CHICAGO - A Chicago federal judge has sided with a Chicago private school in a lawsuit brought by the parents of Muslim student, who had claimed the school's decision to essentially disinvite him from reenrolling at the school amounted to religious discrimination.
The school, however, said they had declined to invite the student back because of alleged academic performance issues.
U.S. District Judge Matthew Kennelly ruled Ancona School, located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood, did not discriminate against a former student by denying the student enrollment for his fifth-grade year.
U.S. District Judge Matthew Kennelly
| medilljusticeproject.org
The father of the student, who is identified as James Doe in the ruling, claimed his son was denied enrollment to the Ancona School for the fifth grade based on his Muslim religion. In response, the school claimed that the decision was based on the student's academic performance, not his religion.
Although Doe had attended the school since preschool, according to the judgment, he was denied enrollment for the fifth grade by the Ancona School Board of Trustees for failing to keep up in the classroom with his peers. Teachers for the boy "expressed concern about his ability to focus on tasks and his academic ability relative to his peers, as he performed at approximately one grade level below his fellow students," starting in the second grade.
A psychological evaluation conducted in 2015 diagnosed James with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), the ruling said.
The school agreed to allow the student to attend fifth grade under two conditions, according to a letter sent to the family from the school's principal. First, the family would have to "employ an aide to work one-on-one with James." Second, the Does would have to "bring back an informed, expert medical opinion about the risks and benefits of prescribing medication for [James'] diagnosis of ADD." The family, however, did not meet the requirements and James attended a different school for fifth grade, according to the ruling.
The father argued that the school actually denied enrollment because of past behavioral issues, not the ADHD diagnosis. However, the judge found, "although all of the students may have presented similar behavioral issues, the record indicates that only James also presented significant academic difficulties."
James' father said the boy was subjected to abuse from other students on numerous occasions, including being attacked by a group of boys, and being told in another incident that, "the only reason Donald Trump says that all Muslims should be kicked out of the country is because all Muslims work for ISIS."
The plaintiffs are represented in the action by attorney Steven E. Glink, of Northbrook.
Ancona School is defended by attorneys John A. Relias and Jennifer A. Smith, of the firm of Franczek Radelet P.C., of Chicago.