WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that college students who are preparing for the ministry do not have a right to state scholarship aid on the same basis as other students.
The 7-2 decision, written by Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, rejected the notion that divinity students are entitled to equal treatment when it comes to receiving state money.
Instead, the court upheld the principle of separation of church and state -- a key feature of the state constitutions in California and 36 other states -- and held that the interest of the states outweighed the claim of religious discrimination.
In this case, the court ruled against a college student whose Washington state scholarship was rescinded when he announced his area of study. The Bush administration had sided with the student in the case, as had the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.
But faced with choosing between states' rights and religious protections, Rehnquist and six other justices came down on the side of the states.
Had they ruled the other way, it could have been a significant boost to the case being made by the administration for school vouchers, which would allow public education funds to be spent at religious schools, and so-called faith-based social service programs, which would funnel federal funds to religious groups.
Indeed, the decision could bolster the case being made in other courts that state funds should not go to religious schools. In Florida, for example, Gov. Jeb Bush has supported vouchers for students in some failing schools, but state judges have ruled the public money may not flow to church-related schools under the terms of the state Constitution.
In its decision Wednesday, the Supreme Court drew a crucial distinction between what the U.S. Constitution permits and what it requires when the issue is taxpayer funding of religion. The 1st Amendment says the government "shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof" -- two clauses that "are frequently in tension," Rehnquist noted.
In recent years, the high court has retreated from the principle of strict separation of church and state in the area of school funding. Led by Rehnquist, the justices have given states more leeway to fund church schools if they choose to do so.
Two years ago, for example, the justices upheld Ohio's policy of giving vouchers, or tuition stipends, to low-income parents who could use the money to send their children to religious-affiliated schools.
