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Engel v. Vitale
This court case affirmed that a mandatory prayer at the start of the school day violated the First Amendment. Without a mandatory prayer those of a non-majority religion will not feel stigmatized due to their beliefs every single day before class even starts and helps to avoid bias, at least not in any way mandated by the state. -
Opening of Coral Way Elementary School
Coral Way Elementary School opens due to an influx of Cuban children into Florida after the Cuban Revolution. The school sets itself as an example for others to follow by being the first bilingual and bi-cultural public school in the country. -
Civil Right Act
The Civil Rights Act establishes that it is unlawful to discriminate based on gender, race, or religion among others. This acts as the first truly major step towards normalizing integration in schools and allows students to interact with those of a wildly different culture now that they can no longer legally be blatantly segregated. -
Death of Martin Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. is assassinated outside his hotel room. This cements him in history as a martyr for civil rights and raises him even higher in the global consciousness with his life cut short. This helps to hasten future developments -
ARPANET
ARPANET is created by U.S. Defense Department. This was the first step to what is now the internet which allows us to connect with those around the world at speeds and with convenience absolutely unheard of only a couple decades earlier. The internet helps facilitate the transfer of culture over vast distances. -
Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972
Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 prohibited discrimination based on sex entirely in education. This helps to facilitate the dissemination of culture between the sexes in schools. -
The Equal Educational Opportunities Act
Unlike the Civil Rights Act this forced schools to act in order to prevent discrimination rather than simply ordering them not to discriminate. This act helps to close some of the many deficiencies in removing segregation by giving school some agency. -
Plyler v. Doe
This case solidifies that public schools must still provide education to undocumented children and can not charge a tuition for it. This case is important as undocumented children are likely from a wildly different culture and would provide much to cultural studies in these schools. In addition these students are likely the ones that most need the help. -
Multicultural Education: Transformative Knowledge and Action
This book by James Banks is published, diving into multiculturalism in education. This topic has not been adequately fleshed out up till this point so this contribution is gratefully accepted. -
U.S. School Enrollment Hits Majority-Minority Milestone
Minority students cumulatively outnumber non-Hispanic Caucasian students in U.S. schools for the first time. This signals a shift in dominant culture in schools and helps to further expand the cultures a student may be exposed to.
