FARGO — A private religious school in Fargo has teamed up with a civil liberties law firm in suing the state of North Dakota over its teacher licensing law.

Capstone Classical Academy and the nonprofit Institute for Justice, based in Arlington, Virginia,

filed a 50-page federal lawsuit in U.S. District Court

in North Dakota on Wednesday, June 10.

They challenge what they call the nation’s “most extreme” teacher licensing law, which keeps people with doctorate degrees, working professionals and other qualified experts out of private school classrooms unless they first complete a state licensing program.

Capstone,

which opened in temporary locations in 2022 and moved to a new, sprawling campus at 6597 43rd St. S. in 2025,

teaches pre-k through Grade 12 students.

Bringing the lawsuit along with Capstone are Kaylie Young, a teacher at the school, and Paul Nelson, a parent of a student.

Named as defendants are state Superintendent of Public Instruction Levi Bachmeier, various members of the North Dakota Education Standards and Practices Board, and Rebecca Pitkin, executive director of that independent board responsible for teacher licensure and other professional practices.

The state has 21 days to respond to the lawsuit, the Institute said.

Bachmeier told The Forum that since he’s named as a defendant, he cannot comment.

Pitkin submitted a statement, saying, “The Education Standards and Practices Board (ESPB) is mandated by North Dakota law to ensure that all classroom teachers are properly licensed. In recent years, ESPB has collaborated closely with Capstone’s administration and faculty to guarantee adherence to this legal requirement.”

Capstone and the Institute held a joint news conference via Zoom on Wednesday.

Headmaster Paul Fisher said they’re not suing as adversaries of the Department of Public Instruction or ESPB, but for freedom to deliver a distinct mission without the hindrance of state regulations.

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“The state, by the Century Code, is forcing a square peg to fit into a round hole, and in doing so, they are violating parental choice and teachers’ professional freedom,” Fisher said.

In May of 2025, Capstone received a compliance letter from the state threatening to take away Capstone’s state approval unless the school complied with teacher licensing laws.

Michael Bindas, a senior Institute attorney, said Capstone had been working “creatively” with the state to find solutions, but with the compliance letter, it became clear the state was no longer willing to do so.

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Since then, the school said it has navigated paperwork, kept postings open for jobs already filled, reshaped courses to fit state-approved categories and paid “thousands and thousands of dollars” to come into compliance.

“That time, that money, that energy should be going toward educating children, not to comply with unnecessary and often irrational regulations,” Bindas said.

Capstone already has high standards for teachers in terms of content expertise and teaching competence, Fisher said, and the school vets their character and runs mandatory background checks.

Fisher said he must honor the mission of the school and the trust of parents “who pay their taxes to the public schools, and then, in addition to that, pay tuition to provide what they believe is the right education for their child.”

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Another Institute attorney, Riley Grace Borden, said the plaintiffs, Young and Nelson, chose Capstone because it is unique.

“It was a sacrifice for them to do that. Both … face longer commutes, Kaylie faces a lower salary. But they chose Capstone because it offers different courses, it has a different mission and focus,” Borden said.

She said the Institute approached a number of schools in North Dakota when considering bringing legal action related to teacher licensing.

“A bunch of them, every single one we talked to, in fact, was suffering,” she said.

In fact, Borden blamed the state’s “impractical and expensive” teacher licensing laws for an ongoing teacher shortage in the state.

Chris Flynn / The Forum

North Dakota legalized homeschooling in 1989, allowing parents without a teaching license or a college degree to teach their children.

Bindas said there’s no reason North Dakota can’t take the same “light touch” for private schools, and he’d go even further.

“At the end of the day, I don’t think licensure is necessary … government can and often does, and in this case has gone far beyond anything within its legitimate powers,” he said.

It’s unclear whether other private schools in Fargo or in the state will join in the lawsuit, Borden said, as some gave different reasons as to why they weren’t in a position to do so.

In a video released Wednesday that lasted more than six minutes, Ohio State pulled back the curtain on what it took to create Buckeye Stripes. The answer is more than 18 months of planning and countless hours of work behind the scenes.

Buckeye Stripes became a reality because of several Ohio State staffers whose contributions often go unnoticed, including assistant director of design Joe Gemma, director of creative and branding Ethan Miller, director of football equipment services Kevin Ries, assistant director of football equipment services Kevin Nerl, associate director of creative Danny Kraft, assistant director of creative Bryan Jay and assistant director of creative Domenick Guerrera.

Those staffers appeared throughout the behind-the-scenes feature alongside quarterback Julian Sayin, wide receiver Jeremiah Smith, defensive end Kenyatta Jackson Jr., linebacker Payton Pierce and cornerback Jermaine Mathews Jr., who modeled the alternate uniform concepts Ohio State could wear during the 2026 season.

The Buckeyes now have five uniform combinations in their arsenal: their core home and away sets plus three alternates — the all-black “Tunnel Visions,” all-white “Sub Zeroes” and all-scarlet “Scarlet Rush.” Ohio State will unveil one of the new looks when it opens the 2026 season against Ball State on Sept. 5 in Ohio Stadium.

All nine tribes located in South Dakota are unifying in their call to return the public, federal lands in the Black Hills to tribal entities.

Each tribe passed a resolution calling on Congress to act. Treaty rights mandate the Black Hills belong to tribes, although that treaty was broken long ago.

Organizers said the most important detail in this new legislative push is the focus on public, federal lands. Put simply, places where people do not live.

Valeriah Big Eagle is the director of He Sapa initiatives for Rapid City-based nonprofit NDN Collective. She said this not about private homes in the Black Hills.

“That’s the myth, that’s the misunderstanding,” Big Eagle said. “When they’re talking about landback in the Black Hills and we’re talking about the federal public land, essentially that is the lands that nobody is living on. It’s the federal, public lands so we can protect it from extractive activities.”

Regardless of outcome, advocates say the inclusion of all South Dakota’s tribes is a historic statement of tribal unity.

Joseph Brings Plenty is a tribal council representative from Eagle Butte. He said tribes have government-signed and guaranteed rights.

“That’s something that needs to be remembered — the treaties still exist,” Brings Plenty said. “That’s why we stand on this. For the United States to uphold their end of the bargain.”

Brings Plenty said it’s a chance for native peoples to have a meaningful say in the management of the Black Hills. With that, Brings Plenty said healing can happen.

“That’s a step forward, a positive step forward,” Brings Plenty said. “The Black Hills are not for sale. I mean, it’s not just in a Lakota or Indian sense. We all want clean water, we all want the air to be clear, we all want housing and grandchildren. We all want a life. The more and more, as is inevitable, the cultures mesh, I think this is all important. Why lose it?”

This comes on the heels of a mining effort near the Black Hills sacred site of Pe’Sla, where the company behind it withdrew after a legal battle and widespread opposition from the Indigenous community.