INFO:

The Supreme Court deadlocked Thursday over the constitutionality of what would have been nation’s first public religious charter school, blocking the creation of a Catholic institution that would have reshaped American education and blurred the line between church and state. With only eight justices voting, the Supreme Court’s 4-4 tie leaves in place an Oklahoma Supreme Court ruling that St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School would violate state law and the U.S. Constitution. A ruling for St. Isidore would have allowed, for the first time, direct and complete taxpayer funding to establish a faith-based charter school, legalizing government sponsorship of a curriculum that calls for students to adhere to Catholic beliefs and the church’s religious mission. Instead, the current landscape of government funding for religious schools remains intact. Under previous court rulings, taxpayer money may be used for vouchers to pay tuition at religious schools. But public schools — including charter schools — may not include religious teachings, because they are established and completely funded by the government. Caption from article by Justin Jouvenal, Laura Meckler and Ann E. Marimow.