Why Catholic Charter Schools Are a Risky Bet

Hillsdale College President Larry Arnn's Weekend Interview with Tunku Varadarajan ('Harvard and the View From Hillsdale,' April 19) gives new life to the eternal truth that government money is never free. While their conversation comes in the context of the Trump administration's battle with Harvard and other higher-education elite, the lesson extends to the idea of religious charter schools that will be argued before the Supreme Court this week ('The Court Should Bless Religious Charters' by Nicole Stelle Garnett, Houses of Worship, April 25).
The minute you say 'yes' to government money, you get government's rules and oversight. In the world of charter schools, where state regulators can shut you down, you're looking at potential coercion. For the Catholic Church, that can mean having your license and funding predicated on instruction and policies that contradict your teachings. Think discussions of abortion in health class or gender-specific bathroom policies. The cost of being a Catholic charter school would be the very catholicity that makes a Catholic school different, distinct and important.

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