A federal judge has rejected State College Area School District’s request to dismiss a lawsuit that alleges it discriminates by not allowing parochial school students to participate in extracurricular activities. U.S. Middle District Judge Matthew Brann wrote in an opinion last week that the Religious Rights Foundation of Pennsylvania has “adequately alleged” that the district’s policy of allowing home-schooled and charter-schooled students but not those who attend parochial schools to participate, violates the U.S. Constitution’s Free Exercise and Equal Protection clauses. The Religious Rights Foundation filed the suit this past summer seeking to allow their children to participate in State College Area School District extracurriculars, after receiving an email from the district denying their request. The district argued that their policy did not force the plaintiffs to choose between their religious beliefs and extracurriculars and therefore did not meet the required infringement on constitutional rights. The school district has until Dec. 15th to answer the lawsuit.
