Students at a Christian college in Georgia will now be allowed to participate in a state-backed financial aid program after previously being prohibited from receiving tuition assistance if they were studying at a school or college of theology or divinity.
Luther Rice College & Seminary, a Christian private nonprofit institution located near Atlanta, has been approved to participate in Georgia's State Aid programs starting in the fall of 2025. These programs include the HOPE and Zell Scholarships for undergraduates, as well as dual enrollment opportunities for high school students.
In October, the college filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, seeking access to Georgia's financial aid offerings for its students. The lawsuit, supported by Alliance Defending Freedom, named members of the Georgia Student Finance Commission and Georgia Student Finance Authority as defendants.
The litigation contended that Luther Rice was compelled to choose between maintaining its ‘religious mission, degree programs, and commitment to teaching from a Christian worldview’ or conforming to state rules that restricted the school's faith-based identity.
“This endeavor was not just an opportunity to defend our religious freedom, but it was also an opportunity to demonstrate the value of a Christian education,” Luther Rice President Steven Steinhilber stated in a school announcement. “I commend the State and our partners at Alliance Defending Freedom for swiftly reaching a solution. I look forward to providing our Georgia residents an affordable biblically based education that is so vital for our time.”
The school highlighted that Georgia state officials prohibits private schools identified as a ‘school or college of theology or divinity’ from participating in the state's aid programs, even if the institution otherwise meets all eligibility criteria.
“Because of that exclusion, no Luther Rice student can receive Georgia student aid for any undergraduate degree or course, not even for a course or degree in the school's general studies or psychology programs. And no Georgia high school students can receive dual credit at Luther Rice,” states in the complaint.
The complaint asserted that Georgia permits other religious schools to participate, leaving Luther Rice, which is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges, as ‘the only excluded nonprofit school that is located in Georgia’ that otherwise qualifies for the same state financial aid.
Andrea Dill, ADF Legal Counsel, previously expressed to The Christian Post her belief that it was “unconstitutional for the government to deny a religious school a public benefit solely for its religious beliefs.”
She argued that “People of faith cannot be discriminated against for choosing the school that best aligns with their beliefs. The U.S. Constitution does not prevent the state from including religious organizations in state funding programs.” Dill further emphasized, “To the contrary, the Constitution prohibits the state from excluding religious organizations from otherwise available public benefits solely because of their religious character or exercise.”
In June 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court held in “David Carson et al. v. A. Pender Makin” that Maine's state tuition assistance program could not prevent parents from applying the funds to institutions that include religious instruction.
