Federal judge strikes down Minnesota program restrictions on religious colleges

A federal judge struck down a Minnesota law that barred religious colleges from a state program, ruling it unconstitutional.

In 2023, state legislators passed an amendment to the state’s Postsecondary Enrollment Options (PSEO) Act that changed who was eligible to participate in the program. Institutions that required students to sign a statement of faith, or that based admissions on “a studentʹs race, creed, ethnicity, disability, gender, or sexual orientation or religious beliefs or affiliations,” were barred from the program under the law change. The 40-year-old state program lets high school students take college classes tuition-free at public or private institutions.

Two Christian colleges, Crown College and the University of Northwestern in St. Paul, were the only schools directly affected by the law. Two Christian families who wanted to use PSEO funds to send their children to the two Christian colleges challenged the law in federal court.

In the ruling Friday, U.S. District Judge Nancy Brasel sided with the parents and schools, ruling that Minnesota’s law violated the First Amendment and the Freedom of Conscience Clause of the Minnesota Constitution.

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“In sum, the Faith Statement Ban is unconstitutional on its face under the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment of the United States Constitution because it burdens religious exercise, is not neutral and generally applicable, and is not narrowly tailored to achieve MDE’s compelling interest,” the judge wrote.

Brasel called the faith statement ban “inseverable from the Nondiscrimination Requirement,” saying the amendment “must be stricken in its entirety.”

According to the Associated Press, the Minnesota Department of Education has tried to ban colleges with a faith statement since 2019. It succeeded in 2023 when Democrats gained control of both houses of the state legislature.

Parents who sued praised the decision.

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“We raise our children to put their faith at the center of their lives. Minnesota tried to take that right away from us by denying kids like ours the opportunity to attend schools that reflect their faith,” Mark and Melinda Loe said in a statement. “We are grateful for this ruling, which protects students across the state and the schools they want to attend.”

Becket, the legal group which brought the case, called the decision a victory for families statewide.

“Minnesota tried to cut off educational opportunities to thousands of high schoolers simply for their faith. That’s not just unlawful — it’s shameful. This ruling is a win for families who won’t be strong-armed into abandoning their beliefs, and a sharp warning to politicians who target them,” Diana Thomson, senior counsel at Becket, said in a statement.

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The Minnesota Department of Education did not immediately return Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

After the lawsuit was filed, both sides agreed to a court order temporarily blocking enforcement of the law while the case was ongoing.

At a hearing in December, the Minnesota Department of Education argued that the law rightly protects high school students who “are not Christian, straight and cisgender,” the Associated Press reported.