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Federal judge blocks Oklahoma from excluding a Jewish charter school

Oklahoma City, OklahomaPublished 26 Sep 2026

Holloway Courthouse entrance Oklahoma City 2025-12-06 10-25-07
Holloway Courthouse entrance Oklahoma City 2025-12-06 10-25-07

G. Edward Johnson / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0 · source

Judge David Russell halted the state’s nonsectarian charter rule against Ben Gamla, setting up a clash with an Oklahoma Supreme Court decision the U.S. Supreme Court left in place.

U.S. District Judge David Russell granted a preliminary injunction that stops Oklahoma from enforcing its ban on religious charter schools against the proposed Ben Gamla Jewish charter. The order conflicts with the Oklahoma Supreme Court’s 2024 decision blocking St. Isidore, a Catholic charter the U.S. Supreme Court left blocked after a 4-4 vote. Ben Gamla’s backers call the ruling a religious-liberty win. Intervenors say a religious public charter would violate church-state law.

Shared facts

The Oklahoma charter board approved St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School in 2023.

The Oklahoma Supreme Court in 2024 blocked St. Isidore as an unconstitutional religious charter school.

The U.S. Supreme Court deadlocked in 2025 and left the state ruling against St. Isidore in place.

Ben Gamla seeks to open a free online Oklahoma charter that teaches Jewish religion along with other subjects.

Peter Deutsch, a former Democratic U.S. representative from Florida, founded Ben Gamla and is a plaintiff.

The Statewide Charter School Board rejected Ben Gamla’s application under the rule that charter schools be nonsectarian.

Ben Gamla sued and sought a preliminary injunction after the rejection.

Oklahoma residents, including a group represented by the ACLU and Americans United, intervened to oppose a religious charter.

The charter board is a defendant but has supported Ben Gamla’s effort to be considered.

Board attorney A.J. Ferate said the board wanted to follow the First Amendment but was bound by Oklahoma law.

On Thursday, Judge David Russell granted a preliminary injunction blocking enforcement of the nonsectarian rule against Ben Gamla.

Ben Gamla’s side, and Judge Russell, say charter schools are not government actors that must remain secular.

Ben Gamla is aiming to open for the 2027-28 school year, and it cannot open immediately.

Peter Deutsch said he is eager to open Ben Gamla in Oklahoma.

Parties have 30 days to appeal to the 10th Circuit.

Lawyers say the case could return to the U.S. Supreme Court and break the 4-4 tie.

Attorney General Gentner Drummond was removed as a defendant in the federal case.

Disputed facts

Sources disagree on whether Oklahoma’s ban on religious charter schools violates the First Amendment or is required by church-state law.

Shared opinions

Peter Deutsch called the ruling a victory for educational freedom and religious equality.

Peter Deutsch said the state cannot single out religious schools for exclusion from the charter program.

Daniel Chen said the Constitution does not let Oklahoma welcome every charter school except a religious one.

Daniel Chen said Oklahoma’s ban on religious charter schools was destined to fail.

Daniel Chen said Ben Gamla now gets a fair shot to serve Oklahoma families.

Opponents said allowing a religious public charter opens the door to a dangerous change for democracy.

Opponents said Ben Gamla will indoctrinate students and discriminate against families that do not share its beliefs.

NonDoc

Judge grants preliminary injunction in Jewish charter school case, SCOTUS challenge possible

Kevin Eagleson

Published 25 Sep 2026 accessed 26 Sep 2026

Facts

Justice Amy Coney Barrett, who attended Notre Dame Law School, recused herself, which produced the court’s split.

Russell is an Oklahoma Baptist University graduate who took senior status in 2013.

The Kaiman intervenors argued Ben Gamla lacked standing and that the claim was not ripe, and Russell disagreed.

The defendant-intervenors argued charter schools are governmental entities and that Ben Gamla was unlikely to win.

Russell stayed discovery until the appeal process ends.

Opinion

NonDoc wrote that Russell swatted down arguments by two sets of defendant-intervenors who tried to stop the injunction.

Becket says it exists to vindicate the principle that religious expression is natural to human culture because the religious impulse is natural to human beings.

KOCO

Jewish charter school moves closer to opening in Oklahoma after court ruling

Olivia Hickey

Published 25 Sep 2026 accessed 26 Sep 2026

Facts

The Archdiocese of Oklahoma City tried to open the country’s first Catholic public charter school in the St. Isidore case.

The archdiocese told KOCO it no longer plans to open the school.

Chen said a federal district court owes no deference to a state supreme court, which is why the rulings conflict.

Ferate said the charter board has strongly supported bringing new educational options to Oklahoma.

Opinion

A.J. Ferate said the separation of church and state protects churches from the state, not the state from churches.

Ferate said Oklahoma has struggled in national education ratings and needs new ways to educate students.

KOKH

Federal judge blocks Oklahoma from enforcing ban on religious charter school plan

Kimberly Querry-Thompson

Published 24 Sep 2026 accessed 26 Sep 2026

Facts

Russell wrote that the opinion does not judge whether Oklahoma should fund charter schools of different philosophies.

KOKH reported the case comes just weeks after the Supreme Court left in place Oklahoma’s decision blocking St. Isidore from becoming the nation’s first religious public charter.

Opinion

No opinion marked.

StateImpact Oklahoma

Oklahoma Jewish Charter school secures win in federal court

Beth Wallis

Published 25 Sep 2026 accessed 26 Sep 2026

Facts

No unique facts.

Opinion

No opinion marked.

K-12 Dive

Federal court clears way for first religious public charter school

K-12 Dive

Published 25 Sep 2026 accessed 26 Sep 2026

Facts

K-12 Dive said Carson v. Makin in 2022 and Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue in 2020 gave private institutions access to public funding regardless of religious use or status.

School-choice and religious-freedom advocates celebrated the decision to pause the law and let the Jewish charter move forward.

Alex Luchenitser of Americans United told K-12 Dive the groups were discussing next steps with their clients and co-counsel.

Opinion

K-12 Dive called the decision a win for the school-choice movement’s push to establish religious public schools.

Shellem said the board disagrees with that 2024 ruling.

The Journal Record

Oklahoma can’t deny Jewish charter school from opening, federal judge decides

Oklahoma Voice

Published 25 Sep 2026 accessed 26 Sep 2026

Facts

First Liberty Institute said the board will review the order at its next meeting and take the next steps.

Charter schools have long been treated as public schools because they rely mainly on taxpayer funding, even though non-elected boards run them and some rules do not apply.

Attorney General Gentner Drummond contended in a separate lawsuit that the board left non-religious concerns about Ben Gamla’s viability out of the rejection.

Russell heard arguments from all sides at an Aug. 5 hearing.

Opinion

No opinion marked.