Legislative Priorities

We believe that the First Amendment protects religious freedom and free speech in non-public schools. 

Education is an inherently religious enterprise because all school curricula, traditions, policies, and habits make claims, both directly and indirectly, about the origin, meaning, and purpose of life. 

One of the most formative methods of speech in America is that of the teacher and the curriculum. The local school, therefore, and particularly the non-public religious school, must be permitted to operate freely within its own religious and philosophical framework free from government interference. This should include the freedom to hire and promote teachers according to the school's own educational priorities and to develop and teach curricula derived from its own convictions. The tuition-funded school is wholly funded by parents and concerned community supporters, and the teachers and curricula in such schools should be selected and developed according to their funders' convictions and priorities. 

Rationale for Deregulating ND Non-Public Schools

We believe that God anoints parents, not the government, as  sovereign over their children's education.

The ND Constitution was established with gratitude to God for "the blessings of civil and religious liberty." (Preamble to ND Constitution) It doubles down on the First Amendment of the US Constitution. There can be no greater civil and religious liberty than that of the parents to teach their own children according to their own values and convictions. The family, as the foundational political unit of society, is responsible for its own citizens. When homes thrive, the state thrives.

In an increasingly secular and pluralistic society, the state must protect and expand parents' choice to educate their children according to their conviction. NDCCCS supports efforts to expand choice and access to a growing number of educational models . While not all NDCCCS schools are equally interested in participating in school choice initiatives, all support in principle any  efforts to expand access and choice so that every ND parent can provide to their children an education that honors their values and convictions.

We believe that local citizens should control policy and practice within their local community. 

From its earliest beginnings in 17th Century New England, American public schools were designed, maintained, and held accountable by local citizens who sought to pass on a noble way of life (paideia) to their children for the Glory of God and the blessing of their community. 

NDCCCS honors the concept of paideia--the concept of education as the formation of the whole person and the passing on of a culture and a way of life from one generation to the next. The home, local church, and community leaders should determine the most cherished knowledge, traditions, values, and skills that should be passed on to their community through formal education. 

We support efforts to strengthen and protect local control of education, from home schools to private schools to public schools, we support initiatives that reduce state power and influence over schools and that increase the power of local school boards, citizens, and parents.