Court limits student funds

Theology students hoping for state financial aid may need to look elsewhere. \nThe U.S. Supreme Court ruled March 3 states can refuse to grant financial aid to theology majors. According to the Chronicle of Higher Education, the Supreme Court rejected arguments that banning student aid to theology majors violates the First Amendment's freedom of religion provision and the 14th Amendment's equal-protection guarantees.\n"Training someone to lead a congregation is an essentially religious endeavor," wrote Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist for the court's majority. "Indeed, majoring in devotional theology is akin to a religious calling as well as an academic pursuit."\nBut those majoring in religious studies at IU need not worry about losing their state financial aid.\n"States still cannot discriminate in awarding aid against students who are doing this kind of study," said David Brakke, director of graduate studies for the department of religious studies.\nThe majors within the religious studies program at IU are not the same as a theology major, Brakke said.\n"In a department of religious studies like ours, which is not connected to any religious group, one can study theological issues in a way that does not seek the only true answer, and that is not preparation for ministry, but part of a liberal arts education," Brakke said.\nPaul Steiner, a campus minister at the Christian Student Fellowship, said he would not worry about the implications of losing state funds.\n"There are a ton of different scholarships, and they don't necessarily need to rely on the government," Steiner said.\nBrakke said students who are interested in theological studies should look within their faith institutions for financial support.\nThe 7-2 Supreme Court ruling overturned a 2002 decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. The original case involved a student at Northwest College in Kirkland, Wash., who had his scholarship rescinded after he decided to major in business administration and theology in 1999. \nDavey argued he successfully completed the requirements for a Promise scholarship, Washington's merit-based award, worth $1,125 in 1999. Justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas held the dissenting opinions for the Court.\n"Let there be no doubt: This case is about discrimination against a religious minority," Justice Scalia wrote in his dissent. "In an era when the court is so quick to come to the aid of other disfavored groups, its indifference in this case, which involves a form of discrimination to which the Constitution actually speaks, is exceptional."\n-- Contact staff writer Kristin Wynkoop at kwynkoop@indiana.edu.