Christian college sues Ga. for banning students from financial aid program

October 29, 2024

Luther Rice College & Seminary in Georgia has filed a lawsuit against the Georgia Student Finance Commission and Georgia Student Finance Authority, for prohibiting students from accessing financial aid.

The Christian Post reports that the Lithonia, GA school filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Atlanta Division earlier this month over a Georgia law that prevents any “school or college of theology or divinity” from receiving public tuition assistance programs.

The complaint states: “Even though Luther Rice otherwise qualifies for Georgia student aid programs, Georgia officials excluded Luther Rice from the state’s student aid programs because ‘most of [Luther Rice’s] offerings [are] religious based and non-religious degrees [are] substantially intertwined with the school’s religious mission,’”

Because of that exclusion, the complaint says, “No Luther Rice student can receive Georgia student aid for any undergraduate degree or course, not even for a course or degree in the school’s general studies or psychology programs. And no Georgia high school student can receive dual credit at Luther Rice.”

The complaint also notes that other religious schools are allowed to participate in state financial aid programs making Luther Rice, “the only excluded nonprofit school that is located in Georgia, is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (‘SACSCOC’), and awards undergraduate degrees and thus otherwise qualifies for the Georgia student aid programs.”

Luther Rice is being represented by the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) which has successfully argued other religious freedom cases before the U.S. Supreme Court.

According to the Christian Post, ADF Legal Counsel Andrea Dill said, “People of faith cannot be discriminated against for choosing the school that best aligns with their beliefs. The U.S. Constitution does not prevent the state from including religious organizations in state funding programs. To the contrary, the Constitution prohibits the state from excluding religious organizations from otherwise available public benefits solely because of their religious character or exercise.”

Dill noted that because Luther Rice otherwise qualifies for Georgia student aid programs, state officials cannot exclude Luther Rice students from those programs, “because of the religious character of the school they chose to attend.”

Photo: top, Credit: Alliance Defending Freedom