A federal appeals court agreed that Texas Southern University, a historically black institution, had discriminated against three white law professors by reducing their pay raises for criticizing an administrator. Black faculty received higher pay raises. However, the court rejected the professors' claim that their free speech had been infringed…

The Supreme Court will not hear the Brown University (Rhode Island) appeal in "Brown vs. Cohen," letting stand rulings that the university had violated Title IX of the 1972 Education Amendments by cutting financial support for women's volleyball and gymnastics teams. Advocates for women's athletics see the court's refusal to intervene as…

The Supreme Court let stand a California court's ruling sharply limiting the right of administrators at public colleges to interfere with faculty members' curriculum decisions. The ruling came from a 1986 decision by the San Diego Community College District to bar the staging of a controversial play. (MSE)

Identifies and discusses recent decisions and upcoming cases of the Supreme Court that are likely to be of interest to teachers. Educational issues addressed include Internet access and censorship, affirmative action, sexual harassment, drug testing, and the separation of church and state. Includes a brief description Supreme Court duties. (MJP)

Reviews court cases in which parents challenged school practices on religious grounds. Puts particular emphasis on recent attempts to make the curriculum conform to religious views. (Author/JM)

A federal appeals court has upheld an amendment to California's constitution that bars government agencies from granting preferences based on gender or race. The California Civil Rights Initiative, or Proposition 209, was found not to violate the Equal Protection Clause. If the ruling is not reversed, public colleges and universities will be…

The Supreme Court ordered a lower court to reexamine the free-speech case of a controversial City University of New York black studies professor, demoted from department chairman for making racially biased statements seen as disruptive. The rights of public universities to make such decisions was a central issue. (MSE)

Examines a 1994 college desegregation case involving possible merger of Mississippi University for Women, a historically white institution, and Mississippi Valley State University, a historically black institution. Following the wishes of trustees, and supported by alumni, the president of the former institution engaged in an unorthodox litigation…

Findings are reported resulting from a 3-year study of the impacts of academic employment-discrimination litigation on the parties and their institutions. Two nationwide surveys were conducted, one of plaintiffs and one of university counsel. Six major lawsuits against colleges and universities were investigated by interviewing the plaintiffs and…

Effects of Brown vs. Board of Education, the 1954 case in which the Supreme Court outlawed "separate but equal" education, are examined. Selected events in the history since the decision are chronicled, and trends in high school and college graduation rates for black students are charted. Educators discuss their own experiences of…

Section 1983 of the Civil Rights Act of 1871 was designed as a flexible and broadly scoped statute to restrict a wide variety of actions of state officials. During the past 15 years the number of court cases in which provisions of the 1871 act have been applied to school-related issues has increased geometrically. In 1961 the provisions of the act…

This report attempts to illustrate how courts have undertaken the task of relating the constitutional mandate for equal educational opportunity to the political and institutional issues posed in specific school desegregation cases since the Supreme Court's Brown decision. The first section of the report is an introduction to legalism and politics…

This chapter on higher education reviews and discusses court cases dealing with organization and administration, property, buildings, liability, aid to private education, faculty, student rights, discrimination, and intercollegiate athletics. (DW)

The Office of General Counsel of the National Education Association highlights 10 federal court decisions made in 1981-82 concerning education which are likely to shape the law in the future. Rulings on mandatory busing, handicapped education, book censorship, school employee rights, and creationism are included. (PP)

Contends that, although religious freedom is a key feature of U.S. democracy, it has had a relatively short and modern history. Discusses the issues, court opinions, and historical significance of the 1940 "Minersville School District v. Gobitis" U.S. Supreme Court decision regarding Jehovah's Witnesses and the Pledge of Allegiance to…