"CHRISTIAN students need not apply" -- an apt title for the University of California school system application form. The University of California system has essentially barred students attending one Christian high school from gaining admittance into any of its higher learning institutions. The grounds? The high school teaches its classes from a "Christian viewpoint," which UC has deemed unsatisfactory in meeting its requirement for high school courses. Such a ridiculous argument has no merit on the basis of law, logic or equality.
Five students at Calvary Chapel Christian School, based in Murrieta, Calif., were unable to apply to any of the 10 schools in the California system, and Calvary Chapel is now fighting back. It filed a joint federal civil rights lawsuit with the Association of Christian Schools International last Thursday against five university officials and the Board of Regents, claiming discrimination against schools that teach subjects from a Christian perspective.
The University of California has to certify high schools' course material, looking over textbooks and course outlines, in order for students to be able to apply to college within the system. A university admissions official wrote that the science classes at Calvary Chapel were "not consistent with the viewpoints and knowledge generally accepted in the scientific community." But Wendell R. Bird, a lawyer representing the Association of Christian Schools International, notes that the students are taught creationism or intelligent design along with "the standard content of evolution," and students are told that a majority of scientists believe in evolution.
However, the UC board forbids exposure to multiple views when it comes to evolution. The Los Angeles Times reports that under a new policy instituted last year, the UC admissions board now refuses to accept any courses that use textbooks "challenging Darwin's theory of evolution." According to the Chronicle of Higher Education, the University of California also rejected classes from Calvary Chapel in history, literature and government studies, some of which the director of undergraduate admissions characterized as "too narrow."
Instead, according to the lawsuit, the school has to submit a "secular science curriculum" to the UC board of admissions in order for the students to apply. The only other options for the students are to take certified classes at a community college or to request admittance based solely on their SAT scores, which decreases the odds of acceptance significantly.
The issue of dismissing different viewpoints in this case only skims the surface of the injustice. This is a civil rights violation and a breach of freedom of religion; the UC board is refusing a public education to students because they went to a Christian high school where they were exposed to ideas about (gasp!) an alternative to evolution. If the UC board is so intent on the students learning about evolution in a non-Christian setting, why not let them apply and have the opportunity?
Furthermore, denying someone the ability to attend a public school based solely on his or her high school curriculum -- something the student can't change -- is absurd. Some might argue that it is the students' choice to go to the Christian school, but such decisions are often made by parents, not the minors themselves.
California is currently the only known school system to reject courses from a Christian school, according to Bird. I wonder how all of the other state systems deal with the influx of those radical religious nuts who supposedly can't comprehend modern science.
Equally appalling is the lack of flexibility and total disregard for reality in terms of disparities among school curriculums. Some school districts don't offer AP exams; do colleges hold that against the students applying? There is no cookie-cutter curriculum that every high school follows. All of us currently enrolled at the University had vastly differing curricula in high school with different textbooks, supplemental materials, projects, papers and teachers, even if we all did take U.S. History or biology or English literature.
Ironically, it is not these "ultra-conservative" Christian students here that are "too narrow" in their views; they are the ones seeking an education at a public secular institution. These students are truly open-minded. These students bring a unique worldview and set of experiences to a university setting, and dare I say it, add "diversity" to the academic landscape just as much as a plethora of racial or ethnic backgrounds, something always touted as a necessity for a comprehensive education.
Amazingly, UC spokesperson Ravi Poorsina still insisted, "What we're doing is really for the benefit of the students...these requirements were established... to ensure that students who come here are fully prepared with broad knowledge and the critical thinking skills necessary to succeed."
Apparently "broad knowledge" can't be acquired if it involves Christian educators, no matter how many different points of view to which students are exposed. Poorsina told The Chronicle that the requirements "are not directed at any specific group," but according to the lawsuit, the UC system regularly approves history, social science and literature courses that educate students on the views of other religions such as "Western Civilization: The Jewish Experience," "Turning Points in Jewish History," "Intro to Buddhism" and a course about Islam. Meanwhile, classes titled "Christianity's Influence in American History" and "Christianity and Morality in American Literature" were not accepted. Imagine the outrage that would ensue if students at predominantly Muslim or Jewish schools were denied the opportunity to attend a public college. Oh wait, I guess I don't have to.
Whitney Blake is a Cavalier Daily associate editor. She can be reached at wblake@cavalierdaily.com.
Read More
PATEL: Personal development courses support students beyond the gradebook
By Heer Patel | 4 days agoThe University must rethink its approach to education beyond traditional major-specific requirements and mandate personal development courses.
EDITORIAL: Commercialization threatens U.Va.’s educational mission
By Editorial Board | 5 days agoAfter all, measuring the University’s worth in terms of accrued capital, operational efficiency and numerical rankings molds this space into just another cookie-cutter institution.
YOUNIS: Why every U.Va. student should say yes to English
By Ayat Younis | January 9, 2025Every student at the University, regardless of their primary field of study, can professionally and academically benefit from engaging with the English department.
