With the rollout of Colorado’s Universal Preschool Program comes the opening for new litigation for faith-based schools and curriculum. Though generally not a participant, faith-based schools were invited to take part in the new program. As Chalkbeat Colorado reports “Colorado explicitly invited faith-based preschools to participate in its new $322 million universal preschool program, which despite a rocky rollout has proven popular with families. But state officials have sent mixed messages about whether preschools can offer religious instruction during state-funded class time. Prior to the launch, they said it was forbidden. Now, they say it’s not, but that next year it could be.”

Though religion has always had an impact on the United States and our country’s development, it is important to know Colorado banned public money for religious education in 1876 with the adoption of its state Constitution. This decision was made to uphold the principle of separation of church and state, which is a fundamental aspect of the United States Constitution. The framers of Colorado’s Constitution believed public funds should not be used to support religious institutions or promote any religious beliefs. This ban ensures public resources are used for secular education, providing equal opportunities for all students regardless of their religious background. The role of education when our public education system was first established was to ensure citizens understood our new system of government – secular, democratic and, with obvious caveats, free. The first established school, Boston Latin, was founded in 1635 and is still in operation today.

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As we’ve moved into the 21st century, some of America’s parents have forgotten this education supported by tax dollars was created to enable their children to learn about the government and their role in it. Religion was traditionally taught at home and in church privately in accordance with the parents’ beliefs.

Funding during this period has also created an issue. Beginning in the 1980s with former President Ronald Reagan, school funding has been undercut and there is a constant push to fund private and religious schools. This is happening for several reasons, however, schools can’t teach all parents’ values because of the plethora of differing parental beliefs in this country. Schools shouldn’t teach religious tenets. Instead, they should focus on the basic curriculum that makes our population educated, successful and competitive on a global scale.

Free to choose | COUNTERPOINT

But here’s the thing: schools are trying to raise citizens who will vote and stay informed on issues through a lens not determined singularly by a religious belief. It is important to have vigorous discussions about what our country should do going forward with consideration of all aspects of individualism and not one religious ideal. To do otherwise is to deny the importance of citizen participation in our system.

Lisa LaBriola is a principal at Husch Blackwell Strategies and was a Senate Democrat staffer for close to a decade. She served as chief of staff to former Senate Minority Leader Lucia Guzman and former Senate President Leroy Garcia. Opinions expressed here are her own and do not reflect the opinions of any other organizations.