OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
Honorable T. H. Trimble
First Aa+wtant 8upeAntendent
State Departaent of Bctucation
Austin, Texae
Dear Sir: @pealon Ro. O-6779
Rea Paroa4lal Schoole -
Your requeet
and cererully
your reque8t a8 follower
tic8 of all
enrolled in
for you to derine for
aean~ of the word 'pm-o-
ha ten6 lnclualve enough to include
ho018 eml private echoole, or is
r the word 'parochial* limited
e only tboee church schools
lled bT a church pariaht
"If'your enewer is t&t it lncludee
only those thurch schools which are controlled
Ron. 1. W. Trirrble- Pegs 2
within a church perish, end does not include
privets and church rchoole thet are not con-
trolled wlthln a parish, ha8 the Legl8lrture
acted vlthin it8 Conrtltutlonal authority in
dlrcrl.mlrmtlngagainat thlr particular group
of ohlldmnt"
We quote fma Section 1 of Article III,
Ssnrte Bill 167, 49th tigi81etuw of Tex88, a8 ioflov81
"The ba8ie for calculation 8hall be
the net rroholartlcenume~tlon of whltc or
aolond rauej a8 the case m8y b8, lnaludlng
th8 tr8ll8f8r8tit0 t&8 di8tldUt, pl'GVi@d
8uOh tXuief8r8 an from di@iriOt8 eligible
to receive lld under Article I 0r thlr Aat
for th8 au-t year, and exoluddingthe tran8-
Tel’8 Out Of th8 dl8tl’iOt: Uld th8l’8 8hal1 b@ d8-
duot6d
all 8chole8tlcr who have aompleted th8
uourse of 8tua~'i.ntlnir home eettool,88
-Ch88ifi8d by the COWltJ board Of trU8tO88,
there vho8e Vader are tWqht within the di8-
trlot fmm whloh they er8 trumfernd, unle8m
8UOtI8Ohole8tiCi8mintti Ul eVel'8$8dally
attendance 0r alxts-five (651 uer cent in the
di8tFiUt to whlah iher ~r&ti'&trferWl, 8nd
46 cOrpl8 &l&8, p. 1383, define8 ths t.lm
*p W’O~h iM ll”l8 tO11OW88
*Perochlal - Rel&Fng to.or
to a peri8h.'
Web8t8lF'eRev Inter5atfonel
RdititXI, define8 the t4Jm8 “parOChitiw and
a8 f011ow81
“Pwuohlal - 1. or oc p~t~miig t0~ 8
pari8h; a8 peroohiel clergy OF bouIthrle8;
oontrolled, 8UppWted by or within the jurlf~¶l~-
tiOn Of 8 pari8h, OF perish 13hU+i$ l8 pWOobidl
Han. T. H. Trimble - Page 3
8ChOO10, charities. 2. confined or EW8triCted
to l pariah; 88, of QmOChiaiolinterest$ hsnCe
l-ted l.urange or 8cope5 arrow, local; es a
pwoohlal mind or point of V18W.
‘P&rochial School - a SOhO USUti17
for eleaentivy lnrtruoticu, rintained bP a
pnrishor e rellglous body.'
The ceae of 5tate ex rel John8on~,et al v.
Boyd, et al, 28 A. E. (2) 257, holda that the question aa to
whetlter $ achool 18 public or parochial 18 determined bP the
control thereof. We quotesfrom 8aid ce8e ae, follov81
"although it ve8 alieged in the
aomplalnt that thaae 8chool8 were directed T
and controlled through the cleticel govern-
ment of the ahuroh exmcdaed bP aud throu@
the Blahop, thrre wea no mch flndlng by the
Oourt. mther these llChO018,durlq th
period in queatlon, vore paroohlal or pub110
8ChOO18 is d8t8l'Sll& bP th42r COntl'Ol.'
biOS'd8
illCOlUBkOll
U80 When U8&3 by tb kgi8lOtUP3
in 8 8tatUte nre t0 be UndOr8tOOd 08 intended t0 eXQn88 the
sense in vhfch th8y ere ordlnarllP:us8d~ T. & P. Ry. Co. v.
Rallroe6 co3mA1slon of Texm, 150 8. Y. 878.
It ir our opinion that tlm tern "parochial*
a8 used in the ebova quoted rtrtute 8houl.dbe givsn it8 U8Wl
and or&nary rerning a8 rhown by the definiti'$Isabove
quoted In this opinion. It 18 our further opinion that the
tera "parochf.al'is a 1isLitedterm 8nd is not inqluslve
enough to include lll church llchoOl8and all pri*te schools.
As t0 whether auy QartiCUhr 8ChOOl 18 Ori$e BUti~~3Wm~hi8~
school vi11 of course be determined by all the recta with
reference thereto.
It is also our oplnlon that the portion or
the above quoted act, which you hrve L&&red ebout, is
'Hon. T. W. Trlmbl8 - P-e k
oleerlr con8tltutlonal. 808 biIUme9. Ibrn, 40 5. bf. (2) 31.
Very truly yours
ATTORIIEYOBRBRALOF TRXAS
BY Wm. J. Penning
A8ei8tUht
UJF:BT