How many times must courts order Colorado to respect the First Amendment rights of Christians?

“Indeed, exclusion from a preschool is inherently anti-universal, and denying participation on the basis of protected beliefs or expression is not fair,” wrote U.S. District Court Judge Daniel Domenico when he directed the state government to deny universal preschool education program funding or penalization of Darren Patterson Christian Academy.

The Buena Vista school was approved to participate in the state’s new preschool program that provides eligible Colorado preschoolers with at least 15 hours of instruction per week in public and private schools. School leaders were concerned that their policies might conflict with state discrimination law and requested an exemption from the Department of Early Childhood Education.

Darren Patterson Christian Academy welcomes students from all religious backgrounds, but only hires Christians committed to the school’s mission. The school’s policies regarding pronouns, dress code, and bathroom use reflect the religious belief that God determines gender and cannot be based on individual gender expression.

When the exemption was denied, the school sought relief in civil court. The judge granted a temporary injunction because the plaintiff risks being penalized for exercising First Amendment rights under the Constitution and the school is likely to succeed in its lawsuit against the state.

The decision explains how several Supreme Court precedents affirm the right of faith-based institutions, including schools, to hire employees who share their religious beliefs.

Laws against discrimination cannot interfere with the selection of teachers and other school personnel who have a ministerial duty to instill the faith. Additionally, the First Amendment protects the right to associate for educational and religious purposes and therefore not to associate with those who do not share the same beliefs.

The Constitution also protects religious practice within organizations. The government cannot discriminate against faith-based organizations that are otherwise eligible for state funding, nor can it require that these organizations abandon their teachings and practices or risk losing their funding.

Darren Patterson Christian Academy is also likely to prevail in its free speech claims against state requirements that staff use individuals’ preferred pronouns rather than pronouns that correspond with biological sex. The Supreme Court recent 303 Creative vs Elenis This decision made clear that the Constitution not only prevents the government from restricting free speech; it also prevents him from expressing himself convincingly. Additionally, lower courts have ruled that individuals cannot be forced to use preferred pronouns or ignore biological differences between the sexes in favor of gender preferences. Lawmakers and government employees can use preferred pronouns, but they cannot force others to do so.

Thus, the Darren Patterson Christian School can choose to hire only those who share its religious beliefs and can continue to maintain its policies regarding gender distinctions under the free exercise and free speech clauses of the First Amendment while participant in Colorado’s universal preschool program.

The state argued, unsuccessfully, that denying program participants First Amendment rights was necessary to maintain a fair and universal preschool program. As the judge noted in his ruling, excluding Chaffee County’s only preschool and the children it serves from the government program is anything but fair and universal.