A number of Texas Islamic schools have been added to the state’s new education savings account program after a court order from a U.S. district judge extended the program’s application deadline.
Excellence Academy in McKinney and Bayaan Academy, an online school based in League City, appeared on the Texas Comptroller’s Office’s list of schools participating in the Texas Education Freedom Account program, which gives families public money to put toward private school tuition or other educational expenses.
Representatives for Brighter Horizons Academy, an Islamic school in Garland, told The Dallas Morning News the academy has also been added to the program. On Thursday afternoon, the school didn’t appear on the comptroller’s list of participating campuses.
All three campuses were among a group of Muslim schools and parents who sued the comptroller’s office, alleging they had been illegally shut out of the program.
The Education Lab
Ehsan Sayed, a board member at Brighter Horizons Academy, said the delayed approval has put the Islamic school far behind where leaders hoped to be in terms of planning for the upcoming school year. It’s also led to confusion among families who are interested in participating, he said.
Related
“It’s been a big burden and headache for us,” he said. “But we are grateful that the decision has been made by the courts in a timely fashion, and so we’re trying to just get the communications out there as quickly as possible.”
Leaders at Brighter Horizons have been excited about the possibility of a school choice program for years, long before lawmakers created the plan, he said. The program will allow the school to admit more students, which means additional revenue to put toward campus improvements. For families, it will mean the opportunity to use public money to send their children to the school they prefer, he said.
The lawsuit stems from a Jan. 24 opinion issued by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton stating that the comptroller’s office may exclude certain schools from the program based on their political affiliation. The opinion came in response to a request from Kelly Hancock, the acting state comptroller, on whether certain schools could be shut out of the program over alleged links to the Chinese Communist Party or the Council on American-Islamic Relations, which Gov. Greg Abbott has designated a terror group.
On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Alfred Bennett, of the Southern District of Texas, issued a temporary restraining order ordering the comptroller’s office to extend the application deadline to March 31, citing concerns about the exclusion of Islamic schools. At a hearing Tuesday, Bennett called it “troubling” that Islamic schools were being left out, the Houston Chronicle reported.
Bennett also ordered that the comptroller’s office must allow Muslim schools to apply for the program alongside hundreds of other private schools and childcare providers across the state that have applied. The ruling doesn’t require the comptroller admit any Muslim schools, only that he consider them for admission.
Related
Maria Kari, an attorney representing Bayaan Academy, Brighter Horizons and two parent plaintiffs, said the ruling only applies to the schools that joined the lawsuit.
According to Kari, 30 eligible Islamic schools wished to participate in the program, but did not receive a method to apply from the state. Kari said the ruling confirms there were never any issues with the schools that were excluded from the program. She accused state officials of “weaponizing” Islamophobia. Children are being caught up in the crossfire, she said.
“It’s shameful that we have to go to federal court,” she said.
Mustafaa Carroll, interim executive director of Council on American-Islamic Relations D-FW chapter, said his organization is not directly tied to any schools in the area besides occasionally programming surrounding civic education. CAIR also promotes Texas Muslim Capitol Day, when Muslim students visit the state capitol in Austin.
“All things Muslim are now suspect,” Carroll said about the state’s relationship with Muslim Americans.
Carroll encouraged state officials and non-Muslim community members to get to know local schools and their curriculum.
An injunction hearing in the court case is scheduled for April 24, at which Bennett will decide if the previous order becomes permanent.
The DMN Education Lab deepens the coverage and conversation about urgent education issues critical to the future of North Texas.
The DMN Education Lab is a community-funded journalism initiative, with support from Bobby and Lottye Lyle, Communities Foundation of Texas, The Dallas Foundation, Dallas Regional Chamber, Deedie Rose, Garrett and Cecilia Boone, Judy and Jim Gibbs, The Meadows Foundation, The Murrell Foundation, Ron and Phyllis Steinhart, Solutions Journalism Network, Southern Methodist University, Sydney Smith Hicks, and the University of Texas at Dallas. The Dallas Morning News retains full editorial control of the Education Lab’s journalism.