Judge blocks religion-only denial of Jewish charter school

What the judge ordered

U.S. District Judge David Russell has temporarily blocked Oklahoma’s Statewide Charter School Board from denying Ben Gamla Jewish Charter School Foundation’s application solely because the proposed online school would include religious instruction.

Russell, a judge in the Western District of Oklahoma, found that the Oklahoma Charter Schools Act’s nonsectarian requirement treats otherwise eligible applicants differently because of their religious character. He ruled that the provision violates the First Amendment’s protection for the free exercise of religion.

The Florida-based foundation sued Gentner Drummond and the statewide board after the board rejected its application and appeal. The preliminary injunction limits how the board may evaluate the application while the case proceeds; it does not approve the charter or order the school to open.

Why the board rejected the application

The board’s initial rejection identified several issues, including the religious-affiliation ban, conflicting projected enrollment figures, proposed policies that would not comply with Oklahoma’s Open Meeting Act and a governing board with only one Oklahoma resident. State law requires every charter school board member to live in Oklahoma.

Ben Gamla addressed several objections in a revised application. When the statewide board rejected the appeal in March, its letter cited the statutory prohibition on religious affiliation and the earlier legal dispute over a proposed Catholic charter school.

Earlier case and local response

The statewide board’s predecessor approved St. Isidore of Seville, an online Catholic charter school, in 2023. A 4-4 U.S. Supreme Court decision left the ruling against that school in place, and St. Isidore never opened.

Ben Gamla’s founder, Peter Deutsch, has operated Hebrew-language charter schools in Florida since 2007. Their curriculum includes Hebrew language, culture, history and Jewish religious principles. Jewish organizations in Tulsa and Oklahoma City said they were not consulted about the Oklahoma proposal, and the Oklahoma City Jewish Federation had urged the board to reject it.