Appeals Court Finds Unconstitutional Colorado Denial Of Student Financial Aid To Christian College
Colorado higher education officials acted unconstitutionally when they denied state student financial aid to a private Christian college, ruled a federal appeals court. The Tenth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals concluded Wednesday that it was unconstitutional for Colorado to exclude the religious college from the state’s College Opportunity Fund. By doing so, the three-judge panel, said the state “discriminates among religions without constitutional justification and its criteria for doing so involves unconstitutionally intrusive scrutiny of religious belief and practice.” In 2003, the Colorado Christian University applied to participate in the state’s College Opportunity Fund, which provides financial aid to undergraduate students. The university, which describes its mission as cultivating “knowledge and love of God in a Christ-centered community of learners and scholars,” was denied the aid by the Colorado Commission on Higher Education. The commission cited policy barring state aid to distinctly religious institutions. Colorado Solicitor General Dan Domenico argued before the Tenth Circuit panel that the policy barring aid to religious institutions was intended to uphold the First Amendment principle of the separation of church and state.