Supreme Court Upholds Cleveland Voucher Program

By Mark Walsh

Washington

Cleveland's state-enacted school voucher program does not violate the U.S. Constitution, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled in a 5-4 decision.

At 10:23 A.M. on June 27, Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist began announcing the court's decision, its final one of the 2001-02 term. The Cleveland Scholarship and Tutoring Program "is entirely neutral with respect to religion," he said.

"It provides benefits directly to a wide spectrum of individuals, defined only by financial need and residence in a particular school district," he added. "It permits such individuals to exercise genuine choice among options public and private, secular and religious. The program is therefore a program...