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Plessy V. Ferguson
Louisiana established separate railway carriages for blacks & whites. Plessy decided to test the Act in 1892. He was approached by a group of citizens who wanted the Act repealed. Plessy was ordered to ride in a "whites only" section of a train. Plessy's attorneys said that the Separate Car Act violated the 13th & 14th Amendments. The Court concluded that racial segregation policies did not violate the U.S. Constitution as long as the facilities for each race were of equal quality. -
Brown V. the Board of Education, Topeka
Linda Brown, an African American girl, was refused admission to a white school. Linda had to take a bus across town to a school for African Americans. Brown's father and others filed a lawsuit against the Board of Education of the City of Topeka, Kansas, in 1951. The Court overturned its Plessy decision, saying that "separate schools are inherently unequal." -
Title IX
Title IX is a federal statute that was enacted in the U.S. as part of the Education Amendments of 1972. It outlaws sex-based discrimination in any federally funded school or educational organization. Every institution or organization that receives federal funds must appoint at least one person to serve as the Title IX coordinator. Their responsibility is to ensure that Title IX is not violated and to respond to all Title IX-related issues. -
Goss V. Lopez
9 students from two high schools and one junior high school in Columbus, Ohio, were suspended for 10 days. Before issuing the suspensions, the school principals did not arrange hearings for the involved children, and Ohio law did not force them to do so. The acts of the principals were challenged, and a federal court ruled that the students' rights had been compromised. The case was then appealed to the United States Supreme Court. -
Education of all Handicapped Children Act
The Education for All Handicapped Children Act mandated that all public schools accepting federal money provide equal access to education as well as one free meal per day for children with physical and mental challenges. The name has been changed to the Individual with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEA). Funds are distributed to states that have special education programs that agree with federal requirements. -
Plyler V. Doe
Texas education law changes in 1975 restricted state funds for teaching children who had not been legally immigrated to the U.S. and permitted local school districts to prohibit admission to such children. The rule violated the 14th Amendment, according to a majority of the Supreme Court, since illegal immigrant children were protected from discrimination unless a strong state interest could be demonstrated to justify it. -
Board of Education V. Rowley
This Supreme Court case involved the implementation of the Education for All Handicapped Children Act. Amy Rowley was a deaf child whose school would not provide her with a sign language interpreter. Her parents filed a lawsuit alleging a breach of the 1975 Education for All Handicapped Children Act. The Court ruled that sign language interpreters are not necessary by law in public schools for deaf students who are otherwise obtaining an equal and appropriate education. -
Board of Education V. Earls
The Tecumseh, Oklahoma School District's Student Activities Drug Testing Policy requires all middle and high school students to agree to urine testing for drugs in order to participate in any extracurricular activity. Two Tecumseh High School students and their parents filed a lawsuit, claiming that the policy violated the 4th Amendment. The Court determined that the regulation is constitutional because it supports the School's vital interest in preventing drug use among its children.
