Boston-area school board approves church's private school after accusation of 'religious discrimination'

A school board in the Boston area has approved a church's application to open a private school after previously denying it due to what lawyers claimed was religious discrimination.

"We are grateful that Somerville officials recognized that the government cannot ban a religious school because they disagree with its religious beliefs," Ryan Gardner, counsel for First Liberty Institute, told Fox News Digital early Tuesday. "Because of the school board’s decision, more families will be able to provide the education they desire for their children." Fairfax County, Virginia parent Asra Nomani slams the school district's 'woke' admissions policy that focuses on race instead of achievement.

First Liberty Institute and the Massachusetts Family Institute had sent a letter last month urging Somerville Superintendent Mary Skipper and the Somerville Public School Committee to allow Vida Real Church, a largely Hispanic immigrant church in the Boston-area suburb, to open a religious private school called the Real Life Learning Center (RLLC). The church first sought permission to open the school in September 2021, but the school committee blocked it, and members expressed opposition to the church's beliefs, particularly on creation and sexuality issues.