The University of Colorado at Colorado Springs agreed to a settlement which will allow Ratio Christi to become a registered student club, as well as pay the plaintiffs a one-time amount of $20,574 in damages.
The University also agreed to revise its Club & Organization Handbook to include a provision explaining that all student clubs can require leaders to adhere to the beliefs of their group.
In return, Ratio Christi will dismiss its lawsuit against the University and amend its membership standards to clarify that non-Christians can become members and participate in its activities.
Travis Barham, senior counsel with the Alliance Defending Freedom, which represented Ratio Christi, said in a statement that he commended the University for “quickly implementing this commonsense policy reform.”
Last November, the University’s Ratio Christi chapter filed a lawsuit when the school refused to grant them official recognition over their requirement that members and leaders be Christian.
The suit accused the University of violating the student group’s First Amendment rights and denying them access to the “marketplace of ideas.”
Earlier this week, ADF argued a separate case related to the question of Christian student expression on college campus before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.