Judge orders Texas voucher program deadline extended amid controversy over exclusion of Islamic schools

U.S. District Judge Alfred Bennett ruled Tuesday that Texas must extend its deadline for private schools to apply for the state’s voucher program after a lawsuit alleged Islamic schools have been excluded from the school choice initiative.  

The judge called it “troubling” that no Muslim schools were approved for the program and ordered the deadline to be extended to March 31. 

Texas left out Islamic schools it said had potential connections to the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the largest U.S. Muslim advocacy group, which Gov. Greg Abbott (R) has labeled a terrorist organization.  

CAIR, which has not been declared a terrorist group by the federal government, is challenging the Texas designation in court. The group was successful in similar litigation in Florida.  

While the deadline is extended, the attorney for the Islamic schools that sued said the bigger objective is to get the schools accepted into the program.  

“The state has rigged the lottery,” said Eric Hudson, an attorney for the plaintiffs, local outlet KUT News reported. “They’ve done it in a way to try to exclude Muslim parents so that when they run the lottery, they’re less likely to be in the lottery system.” 

The order came from one of two lawsuits filed against Texas, the other one from Muslim parents who challenged the exclusion of Islamic schools from the program. The judge ordered for the two cases to be consolidated.  

The Hill has reached out to the Texas Comptroller’s Office for comment.  

“The lack of approved Islamic schools raises important questions about whether the program is being implemented in a fair, inclusive and nondiscriminatory manner. We urge state officials to take immediate steps to ensure that faith-based schools, including Islamic institutions, are given a fair opportunity to participate,” CAIR-Texas said in a statement.  

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