Mitchell v. Helms, 530 U.S. 793, 55 (2000)

Page:   Index   Previous  48  49  50  51  52  53  54  55  56  57  58  59  60  61  62  Next

848

MITCHELL v. HELMS

O'Connor, J., concurring in judgment

gram at issue, we noted several factors that precluded us from finding an impermissible financing of religious indoctrination: the aid was "provided to students at whatever school they choose to attend," the services were "by law supplemental to the regular curricula" of the benefited schools, "[n]o Title I funds ever reach the coffers of religious schools," and there was no evidence of Title I instructors having "at-tempted to inculcate religion in students." Id., at 226-228. Relying on the same factors, we also concluded that the New York City program could not "reasonably be viewed as an endorsement of religion." Id., at 235. Although we found it relevant that Title I services could not be provided on a schoolwide basis, we also explained that this fact was likely a sufficient rather than a necessary condition of the program's constitutionality. We were not "willing to conclude that the constitutionality of an aid program depends on the number of sectarian school students who happen to receive the otherwise neutral aid." Id., at 229.

The Chapter 2 program at issue here bears the same hallmarks of the New York City Title I program that we found important in Agostini. First, as explained above, Chapter 2 aid is distributed on the basis of neutral, secular criteria. The aid is available to assist students regardless of whether they attend public or private nonprofit religious schools. Second, the statute requires participating SEA's and LEA's to use and allocate Chapter 2 funds only to supplement the funds otherwise available to a religious school. 20 U. S. C. § 7371(b). Chapter 2 funds must in no case be used to supplant funds from non-Federal sources. Ibid. Third, no Chapter 2 funds ever reach the coffers of a religious school. Like the Title I program considered in Agostini, all Chapter 2 funds are controlled by public agencies—the SEA's and LEA's. § 7372(c)(1). The LEA's purchase instructional and educational materials and then lend those materials to public and private schools. See §§ 7351(a), (b)(2). With respect to lending to private schools under Chapter 2, the statute

Page:   Index   Previous  48  49  50  51  52  53  54  55  56  57  58  59  60  61  62  Next

Last modified: October 4, 2007