n a major setback to government funding of private, sectarian schools, a U.S. District Court has put the brakes on Cleveland's voucher programming, saying that it violated the separation of church and state. The action put an immediate freeze on payments to the parents of some 4,000 students covered by the four-year old program who attend 56 private schools in the metropolitan area. According to the Cleveland Plain Dealer newspapers, more than half of those students are in schools operated by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Cleveland.

   As a result of the decision, parents who have children in the voucher schools will be responsible for any tuition if they decide to keep their youngsters enrolled. Public school classes began yesterday, and a spokesperson for the Cleveland school system that that there was "no problem" in absorbing new students from the religious and private schools.

   U.S. District Judge Solomon Oliver, Jr. ruled on Tuesday that "The Cleveland program has the primary effect of advancing religion," and noted that the voucher program "provided unrestricted grants to parents as tuition reimbursement for their children to attend nonpublic schools, the bulk of which is concededly sectarian in orientation."

   Oliver's decision had mixed impact on parents and students participating in voucher schools. As of Wednesday, classes at 20 of the 56 schools covered by the program had resumed; in some cases, like St. Francis School, parents were told that they would not be held liable for any tuition fees during the legal appeal to the judge's ruling. Sister Karen Somerville, principle at the school warned, that "If it doesn't get overturned, the parents may have to pay," but added: "Judging from the phone calls I'm getting, parents will do everything they can to keep their child here."

   The Cleveland voucher plan began as an "experiment" four years ago, and provides mostly lower-income families with up to $2.250 per child that can be used for tuition at private and sectarian schools. The first payments for this year's program are due in October; but Judge Oliver opined that he was unlikely to reconsider his ruling. The Cleveland program was considered a pioneering experiment, and was the first voucher program to fund religious schools. An earlier voucher scheme in Milwaukee which began in 1990 excluded sectarian schools, but included Parochial and other religious schools once the Cleveland program was established.

   Reacting to Wednesday's ruling, Ohio Attorney General Betty D. Montgomery filed an emergency appeal with the 6th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in Cincinnati. Judge Oliver's decision was also criticized by the Cleveland Plain Dealer, which in an editorial titled "Voucher vulture," said that the "last-minute" ruling inconvenienced families and schools because of "an act of arrogance, carelessness and utter disregard for the needs of children across the city." But opponents of the voucher program had warned for years that it could be found unconstitutional, and have a negative impact on Cleveland's already cash-strapped public school system. In addition, state education officials had recommended removal of three private schools from coverage by the program due to unsafe conditions and unlicensed staff members.

   Oliver's opinion included citation of the 1973 U.S. Supreme Court ruling in COMMITTEE FOR PUBLIC EDUCATION v. NYQUIST, where a New York State law establishing vouchers for private schools was invalidated. The high court noted that the program advanced religion and violated the establishment clause of the Constitution since most of the schools receiving public monies were sectarian. Oliver said that a similar situation existed in the Cleveland scheme, and pointed to a section of a handbook for parents from one voucher school which decreed, "a child needs to hear and learn the word of God constantly, and this can be done only when the entire curriculum and the life of the school is grounded in the word of God and dedicated to the purpose of showing the love of the Savior to a world which without Him, would be lost forever."

   Fallout from Judge Oliver's ruling may also confirm the dependency of religious schools on state aid. In addition to the majority of the schools covered by the voucher system being affiliated with the Roman Catholic Church, "Nearly all of the 56 private schools that planned to participate in the voucher program offer religious instruction," noted the Cleveland Plain Dealer. A principal at one voucher school operated by Westside Baptist Christian Church said that it may not be able to survive without government assistance, and that more than 25% of enrolled students attend thanks to the help of voucher scholarships.

   In additional to pointing out the First Amendment problems with voucher programs, Judge Oliver's decision is also significant since it halts a program that has been operating for four years. It is only the second time a Federal court has considered the issue of vouchers; the first case was earlier this year when a request by three families in Maine to use public money for tuition at a Roman Catholic school was denied. In May, the Ohio State Supreme Court struck down vouchers, but based its decision mainly on the technicality that the legislation establishing the program was illegal since it was a budgetary amendment rather than a separate bill.

   The state is asking the 6th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals to freeze Oliver's ruling and allow the voucher program to operate as an appeal is launched. A decision on allowing the program to continue could come this week. Voucher programs are underway elsewhere as well; in Florida, that state's voucher scheme is already being challenged after being implemented by the legislature. As legal challenges reach federal courts, it becomes increasingly likely that the U.S. Supreme Court will eventually be forced to decide whether or not programs in Cleveland and other states do, in fact, violate the separation of church and state.

[text only]