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Beginning of Education
In late April of 1635, the Boston Latin School opened its doors to educate the young men of Massachusetts. This school is widely credited as being the first school in the United States, even though it was founded when it was still colonies. Unfortunately, it was intended to be a school for boys and not girls at the time. Also, the school started admitting female students in 1972. -
Free Public Schools Act
Thaddeus Stevens spoke to the Pennsylvania State House of Representatives on the issue of public education. In the speech he convinces his peers to start a free public education for the state. This made Pennsylvania the first state in the country to enact a statewide free public education. It's worth noting that the intent was to educate poor students that couldn't afford it and not the upper class. -
Plessy V Ferguson
In 1892 Homer Plessy, an African-American, refused to be seated in a segregated train car intended for black passengers. He rightly believed his rights were being violated and the case went to the Supreme Court. The court ruled that it was constitutional with Justice John Marshall Harlan being the only judge that did not agree with the majority ruling. The ruling exacerbated the racial tensions and bias that were legally reinforced Jim Crow laws. -
Educational Testing Service
In 1948, the American Council on Education, the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, and the College Entrance Examination Board were combined to form the ETS. The Educational Testing Service is a nonprofit that oversees standardized testing. The ETS also conducts educational research on a global scale. -
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka
After the unfortunate ruling of Plessy v. Ferguson, the "Seperate But Equal" sentiment again came into play in the Supreme Court in 1954. After decades of legal segregation of white students and students of color the Supreme Court ruled that segregation was unconstitutional. The case was started by Oliver Brown after his daughter, was rejected from attending a white school. Luckily the court was unanimous in its decision to desegregate. -
Engel v. Vitale
The main issue in Engel v. Vitale was the topic of school sponsored prayer. The state of New York had students do the Pledge of Allegiance as well as a prayer everyday. It was rightly believed that this violated the first amendment by infringing on the freedom of religion and speech. In a 6 to 1 vote, the court decided that schools endorsing prayer allowed the government to interfere with religion and was therefor unconstitutional. -
Higher Education Act
The Higher Education Act was enacted by Lyndon B. Johnson as a part of the "Great Society." The act aided college students in making school more affordable and resources accessible. The HEA helped students by paving the way for programs like the Pell Grant and Stafford loans. The legislation also provided money for libraries and extending various education programs. -
Title IX
With the countless years of discrimination women have faced in education, congress eventually enacted legislation to help combat it. Title IX was enacted in 1972 and made it so no one could be denied benefits or be discriminated from any federally funded educational institution. The amendment covers everything from athletics to funding and even sexual harassment. Title IX benefits both male and female students by protecting everyone from gender based discrimination. -
Education of all Handicapped Children Act
The Education of all Handicapped Children Act in 1975 was an amendment to the original Education of the Handicapped act from the 60's. After nearly a million handicapped students were being excluded from the same education as their peers, congress made the amendment. The act made it so any federally funded school would have to made education accessible for handicapped students. The act also enabled parents to have some influence over their child's education. -
Goss v. Lopez
Goss v. Lopez started as a case in Ohio after students, including Dwight Lopez, were suspended without first being subjected to any sort of hearing or trial. A class action lawsuit was filed under the pretense of their 14th amendment rights being ignored. The case worked its way up to the Supreme Court where the issue of Student's rights and legal protection was to be handled. The court ruled in favor of the students and argued that students' still maintained their rights at school. -
Plyler v. Doe
The main issue of Plyler v. Doe was if it is constitutional to deny illegal immigrants a public education. The state of Texas denied educational funds for children that were not American Citizens. The case was named after Texas Superintendent James Plyler. Ultimately, the court decided that students that were not born in the US were still entitled to K-12 education. -
Board of Education v. Earls
This case had the argument of drug testing impeding the 4th amendment at its core. In 2002, an Oklahoma School District required students to take a drug test in order to be in any school extracurricular activities. A couple of students, along with their parents, made the case that this policy went against the 4th amendment, working its way up to the Supreme Court. The Court agreed with the school policy in that ensuring students were not doing drugs did not violate the constitution.
