Judge strikes down Minnesota law banning religious tests for college credit program

Source: msn/AP

12h


MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Religious colleges that require students to sign a statement of faith cannot be excluded from a popular Minnesota program that lets high school students take college courses for credit, a federal judge has ruled, tossing a state law that she called an unconstitutional violation of religious freedom.

The ruling late Friday from U.S. District Judge Nancy Brasel was a victory for two conservative Christian colleges in the state: Crown College in St. Bonifacius and the University of Northwestern in Roseville. Those two institutions require their students to pledge to follow the school’s values and conduct rules, effectively barring students who aren’t Christian or who are LGBTQ+ from campus activities.

The 2023 law was sought by the state Department of Education and advocates for LGBTQ+ rights. In defending the change at a hearing in December, the state argued that it rightly protected high school students who are not Christian, straight, and cisgender — those whose gender identity matches the sex they were assigned at birth.

Minnesota’s 40-year-old Postsecondary Enrollment Options program lets high schoolers earn free credits at state expense at public or private colleges of their choice, although the courses must be nonsectarian. Around 60,000 students have participated.

Read more: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/judge-strikes-down-minnesota-law-banning-religious-tests-for-college-credit-program/ar-AA1L5jVl