After a voter-approved initiative in 2020, Colorado launched a “universal” preschool funding program that promised all families 15 hours per week of free preschool education at the public or private school of their choice.
In the first year, however, the Colorado Department of Early Childhood blocked parents who chose Catholic preschools from participating, citing religious affiliation as the reason for exclusion. The Archdiocese of Denver, two Catholic parishes, and two parents, represented by our friends at the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, sued Colorado. Their argument was that Colorado’s actions violated constitutional protections for free exercise of religion and equal access to public benefits.
On September 30, 2025, the federal appeals court ruled that Colorado could continue excluding Catholic preschools and participating families from the program. The Tenth Circuit’s ruling sets the case up for possible review by the U.S. Supreme Court. This case raises an important question at the intersection of religious liberty and state education funding: Can a program truly be “universal” if it excludes faith-based participants solely because of their religious identity?
We’ll be closely following this case as it moves to the Supreme Court.
Read the court’s decision here: Tenth Circuit Decision: St. Mary Catholic Parish v. Roy