In June 2025, a Franklin County judge ruled Ohio’s EdChoice Scholarship program unconstitutional. The program had expanded statewide in 2023 and remains in place during the appeals process, but the decision introduced uncertainty for families and schools across the archdiocese that rely on the scholarship.

This past May, Kent Halaby became Deputy Superintendent of Operational Vitality in the Catholic Schools Office after over 20 years in Catholic education. For him, the program’s uncertainty underscores how deeply the program is tied to two Catholic values: education and family responsibility.

“The archdiocese continues to believe that the EdChoice Scholarship program is constitutional in Ohio,” Halaby said. “We are confident that this will be the finding through [appeals, which] will likely end with the Ohio Supreme Court.”

Regardless of the outcome, he said the archdiocese’s mission remains: to ensure families can access Catholic schools regardless of financial barriers. And it has done so for many years.

“The Catholic Education Foundation, which was born from the One Faith, One Hope, One Love campaign, provides tuition assistance for eligible families,” Halaby said. “The allowance of non-refundable tax credits by the State of Ohio to certified scholarship granting organizations, which includes the Catholic Education Foundation, has provided additional resources for families.”

For many families, EdChoice made what seemed to be impossible possible, as it allows parents to choose where their children are educated, regardless of their financial situation.

Students benefit primarily through this choice. Halaby explained: “Parents are the primary educators of their children, so the [program removes] financial barriers to parents doing what is best for their children. That [includes] what is best academically, socially, and spiritually.”

This perspective is rooted in Catholic teaching. He referred to Pope Paul VI’s 1965 Gravissimum Educationis declaration, which states, “Parents who have the primary and inalienable right and duty to educate their children must enjoy true liberty in their choice of schools.”

That liberty through EdChoice transformed area Catholic schools, including St. Peter School in Huber Heights. Having witnessed firsthand how the program changes lives, St. Peter’s principal, Kelly Kadel, sees the program directly supporting the Catholic mission of educating the whole child.

“St. Peter has always been a very diverse school,” Kadel said, but more families have been able to join the school community, such that we “opened new classrooms and hired new teachers. … We love the students we have gained! We love sharing our faith and traditions with our students, and we certainly love watching them learn and achieve.”

“[The uncertainty] is worrisome, because our families rely on the scholarship to send their children to St. Peter,” said Kadel of the court ruling. She hopes lawmakers recognize what Catholic schools bring to communities: “The best education for children because, in addition to providing an outstanding academic education, we strive to help children understand they are made, known, and loved by God, and that makes them invaluable. … All families should be able to choose that for their children.”

Halaby agrees: “Catholic schools uphold the Eucharist as the Source and Summit of our faith. Through the daily teaching and reinforcement of virtue and Gospel values, I hope policymakers recognize that Catholic schools provide fertile ground for faith, academics, and social learning.”

As the appeals move forward, families, educators, and decision-makers continue to have faith in the promise of EdChoice. For schools like St. Peter’s, the program’s value, as measured by learning and growth, cannot be determined through legal briefs or political debate; it shows up on the faces of children learning, growing, and flourishing together in Catholic classrooms. ✣

This article appeared in the October 2025 edition of The Catholic Telegraph Magazine. For your complimentary subscription, click here.