This case illustrates the importance for school leaders and teachers to be knowledgeable about current legal precedent when creating district and school policies. We describe a legal battle that occurred in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, in which a school district instituted a policy affecting English learners that was in violation of two federal laws.…

In October 2014, U.S. secretary of education Arne Duncan announced the Obama administration's new "education equity initiative," explaining that the president could not "continue to wait" for Congress to act "on behalf of vulnerable children." The centerpiece of this initiative was a 37-page "Dear Colleague"…

The "Bakke" decision marked a turning point in higher education. Tested again most recently in "Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin," affirmative action policy remains in place even as the Roberts Court shakes its foundation by demanding a degree of administrative oversight not pursued by previous Courts. In spite of…

The Common Core State Standards Initiative is a standards-based reform in which 45 U.S. states and the District of Columbia have agreed to participate. The reform seeks to anchor primary and secondary education across these states in one set of demanding, internationally benchmarked standards. Thereby, all students will be prepared for further…

The improper use of reported restraints has been associated with serious injury and death in both mental health and school settings. However, there is currently no federal legislation that regulates the use of reported restraints in the schools in contrast to health care facilities (e.g., Children's Health Act of 2000). As children with…

Since the separate-but-equal era, students attending schools with high concentrations of Black students have attempted to improve the quality of their educations through school finance litigation. Because of the negative effects of racial isolation, Black students might consider mounting school finance litigation to force states to explicitly…

In August 2005, Hurricane Katrina displaced the largest number of public school children ever affected by any disaster. Approximately 370,000 children, including 15,000 Latino/Hispanic children from Louisiana, were scattered throughout the 48 U.S. states (Landrieu, 2010; Louisiana Department of Education, 2004). Although much of the media…

The existence of Black colleges has been threatened by the lack of uniform desegregation standards and by conflicting federal policies. Attention should be focused on existing constitutional doctrines to provide a uniform analytical framework for assessing the extent to which individual Black colleges should be maintained. (Author/MLF)

The challenges in improving and sustaining success of children from multicultural backgrounds with disabilities in urban school districts manifest themselves in the contextual dynamics of legal, accountability, demographic, and fiscal terrains. Within each of these areas, educational leaders must solve existing problems of underservicing,…

This article discusses the laws that protect individuals with disabilities and the laws that protect individuals from racial and language discrimination. It explains the important difference between the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and Section 504. It also describes practical application of the laws and provides two examples…

The disproportionate flow of federal money to white institutions has added to inequities of state funding, and reduced federal appropriations now threaten further desegregation efforts. Past interaction between college desegregation and federal aid can provide clues to future legislative and judicial strategies for maximizing educational choice.…

This article examines the education of students in U.S. schools who have have limited skills in English. Ensuring that these children are able to participate in and benefit from educational programs and achieve high academic standards is a task of monumental importance for public schools. One component essential to this effort is understanding the…

Reviews the legal and policy issues, as well as sociohistorical developments, in higher education since Brown v Board of Education. The author's conclusions focus on the need to increase the nations' commitment toward strengthening historically black institutions of higher education and maintaining their continuing vitality as a source for…

Argues that educational justice requires that schools and educators take affirmative action to apply the principles of federal and state constitutional provisions, statutes, and cases to cyberspace (Internet) access. Describes demographics of "digital divide." Analyzes developing law of cyberspace and addresses its implications for law,…

The Education Department declared that four states that had been under court order to desegregate their public colleges were now in compliance with federal civil rights laws and that six others were expected to fulfill their obligations easily. Civil rights lawyers said none of the states had met the requirements. (MLW)