Group A1

Chapters 1-2 Outline

Chapter 1: Legal Framework Affecting Public Schools
I.

II.

Sources of Law
A. Bill of Rights and 14th Amendment
1. Bill of Rights represents individual rights and freedoms and fundamental
rights of U.S. citizens
2. 14th Amendment adopted in 1868 guarantees due process of law as
applied to the states
B. The Federal Constitution
1. Basic law of the land
2. Impacts the operation and management of schools
C. Key Amendments
1. First Amendment: basic personal freedoms of students and school
personnel
2. Fourth Amendment: rights to privacy and protection from unreasonable
intrusion into person or property
3. Fifth Amendment: protection against self-incrimination
4. Eighth Amendment: protection against cruel and unusual punishment
5. Tenth Amendment: reserves education as a STATE function
6. Fourteenth Amendment: due process rights of students and school
personnel for equal protection under the laws
D. State Constitutions
1. Represent the basic source of law for individual states
2. Establish systems of public education
E. Statutes
1. Most abundant source of law affecting public schools
2. Many district policies, rules, and regulations are based on statutory law
F. Court or Case Law
1. Judge-made or common law
2. Case law frequently relies on past court decisions or precedents
G. State Agencies
1. Used in all states to execute various laws and policies governing public
schools
2. State Board of Education
1. Members are either elected or appointed
2. Legislature generally prescribes duties delegated to board
B. Local School Boards
a. Exercises general supervision over the schools within its district
b. Responsible for forming a vision for the future of the district
c. Forms policies, rules, and regulations that provide direction for school
administrators
d. Accountable to the general public- especially to the communities in their
district
The U.S. System of Courts
A. Federal Courts
a. Deal with cases involving federal or constitutional issues or where parties
reside in different states
b. Includes district courts, appellate courts, and the Supreme Court

II.

II.

B. State Courts
a. Responsible for hearing cases involving issues related to state
constitutional law, state statutes, and common law
Analysis of an Appellate Court Opinion
A. Case (Citation)
a. Named for the parties involved in the controversy
b. Plaintiff: initiates the suit
c. Defendant: party with whom the suit is being brought against
B. Procedure
a. Plaintiff first files a complaint seeking relief by the courts for alleged
actions of the defendant
b. Defendant then responds or justifies
C. Facts
a. Describe specific details leading to the conflict or controversy
D. Ruling and Justification
a. Written decision or opinion of the court
b. Ruling is accompanied by a justification detailing the the basis on which
the ruling was made
E. Disposition
a. Once the victor is determined, the court reaches a conclusion and orders
that action be taken that is consistent with the ruling
The U.S. Supreme Court
A. Defined
a. The U.S. Supreme Court is the highest court in the land.
1. There is no appeal beyond the decision of this court.
2. Rulings can only be overturned by an amendment to the U.S.
Constitution
3. Consists of 9 justices (including a chief justice), appointed for life
who collectively arrive at decisions.
b. Cases reach the court in two ways:
1. Appeal (a review by right)
1. from state courts, federal courts of appeals, and federal
district courts
2. Certiorari (a discretionary review granted/denied by vote of the
supreme court)
1. From state courts and federal courts of appeals
B. U.S. Supreme Court Ritual
a. Every Friday the justices meet together in a conference room to vote on
whether a case is acknowledged or discarded.
b. It is very procedural in manner
1. They sit at the table according to rank in seniority, descending
away from chief justice and speak in this order as well
2. Four votes pass a case, five votes dispose of it. In the event of a
tie vote, the lower court decision stands.
3. Following the vote, an assigned justice has to write an opinion on
the case. Other justices then give their opinion. The document
may have several revisions before it is filed in Open Court.
B. US supreme Court Decisions
a. Decision are documented in three sources:
1. United States Reporter, Supreme Court Reporter, or United
States Supreme Court Reporter

II.

2. All three references can be used to locate Supreme Court cases.

Legal Information Retrieval Systems
A. There are two primary legal information retrieval systems used for legal research
by legal professionals and practitioners. Both accessible via the web:
a. Westlaw
1. Cites case law, state and federal statutes, administrative codes
and law journal review
2. It contains more than 40,000 databases which are indexed to the
West Key Number System, the master classification system of law
in the U.S.
b. LexisNexis
1. Provides legal content from newspapers, magazines, and legal
documents.
2. It contains public records, unpublished opinions, and legal news.
3. Contains all current U.S. statutes and laws, nearly all published
case opinions, and almost all publicly available unpublished
opinions.

Chapter 2: Religion and the Public Schools

I.

Overview
A. The Fourteenth Amendment - Key component of the US Constitution. Focuses
on the rights and privileges of U.S. citizens.
1. The constitution made virtually no reference to religious liberties of U.S.
citizens when ratified by the states.
1. One exception, Article VI of the constitution: prohibited states from
imposing religious tests for federal offices.
B. The First Amendment - Serves as the basis for delineating certain individual
religious rights and freedoms as well as governmental prohibitions regarding
religion.
a. The Fourteenth Amendment made the First Amendment applicable to
state action.
b. Establishment Clause - Prohibits states from passing law that aid religion
or show preference for one religion over another.
1. Everson Case - Intent of the Establishment Clause.
1. State and federal government cannot set up a church.
2. They cannot influence an individuals religion.
3. No person can be punished for their religion.
4. Taxes cannot be used for religion.
5. There must be a wall of separation between church and
state.
2. Endorsement Test - Does the government endorse or disapprove
a religion?
1. Lynch v Donnelly - Found that the Establishment Clause
prohibits the government from endorsing a religion in any
manner.
3. Coercion Test - The government does not violate the
Establishment Clause unless direct aid is provided to a religion to
establish a state church or it coerces people to support religion
against their will.

b. Free Exercise Clause - prohibits states from interfering with individual

religious freedoms.
II.

II.

II.

V.

School Sponsored Prayer

1. Early 1960s landmark Engle decision - Board of Education under New York Law,
ordered a brief non-denominational prayer to be said aloud at the beginning of
each school day in the presence of a teacher.
1. Courts banned prayer in public schools.
1. School prayer continues to be challenged by congress, state
legislatures, and citizens.
b. Jones v. Clear Creek Independent School District case - Major step for school
prayer.
1. Non-school sponsored, student-initiated prayer at graduation ceremonies
did not violate the First Amendment regarding separation of church and
state.
1. Major step for school prayer proponents.
2. The court viewed this as an exercise of students First Amendment
rights to free speech.
b. No Child Left Behind
1. School districts are required to certify in writing to state agencies that no
local district policy prevents or denies participation in constitutionally
protected prayer in their public school.
2. This is a requirement to receive NCLB funds.
School Sponsored Bible Reading
A. Abington School District v. Schempp - A suit brought against the state by
Unitarian Church regarding the mandatory reading of bible verses at the
beginning of each school day.
a. Found that bible reading practices were unconstitutional.
B. Murray v. Curlett - Challenge the practice of daily bible reading in schools.
a. Found that bible reading practices were unconstitutional.
C. Primary effect test - This test raised the question of whether the primary purpose
of a law or practice has the effect of advancing or inhibiting religion and creating
excessive entanglement between church and state.
a. If the answer is yes to the test, then there has been a First Amendment
violation.
Silent Prayer and Meditation
A. Wallace v. Jaffree - A case against a 1981 statute that allowed a period of silence
for meditation and voluntary prayer and a 1982 statute authorizing teachers to
lead willing students in non-secular prayer.
a. The supreme court found that the inclusion of the words voluntary
prayer in the statute indicated that it violated the First Amendments
Establishment Clause.
b. Student-initiated meditation that is not endorsed by school officials will not
likely violate the Establishment Clause.
Prayer at School Events
A. Student led prayer at public school events.
a. A ruling in the Santa Fe case does not prevent students from discussing
religion in public school or praying publicly as long as such activities are
voluntary, and do not infringe on the rights of others.
b. First Amendment prohibits sponsored public prayer (Also a violation of the
Establishment Clause).

B. Prayer at athletic contests.

a. School sponsored prayer is a violation of the First Amendment at any
athletic contest.
b. It is an obvious violation of the Establishment Clause.

VI.

Voluntary Prayer at Commencement Exercises

A. Engel v. Vitale-1962
1. US Supreme Court struck down daily recitation of prayer of schools ap
system.
2. Banned prayer in any form in ALL public school activities however, prayer
at graduation ceremonies is still controversial.
1. Voluntary student led prayer at graduation ceremonies is
permissible.
b. School officials no longer have freedom in planning programs based
solely on community values and standards.
1. Courts have abandoned community sentiment in favor of
constitutionality.
B. Landmark Rulings
1. Jones vs. Clear Creek Independent School District
a. Voluntary student led prayer at graduation ceremonies is permissible.
b. Creates a way to include prayer in graduation ceremonies without conflict with the
Supreme Courts previous decisions.
c. Passed Lemon Test. School played no role in offering the program and had no influence
on student who led prayer.
d. Students took case to Federal District Court and Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals
1. Both upheld school districts policy.
e. Students took case to US Supreme Court
1. Case vacated
2. Court of appeals asked to reconsider case in light of Lee v.
Wiseman decision.
3. 3 Judge panel unanimously concluded that Clear Creek
policy allowing student initiated prayer did not fail the
Coersion Test
4. Court declined to review the federal court of appeals
decision.
2. Differences in Cases
a. When a school initiates prayer, excessive entanglements and
advances of religion are created.
b. When students voluntarily initiate prayer without school
involvement, excessive entanglement is not evident.
C. Impact of Ruling
1. Texas Case
1. District policy did not mandate prayer but made provisions for one should seniors
agree
2. Prayer, if student supported, would be led by a volunteer and nonsectarian and
nonproselytizing in nature
3. Reality- students could do what school officials could not.
2. Adler v. Duval County School Board

a. Florida school board revised policy to allow graduating class discretion to choose
opening and closing remarks of 2 minutes or less to be delivered by a student volunteer
selected by class.
b. Group of parents and students filed suit claiming violation of rights under the First
Amendment.
c. Lemon test applied and courts held that policy did not violate lemon criteria of having the
primary effect of advancing religion or excessively entangling the school district with
religion.
d. Evidence revealed policy had secular purpose of safeguarding free speech rights of
students participating and refraining from content based regulations.
e. Policy held to be neutral.
3. Student led prayer is permissible based on First Amendment rights of
students as long it is not endorsed by and participated in by school
personnel.
4. Schools Should Not:
a. Set aside time for prayer
b. Encourage students to participate in prayer
c. Student initiated prayer should not disrupt educational activities of school
d. Prayer may involve a group of students or individuals
D. Prayer at School Board Meetings
1. School Boards that open their meetings with prayer are violating the
Constitutions First Amendment Establishment Cause.
a. Federal district court upheld boards practice, finding that the
meetings resembled legislative sessions rather than school
events- relied on US Supreme Court ruling- 1983
b. Sixth Circuit Court ruled that board meetings were heldon
school property, regularly attended by students and did not
resemble legislative sessions.
c. Reversed district courts ruling
E. Prayer at Legislative Meetings
1. Opening prayer has been offered since 1998 on a volunteer basis before
meetings.
1. US Supreme Court begins meetings with religious statement
2. Obama Administration urges supreme court to tolerate prayer during
governmental meetings.
3. Divided court ruled that legislative bodies can open meetings with prayer.
VII.

Aid to Parochial Schools

A. Overview
a. Child Benefit Theory- courts allow certain types of aid to parochial schools
i.
Valid if parochial children are the primary beneficiaries of public supported
service provided for all children.
ii.
If aid proves to be only beneficial for parochial schools, it will be deemed
impermissible and a violation of First Amendment
b. 1985 US Supreme Court decision- disallows public school teacher from
providing Title I remedial instruction to parochial schools.

a.
b.

a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.

a.

B.

B.

B.

B.

1. Aguilar vs. Felton- court held that it is unconstitutional establishment of

religion for public school teachers to provide remedial classes in religious
schools.
2. Agostini v. Felton- motion asking to relieve 1985 case
District judge stated that supreme court ruling could not be overturned.
High court revised previous decision stating that Constitution does not prohibit Title I
from serving religious schools students, church-state Title I barriers no longer exist, and
that services can be provided to parochial students without offending church-state
constitutional prohibitions.
3. Lemon v. Kurtzman and Early v. Dicenso
Rhode Island and Pennsylvania implemented similar programs that assisted private and
parochial schools by supplementing teacher salaries who taught secular instruction in
parochial schools.
Pennsylvania court dismissed case
Rhode Island court ruled practice unconstitutional
US Supreme court held that law providing a state subsidy for nonpublic school teachers
salaries in unconstitutional, even when funds are paid by teachers who taught secular
subjects in parochial schools.
High Court struck down state law that reimbursed nonpublic schools for expenses
incurred in teaching secular subjects.
Based on Lemon standards, law must:
i.
Have secular purpose
ii.
Neither advance nor inhibit religion
iii.
Not create excessive entanglement
4. Mitchel v. Helms
US Supreme Court ruled that a federal program that placed computers and instructional
equipment in parochial school classrooms did not violate the constitutional separation of
church and state.
B. Religious Symbols- public schools may not display religious exhibits or other
visual materials. Teachers can acknowledge and explain various holidays of all
cultural and religious groups as a unit in cultural heritage or related subject as
long as a secular purpose is served.
1. Public schools should refrain from using religious symbols or pictures even in
conjunction with lessons on various holidays.
Religious Displays- certain types of displays are permitted
a. Permissible to employ seasonal decorations as long as they are not used for a
sectarian purpose
b. Public schools may not erect any type of religious display on school property.
Ten Commandments- posting the Ten Commandments in a public school are
unconstitutional
a. Posting of isolated religious text and symbols, violates separation of church and
state and is not neutral
Posting Religious Mottos and Expressions- US Supreme court has never addressed this
issue
a. Some school districts are adopting religious mottos in order to aid in moral
teaching
b. Opponents believe that these mottos endorsement religion in government
Religious Banners at Football Games- Cheerleaders and athletes are permitted to post
religious mottos or quotes on posters and banners.
a. School district was not promoting religion but are rather privately promoting
views.

VIII. Use of School Facilities by Religious Student Groups

A. Overview
a. It is unlawful for any public school receiving federal financial assistance that has
created a limited open forum to deny access to student initiated groups on the
basis of the religious, political, or philosophical content of their speech.
i.
Limited forum-when an administrator allows one or more non-curricularrelated student groups to meet on school premises during non
instructional time.
ii.
It would be unlawful for student religious groups to be denied whereas
other non-curricular student groups were not.
B. Legal Precedents
a. Administrators that deal with student religious clubs, should be guided by a
sense of fairness and respect for the First Amendment rights of others.
b. Mergens v. Board of Education of Westside Community Schools- district judge
ruled that an Omaha district did not create an open forum for student speech and
thus, did not need to allow a Bible student club to meet at high school.
c. Clark v. Dallas Independent School- US district judge ruled against a prayer
group whose meetings were loud revivals. Judge indicated Equal Access Act.
d. Board of Education of Westside Community Schools v. Mergens- schools that
provide a limited open forum may not permit certain groups to use school
facilities while denying others.