Anti-Gay School Rejected For Voucher Program
by http://www.365Gay.com Newscenter Staff

Posted: October 23, 2003 11:59 a.m. ET

(Denver, Colorado) A Denver private school that rejects gay students has been turned down for the city's school voucher program.

Silver State Baptist School was refused by Denver Public Schools and Jefferson County officials for its discipline policy calling for automatic dismissal for premarital sex, homosexuality and "sexual perversion."

Under the state voucher program, a school board can reject a private school's application if it advocates or fosters unlawful behavior or teaches hatred of a person or group.

"The board's interpretation of the statute is that a school cannot promote hate," said school board president Elaine Berman. "We believe that this school's policy toward various groups does promote hate and discrimination."

Rodolfo Gomez, the school's principal said that an appeal will be launched.

He said the 202-student school has not had an openly gay student in its 39-year history. Gomez said that an openly gay student would be "counseled as to the Biblical understanding as to what it is that is appropriate and inappropriate in that situation."

"Because we don't have a history, I would say we would treat it like other students caught with a smoking problem," Gomez said. "We work with them through the process and once we see they don't have any desire to correct the problem or they don't want to deal with it appropriately, then we make those determinations" about expulsion.