A Christian school in California is fighting to stay open and could be embroiled in a legal battle with the Ventura Unified School District (VUSD), which has ordered the school to shut down immediately.
According to ABC7, Ventura County Christian School (VCCS) received a notice three days after the first day of classes, citing that the school community should vacate the building because it has been deemed unsafe for both students and staff. Apparently, the old building, which was the former Washington School, had structural issues; thus, the school district had no choice but to demand the shutdown abruptly.
In a statement, VUSD Superintendent Antonio Castro said they received a "technical report" covering months of studies on the building's structure on August 11. They tried to assist VCCS in finding an alternative location upon informing the school of the lease termination.
VCCS has been renting the building for more than 20 years, and more than $3 million was spent on its upgrades and repair in those two decades. Atty. Ron Bamieh alleged that the lease termination was not about safety.
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Lawyer insisted the order to vacate was due to religion
According to KVTA, VCCS was in the process of renewing its new lease agreement with VUSD and was even willing to pay the 300 percent rental rate increase when a new clause in the rental agreement was contested. Bamieh said that VUSD added a clause that prevented the school from hiring Christian teachers only.
The school refused to agree with the new clause because it has always upheld a policy of hiring educators who share their beliefs, as this was part of their religious freedom. The lawyer said that VCCS was forced out for religious reasons despite what the school district said.
On the other hand, Perry Geue, the school administrator, said that the school district might have misinterpreted the findings of the technical report since they have been trying to preserve the building. While the site was in disrepair before VCCS moved in more than 20 years ago, the Christian school poured its resources into the improvements. Geue also confirmed issues with the added clause in the new lease agreement.
"We could potentially be forced to hire teachers who don't hold to a Christian worldview," he said, per Ventura County Star.
Officials of VUSD, however, said that this was not a new clause, but it was similar to the conditions in its lease contract in the previous year, under Non-Discrimination and Equal Opportunity. Bamieh said he could not recall the said clause in the past lease contracts.
Students and parents are in limbo without any options
Amid this looming legal battle, the students are on the losing end as their schooling has been interrupted yet again. Parents of the kids are hoping that the matter will be settled as soon as possible because many of the children have no intention of moving to a new school.
Mom Jessica Maxwell said that she hurts for her kids because students in other schools have started classes while VCCS students do not know if they can still go back to the old building. There is no scheduled dialogue between VCCS and VUSD as of press time.
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