Betsy DeVos in State of Montana Archives

On Education: States can fund private schools but not parochial schools

It was a decision long sought by proponents of school choice and vehemently opposed by teachers' unions, who fear it could drain needed tax dollars from struggling public schools. The Montana supreme court struck down the program, citing the separation of church and state and prompting state officials to deny funds to secular schools as well. Roberts and other conservative justices said the no-aid policy had its roots in 19th-century anti-Catholic sentiment

The Trump administration had sided with the parents. President Donald Trump has long championed prayer in schools, and January's oral argument in the case was attended by Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, a longtime proponent of religious schools.