Illinois ex rel. McCollum v. Board of Education

McCollum was one of the first Supreme Court decisions to address issues raised by the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. In it, the Court affirmed that the wall separating church and state is both high and impregnable.

The Illinois school board provided space in its buildings for religious instruction to be given by teachers who were paid by various private religious groups, but subject to school board approval. Students could choose not to participate in the program, which offered Protestant, Catholic, or Jewish instruction for 30 to 45 minutes every week during regular school hours. Non participating students went elsewhere in the school buildings; participating students were required to attend.

Vashti McCollum, a resident and taxpayer in Champaign, Illinois, and a parent whose child was registered in the Champaign public schools, brought an action against the school board in state court. McCollum's action was in fact brought on her behalf by the state of Illinois, which is the import of the case title, Illinois ex. rel McCollum. Citing both the First and the Fourteenth Amendments, McCollum requested that the board be ordered to adopt and enforce regulations prohibiting religious instruction in her public school district. The district court found that the school board's program violated neither of the constitutional provisions McCollum invoked and denied her petition for mandamus--a request that a governmental entity be ordered to perform some necessary duty. When the state supreme court upheld this decision, McCollum appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court.