Chicago’s Moody Bible Institute has initiated a lawsuit against the city’s Board of Education, claiming that Chicago Public Schools (CPS) has discriminated against its students. This exclusion is said to stem from the institute’s religious hiring practices, specifically its policy of employing individuals who subscribe to its statement of faith and adhere to Christian principles concerning gender and sexuality.
The lawsuit, brought forth on November 4 by the conservative legal group Alliance Defending Freedom, points out that CPS demanded Moody sign nondiscrimination agreements that conflict with its religious hiring rights. The complaint stresses that CPS insists on provisions that would require Moody to dismiss employees who align with its beliefs, contending this is illegal.
After Moody gained state approval for a new elementary education program in January 2024, it approached CPS regarding participation in a student mentoring initiative. However, CPS allegedly replied that Moody had to accept two nondiscrimination agreements for participation.
These agreements, the complaint notes, sought to compel Moody to only terminate employees who do not conform to the school’s Christian beliefs. In an effort to amend this language to protect its faith-based hiring practice, Moody found CPS unwilling to negotiate, citing rigid anti-discrimination policies that complicated matters. If the two parties couldn’t settle, CPS effectively barred Moody and its students from joining the program.
Moody argues this exclusion will adversely affect students who are in the process of obtaining their degrees, as they need hands-on teaching experiences to graduate and secure teaching credentials in Illinois. The institute claims this restriction also tarnishes the program’s standing and diminishes job opportunities for its graduates, especially given that CPS is the largest district in the state, struggling with staffing vacancies in schools.
Jeremiah Gallus, a senior adviser at Alliance Defending Freedom, expressed that Chicago needs more teachers to fill numerous vacancies and criticized CPS for prioritizing administrative goals over community needs. He emphasized that Moody instills high standards of excellence and deserves a place in CPS’s leadership program. The lawsuit argues that CPS’s actions violate laws that protect religious institutions’ employment practices.
In addition to declaring CPS’s actions unconstitutional under the First and Fourteenth Amendments and the Illinois Religious Freedom Restoration Act, the lawsuit seeks to prevent CPS from enforcing anti-discrimination rules against Moody’s religious hiring methods. The suit also requests nominal and compensatory damages.
As of now, the Chicago Board of Education has not provided any comments regarding the lawsuit.
