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Legal Cases - Education

Legal Cases Impacting Education

See the separate page on Sheff v. O'Neill.

USCourts.gov Website list these cases as examples of landmark cases:

  • Brown v. Board of Education (1954) - Holding: Separate schools are not equal.
    • Cooper v. Aaron (1958) - Holding: States cannot nullify decisions of the federal courts.
  • Engel v. Vitale (1962) - Holding: School initiated-prayer in the public school system violates the First Amendment.
  • Tinker v. Des Moines (1969) - Holding: Students do not leave their rights at the schoolhouse door.
  • Goss v. Lopez (1975) - Holding: Students are entitled to certain due process rights.
  • New Jersey v. T.L.O. (1985) - Holding: Students have a reduced expectation of privacy in school.
  • Bethel School District #43 v. Fraser (1987) - Holding: Students do not have a First Amendment right to make obscene speeches in school.
  • Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier (1988) - Holding: Administrators may edit the content of school newspapers.
  • Santa Fe Independent School District v. Doe (2000) - Holding: Students may not use a school's loudspeaker system to offer student-led, student-initiated prayer.
  • Board of Education of Independent School District #92 of Pottawatomie County v. Earls (2002) - Holding: Random drug tests of students involved in extracurricular activities do not violate the Fourth Amendment.
  • Zelma v. Simmons-Harris (2002) - Holding: Certain school voucher programs are constitutional.
  • Grutter v. Bollinger (2003) - Holding: Colleges and universities have a legitimate interest in promoting diversity

Brown v Board of Ed

Brown v. Board of Education

Several cases were consolidated for trial. You may need to research the other cases for records & briefs and other primary sources.

These are only a few resources selected for a previous year's competition. Our Law Desk may be of assistance for more of our resources.

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