The Oklahoma Statewide Charter School Board met on Jan. 12 to consider whether Ben Gamla Jewish Charter School can move forward with a bid to open in the state, a proposal that runs counter to the state’s current ban on religious charter schools.
Ben Gamla, which said it would be open to students of all backgrounds while offering families a “rigorous, values-based education that integrates academic excellence with religious learning,” is seeking authorization despite an Oklahoma Supreme Court decision blocking faith-based schools from the charter program.
The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments in that dispute on April 30, 2025. It left the state ruling intact after a 4-4 split on May 22.
Peter Deutsch, founder of the Ben Gamla network, which operates four charter campuses in Florida, told the board the state “needs an educational option that combines a rigorous academic program with moral development.”
Eric Baxter, an attorney for Ben Gamla and senior counsel at the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, said that “religious schools cannot be shut out of state programs just because they are religious.”
The board is set for a final vote on Feb. 9.
