Texas’ school voucher-style program application window has been extended by two weeks, following a federal judge’s order Tuesday. He cited concerns about the exclusion of Islamic schools from the program.
With applications to the Texas Education Freedom Accounts set to close at 11:59 p.m. Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Alfred Bennett, of the Southern District of Texas, granted a temporary restraining order. At a Tuesday morning court hearing, he called it “troubling” that Islamic schools were being left out, according to the Houston Chronicle.
“We welcome the court’s decision to extend the application deadline,” said the Council on American-Islamic Relations-Texas in a statement. “All families, regardless of their faith, deserve equal access to educational opportunities supported by public programs.”
More than 200,000 students applied to the $1 billion program, according to the state Comptroller’s Office, which runs TEFA. Families can receive public money to support their child’s private schooling and homeschooling.
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While at least 2,200 schools have been approved to accept TEFA funds, no accredited Islamic schools have been signed off to take part in the state program. The fate of Islamic schools’ participation has been up in the air, following pushback from state leaders.
In March, Islamic schools and parents filed two lawsuits against state officials, including acting State Comptroller Kelly Hancock, on the basis of religious discrimination.
“Defendants have created a system where Muslim families cannot even select their schools in the application portal,” court documents in one lawsuit, filed on March 11, read. “Islamic schools and students are denied the same opportunity afforded to their religious and secular peers.”
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In addition to extending the deadline, Hancock must give plaintiff schools access to submit TEFA applications, per the Tuesday court order.
In December, Hancock asked Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton whether schools could be excluded from the program, if they were linked to a “foreign terrorist organization,” “transnational criminal network,” or “adversarial foreign government.”
In late January, Paxton issued an opinion that the comptroller’s office has “full, exclusive statutory authority” to block private schools based on their political affiliations, including some Islamic and Chinese-linked schools.
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Some schools that applied to the program have hosted events organized by CAIR, the country’s largest organization dedicated to advocating for civil rights of Muslims, Hancock said. Abbott designated CAIR as a “foreign terrorist organization” and a “transnational criminal organization” in November.
The permanent injunction hearing has been set for April 24, according to Eric Hudson, an attorney representing Bayaan Academy, one of the schools suing the state.
Staff writer Milla Surjadi contributed to this report.
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