that question is they can't do that.

00:59Because the First Amendment, specifically the Free Exercise Clause,

01:03protects the right of religious organizations to be treated equally with others.

01:08The problem with Oklahoma law is that it tells religious groups and religious groups alone

01:13that they can't be a part of the program.

01:15And we're hopeful that given the arguments we've made today,

01:18the Supreme Court will recognize that.

01:20Because in the last eight years, the Supreme Court has decided three cases,

01:25very similar to this one, where the Supreme Court has found that the state can't create a program

01:31and invite everyone except people of faith.

01:34So we can't make a plan to make a change,

01:35which will occur before.

01:37No.

01:38Move out to chambers.

01:39Of these things, because of the Supreme Court.

01:40They may not be authority.

01:42To be your

01:50focus even in your happiness.

01:55So we've at our shaved towards hearing a language,

01:56and I cannot mention a short hearing a moment.