Andrea Eger
Tulsa World Staff Writer
The Oklahoma state government-sponsored Catholic charter school at the center of national controversy drew just 145 student applications — 29% of its initial capacity — by the April 3 deadline it set in case an admissions lottery was needed.
Last fall, a divided Statewide Virtual Charter School Board approved a contract with Catholic leaders in Oklahoma to create St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School, which, if opened, would be the nation’s first religious charter school.
On Tuesday, the Oklahoma Supreme Court heard arguments in Attorney General Gentner Drummond’s legal bid to halt taxpayer funding and sanctioning for the proposed school, whose founders believe would-be students are entitled to taxpayer resources for access to a Catholic school education across the state.
St. Isidore has the green light to enroll up to 500 students during each of its first three years of operation.
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The school’s media contact, John Helsley, director of communications for the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City, told the Tulsa World that 145 applications for student enrollment for 2024-25 had been received as of Thursday, meaning the number of seats available was not exceeded by the April 3 lottery deadline.
Now the school’s website states that “a communication will be sent to applicants directing them to complete the registration process. Parents/guardians will have one week to accept their seat and complete registration. At the end of that time period, the registration reopens to the public and school enrolls until capacity.”
Drummond has asked the Oklahoma Supreme Court to enforce existing state law that defines charter schools as public schools and specifically prohibits them from affiliation with a nonpublic sectarian school or religious institution.
“Are we being used as a test case?” Justice Yvonne Kauger interjected during Tuesday’s proceeding in the state Supreme Court’s chamber in the Oklahoma Capitol. “It sure looks like it.”
St. Isidore is advertising enrollment for Oklahoma resident students in kindergarten through 12th grade “of any faith or no faith.”
But the Catholic founders of the school are unabashed in their offering of a charter school designed with “faith formation and sacramental life” included.
“This program is intended to support and reinforce both the domestic church and the local parish community,” states St. Isidore’s website. “Once the geographic information of students is known, the school will begin to seek out partner (Catholic church) parishes willing to serve as hubs for occasional gatherings of local students.
“These are spaces where a small group of students, parents, and educators can gather for Mass, confession, academic electives, tutoring, labs, or extracurricular activities once or twice a month depending on need or desire. Two all-school Masses will be offered each year. One in the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City, and one in the Diocese of Tulsa.”
St. Isidore’s stated curriculum “is a framework of courses based in the Catholic Intellectual Tradition of utilizing faith and reason to seek and understand Truth. In addition to the teachings of our faith and the search for Truth through the person of Jesus Christ, we also seek truth in the learning that encompasses all subject areas.”
While students must reside in Oklahoma, that won’t be the case for teachers.
St. Isidore says it will employ teachers “from all corners of Oklahoma and from across the United States who care about children having the opportunity to experience an excellent education rich in the Catholic intellectual tradition.”
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