Judge to decide constitutionality of Ind. vouchers

INDIANAPOLIS — A judge will decide whether Indiana's new school voucher program is unconstitutional.

A hearing is scheduled for Monday in Marion County Superior Court 7 in Indianapolis.

A group of teachers and religious leaders backed by the Indiana State Teachers Association is challenging the law enacted earlier this year, claiming it violates the state constitution by providing public money to religious institutions.

The state contends the voucher system is legal because the state isn't directly funding parochial schools. Instead, it gives scholarship vouchers to parents, who can choose which school to use them at.

Judge Michael Keele declined to block the law in August, writing that the law “is religion-neutral and was enacted ‘for the benefit' of students, not religious institutions or activities.”

Indiana's voucher program is the nation's largest.