A Christian college in Georgia is challenging a state commission over its decision to prohibit students from accessing financial aid for their education.
Earlier this month, Luther Rice College and Seminary filed a lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Atlanta Division. The suit names members of the Georgia Student Finance Commission and the Georgia Student Finance Authority as defendants.
The lawsuit contends that Georgia’s public tuition assistance programs unjustly exclude private schools classified as “a school or college of theology or divinity.” Despite Luther Rice meeting the qualifications for Georgia’s student aid programs, state officials have excluded the college due to its offerings being heavily religious-based, impacting even non-religious degrees that are intertwined with the school’s religious mission, the plaintiff claim.
The complaint highlights that this exclusion prevents Luther Rice students from receiving Georgia student aid for any undergraduate degree or course, including those in general studies or psychology. Additionally, Georgia high school students cannot receive dual credit at Luther Rice.
According to the lawsuit, other religious schools are allowed to participate in Georgia’s programs, whereas Luther Rice is not. Luther Rice is unique as it’s the only excluded nonprofit school in Georgia accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) that also awards undergraduate degrees, thereby otherwise qualifying for the state’s student aid programs, the college explained.
Luther Rice is represented by Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), a nonprofit legal organization specializing in religious liberty cases. ADF Legal Counsel Andrea Dill expressed her belief that it is ”unconstitutional for the government to deny a religious school a public benefit solely for its religious beliefs.” Dill emphasized the constitutional rights of people of faith to not face discrimination for attending schools aligning with their beliefs.
She argued that the U.S. Constitution does not prevent states from including religious organizations in funding programs and, on the contrary, prohibits the exclusion of religious organizations from public benefits because of their religious character. Given that “Luther Rice College otherwise qualifies for Georgia student aid programs,” Dill stated that Georgian officials “cannot exclude Luther Rice students from such programs because of the religious character of the school they chose to attend.”
According to The Christian Post, the outlet sought comment from the Georgia Student Finance Commission, but a spokesperson declined to comment on pending litigation.
This legal challenge follows a significant Supreme Court decision from June 2022 in the case of David Carson et al. v. A. Pender Makin, where the court ruled that Maine’s state tuition assistance program could not bar parents from using funds for schools that provide religious instruction.
