The Law of Church and State: Public Aid to Sectarian Schools

Publication Date: August 2000

Publisher: Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service

Author(s):

Research Area: Culture and religion; Education; Law and ethics

Type:

Abstract:

One of the most difficult issues of constitutional law concerns the extent to which the establishment of religion clause of the First Amendment imposes constraints on the provision of public aid to private sectarian schools. Most of the Supreme Court's jurisprudence has construed the clause to impose severe restrictions on such aid when given directly to sectarian elementary and secondary schools but to be less restrictive when given to colleges or indirectly in the form of tax benefits or vouchers. Recent decisions have loosened the constitutional limitations on direct aid to an as-yet indeterminate degree. This report gives a brief overview of the evolution of the Court's interpretation of the establishment clause in this area and itemizes the categories of aid that have been addressed by the Court and held to be constitutionally permissible or impermissible, both at the elementary and secondary school level and at the college level.