In a move that has ignited a debate over the separation of church and state, Ohio is funneling taxpayer money to expand and renovate religious schools, primarily those associated with a burgeoning conservative political group. This new approach, which includes competitive grants and a universal voucher program, has drawn criticism from advocates of public education and defenders of the constitutional principle of church-state separation.

Empowering Parents or Undermining Public Schools?

Tapping into Taxpayer Funds

Across the country, advocates for Christian education have been finding legal ways to access taxpayer money traditionally reserved for public schools. In Ohio, a new initiative is directing state budget surplus funds towards competitive grants for the expansion and renovation of religious schools. Notably, most of the winning construction projects are associated with the Center for Christian Virtue (CCV), an Ohio-based advocacy group that has seen a significant increase in its revenues amid the state's push to expand religious educational options.

The Universal Voucher Program

Ohio has also established a universal voucher program, providing tuition assistance to families to attend nonpublic schools, including religious institutions. Proponents of the construction grants argue that they can help address the capacity issues created by the popularity of these vouchers, particularly in rural areas. However, critics argue that this direct government funding of religious schools violates the principle of separation of church and state.

The Nonprofit Perspective

The nonprofit Americans United for Separation of Church and State has objected to the capital investments in religious schools, calling the practice unconstitutional and unprecedented in scope. They argue that while voucher programs involve individual spending decisions, the new construction grant program directly funnels taxpayer money to the schools themselves, which they believe is a violation of religious freedom.

The Legislative Perspective

The One-Time Strategic Community Investment Fund, which provided the funding for the religious school construction grants, originated in the Republican-led Ohio Senate. The Senate GOP spokesperson has rejected the claim that this direct government support for religious schools is unconstitutional, dismissing it as a "lie" used by the "left" to vilify parents who choose to send their children to religious schools.

The Expansion of School Choice

Across the country, expanded school choice programs have benefited religious organizations seeking to increase their educational offerings. Of the 33 states with private school programs, 12 allow any student to apply for public money to subsidize private, religious, or homeschool education.

The Role of the Center for Christian Virtue

The CCV and its education policy arm, the Ohio Christian Education Network, have been instrumental in advocating for Ohio's primary voucher program, EdChoice, to apply to religious schools. The network has grown significantly in recent years, expanding from around 100 schools to 185 schools over the past three years, and opening its first new school in 2022.

The Scholarship-Granting Organizations

Another Ohio program allows nonprofits to take financial advantage of expanded school choice through entities called "scholarship-granting organizations" (SGOs). These groups can collect money for private school scholarships, and donations of up to $1,500 per household are effectively made free through a tax writeoff. The CCV and its legal counsel have been pivotal in laying the groundwork for this arrangement.

The Center for Christian Virtue's Transformation

Once a fringe anti-pornography group, the Center for Christian Virtue has undergone a significant transformation over the past eight years, remaking itself and profiting in the process. Along with the school choice measures, the group has lobbied for bills targeting transgender students and gender-affirming care, and its annual contributions have grown nearly tenfold, from $412,000 in 2015 to $4.4 million in 2022.

The Impact on Public Education

The president of the Ohio Education Association, the state's largest teachers union, argues that the expanded school choice movement is redirecting money from public education to private schools and their operators, driven by a "profit motive." The union supports ongoing litigation alleging that the EdChoice program has created an unconstitutional system of separately funded private schools.

The Center for Christian Virtue's Vision

The CCV President, Aaron Baer, has openly stated that the organization's goal is to "get kids out of the public education system" and into "church schools," which he believes is crucial for understanding "who made them, and what He made them for." This vision has sparked further controversy and criticism from those who see it as a direct attack on the separation of church and state.