Luther Rice College & Seminary in Lithonia has filed a lawsuit against some state officials, claiming they’ve discriminated against the institution by not allowing students to receive any state financial aid.
Georgia has several college financial aid programs, including the merit-based HOPE scholarship. The funding is available to public and most private institutions, except for colleges of theology or divinity. The complaint, filed by the Alliance Defending Freedom, asserts that withholding aid to Luther Rice due to its religious mission is unconstitutional.
“The Supreme Court has made clear that the state cannot exclude religious organizations — including religious schools — from otherwise available benefits solely because of their religious character, but that’s exactly what the state has done here,” said Andrea Dill, legal counsel for the Center for Christian Ministries at Alliance Defending Freedom.
The lawsuit against the Georgia Student Finance Commission was filed this week in U.S. District Court in Atlanta.
Luther Rice, founded in 1962, had about 750 students during the 2023-24 school year. More than half of its undergraduate students were from Georgia, according to the lawsuit complaint. The complaint says 59.4% of Luther Rice’s current undergraduate students are eligible for federal student financial aid.
The commission declined to talk about the complaint, saying it doesn’t comment on pending litigation.
The alliance has successfully sued other entities for alleged religious discrimination, most famously defending a Colorado baker who refused to make a wedding cake for a gay couple. The group also won a case for a former Virginia teacher who was fired for refusing to use a student’s preferred pronouns in class. The alliance has successfully litigated several settlements with Georgia colleges and universities in recent years, including $800,000 in 2022 to two former Georgia Gwinnett College students who said the school violated their First Amendment speech rights on campus.
Georgia’s Constitution previously had a sovereign immunity clause, which prevented residents from suing the state. However, voters approved an amendment to the state constitution in 2020 that allows people to sue Georgia over laws that violate the state or U.S. constitutions.
“We can sue state officials in their official capacity for what we call ‘injunctive relief,’ which is we’re asking the court to order the state officials to do something,” Dill said.
However, Dill said Luther Rice is excluded from programs like Dual Enrollment, where high school students can take college courses for credit. Students can’t take advantage of state aid for military reservists or the HOPE scholarship, which pays $1,248 per semester this year toward private college tuition. One undergraduate course at Luther Rice costs $1,415 this fall, according to the college’s website.
“(Not receiving aid) puts Luther Rice at a competitive disadvantage with other schools,” Dill said.
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