Moody Bible Institute sued the Chicago Board of Education, claiming it was excluded from a student‑teaching program over its faith‑based hiring.
The complaint was filed Tuesday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division, and contends that Chicago education officials blocked Moody’s participation solely based on the Evangelical school’s employment policies.
According to the lawsuit, the district requires participating institutions to agree to non-discrimination provisions that conflict with Moody’s longstanding practice of hiring only employees who affirm the school’s Christian beliefs and lifestyle expectations.
The filing explains that Moody’s staff standards include requiring employees to refrain from sexual activity outside of marriage, to abstain from same-sex romantic relationships, and to be actively involved in a local church congregation.
“These religious requirements and expectations help ensure that anyone who interacts with the ministry encounters Christ not just in what is taught in its classrooms, radio and media broadcasts, and publications, but also in the lives of Moody’s messengers and representatives,” reads the lawsuit.
The suit argues that by excluding Moody on this basis, the Chicago Board of Education is violating the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and the Illinois Religious Freedom Restoration Act.
The filing further notes that Chicago’s stance places Moody’s own elementary education program in a difficult position, since that program requires its teacher candidates to log at least 10 hours of classroom observation in a public school and at least 10 hours in a Christian school.
Moody is being represented in the case by Alliance Defending Freedom, a nonprofit legal organization known for litigating religious liberty disputes and for winning several First Amendment cases before the U.S. Supreme Court.
ADF Senior Counsel Jeremiah Galus, in a statement provided to The Christian Post, criticized the district’s decision, pointing out that “Chicago desperately needs more teachers to fill hundreds of vacancies,” yet, he said, public school leaders “are putting personal agendas ahead of the needs of families.”
“Moody holds its faculty and students to high standards of excellence and is more than qualified to participate in Chicago’s student-teaching program,” stated Galus.
“By excluding Moody for its religious beliefs, Chicago Public Schools is illegally injecting itself into a religious nonprofit’s hiring practices, which the Constitution and state laws expressly forbid.”
Responding to the controversy, Chicago Public Schools spokesman Evan Moore told The College Fix on Wednesday that the district “remains committed to ensuring the safety and well-being of its students.”
“In accordance with district policy, CPS does not comment on matters involving pending litigation,” he added.
