A Michigan State University law professor says a recent lawsuit filed against Portage Public Schools likely has merit.
This year’s graduation for Portage Northern High School falls during Shavuot, a Jewish Holiday that celebrates the giving of the Torah to the Jewish people. This overlap spurred Koffron to file a lawsuit against the school.
She said holding graduation on Shavuot violates the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act, the Michigan Constitution, and the U.S. Constitution.
Frank Ravitch is a professor of law and religion at MSU. “You can't be denied services, activities, or programs based on religion or other categories under the Elliott Larsen act, and this situation seems to fall pretty clearly under that,” he said. “They probably also have a pretty strong federal constitutional claims, because of some recent cases."
Ravitch said Koffron’s case is strong if, as she claims, the district had plenty of notice of the conflict.
“If the board had notice, then they're on pretty weak ground. If they didn't have notice, then I think the ground gets a decent bit stronger,” he said.
The courts have split the lawsuit; the Kalamazoo County Ninth Judicial Circuit Court will hear claims under Michigan law. The United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan will hear the federal portion of the case; its next hearing is scheduled for April 20.
The Ninth Judicial Circuit Court did lift a temporary injunction this week blocking PPS from holding graduation on Shavuot.
