Cleveland school district must grant religious groups equal access to facilities, rules federal court
A federal court has approved a Consent Order for a religious group to enjoy the same equal access that non-religious groups have in the use of school facilities.
The Child Evangelism Fellowship of Ohio filed a lawsuit against the Cleveland Metro School District in 2013 with the help of Liberty Counsel after school authorities restricted its use of the district's public school facilities.
The CEF holds meetings for the Good News Clubs and for Christian character teaching after school. While secular groups have been allowed to use school facilities for free, the school district charged fees for CEF.
When CEF was unable to pay such fees, the Good News Club was shut down. CEF enlisted the help of Liberty Counsel regarding the case.
"The district allowed secular use at no cost and at one time allowed CEF the same treatment but that changed when a new administrator stopped treating CEF equally," said Matt Staver, founder and chairman of Liberty Counsel, according to WND. "We sent letters to no avail and have been litigating this for several years to win the case."
The legal battle lasted three years until the court acknowledged the district's discrimination against CEF through a Consent Order issued on June 28, requiring the district to "amend and replace its Community Use of District Facilities Policy" in order to allow CEF equal access to public school facilities.
The district is also required to pay the religious group $150,000 for damages and fees.
Liberty Counsel vice president for legal affairs Horatio Mihet said public schools are not allowed to discriminate against "Christian viewpoints."
"It is a shame that CMSD wasted three years in litigation to learn a basic civics and constitutional lesson. We are elated with this victory for CEF, for equal access, and for our Constitution," Mihet said in a statement.
CEF has been involved in ministry for more than 70 years. It is represented in every state and has a presence in 183 countries. The Good News Clubs operated by CEF help give moral and religious education to children.
A survey conducted in 2013 showed that 87 percent of school principals believe the presence of the Good News Clubs in the campuses has positively impacted the students, and 52 percent believe that it has resulted in improved behavior for those who join them, according to Liberty Counsel.
