D017 SCHOOL LAW - WGU EXAM QUESTIONS AND
ANSWERS GRADED A+
Plessy v Ferguson
1896- declared that facilities for blacks and whites, including schools, could legally be
"separate but equal."
Brown v Board of Ed of Topeka
1954- the U.S. Supreme Court decision reversed the ruling in Plessy v. Ferguson,
deciding that "separate but equal" in education and all other services was not equal.
Swann v Charlotte-Mecklenburg BOE
A 1971 landmark U.S. Supreme Court case dealing with the busing of students to
promote integration in public schools
Lemon v Kurtzman
1971, To withstand scrutiny under the Lemon test, government action must (1) have a
secular (nonreligious) purpose, (2) have a primary effect that neither advances nor
impedes religion, and (3) avoid excessive governmental entanglement with religion.
Wallace v Jaffree
1985-, invalidating an Alabama silent prayer law under the Establishment Clause.
Moments of silent prayer at school are unconstitutional---moments of silence are not.
The Good News Club v Milford
if a public school establishes a limited forum for community meetings during non-
instructional time, it cannot bar religious groups, even though elementary students
attending the school are the central participants in the devotional activities.
Lee v Weisman
1992- struck down a Rhode Island school district's policy that permitted principals to
invite clergy members to deliver invocations and benedictions at middle and high school
graduation ceremonies.
Santa Fe Ind SD v DOE
2000- Establishment Clause violation in a Texas school district's policy authorizing
student-led devotionals before public school football games. The Court majority
declared that student-led expression at a school event on school property and
representing the student body under the supervision of school personnel could not be
considered private speech.
Plyer v Doe
1982- held that school districts could not deny a free public education to resident
children whose parents had entered the country illegally.
Lau v Nicols
1974- Chinese children asserted that the San Francisco public schools failed to provide
for the needs of non-English-speaking students. The Supreme Court agreed with the
students and held that the lack of sufficient remedial English instruction violated Title VI.
Castenada v Packard
In this case, the Court found that the challenged bilingual programs were
nondiscriminatory. Later, in 1986, in Castaneda II, the Fifth Circuit upheld the school
ANSWERS GRADED A+
Plessy v Ferguson
1896- declared that facilities for blacks and whites, including schools, could legally be
"separate but equal."
Brown v Board of Ed of Topeka
1954- the U.S. Supreme Court decision reversed the ruling in Plessy v. Ferguson,
deciding that "separate but equal" in education and all other services was not equal.
Swann v Charlotte-Mecklenburg BOE
A 1971 landmark U.S. Supreme Court case dealing with the busing of students to
promote integration in public schools
Lemon v Kurtzman
1971, To withstand scrutiny under the Lemon test, government action must (1) have a
secular (nonreligious) purpose, (2) have a primary effect that neither advances nor
impedes religion, and (3) avoid excessive governmental entanglement with religion.
Wallace v Jaffree
1985-, invalidating an Alabama silent prayer law under the Establishment Clause.
Moments of silent prayer at school are unconstitutional---moments of silence are not.
The Good News Club v Milford
if a public school establishes a limited forum for community meetings during non-
instructional time, it cannot bar religious groups, even though elementary students
attending the school are the central participants in the devotional activities.
Lee v Weisman
1992- struck down a Rhode Island school district's policy that permitted principals to
invite clergy members to deliver invocations and benedictions at middle and high school
graduation ceremonies.
Santa Fe Ind SD v DOE
2000- Establishment Clause violation in a Texas school district's policy authorizing
student-led devotionals before public school football games. The Court majority
declared that student-led expression at a school event on school property and
representing the student body under the supervision of school personnel could not be
considered private speech.
Plyer v Doe
1982- held that school districts could not deny a free public education to resident
children whose parents had entered the country illegally.
Lau v Nicols
1974- Chinese children asserted that the San Francisco public schools failed to provide
for the needs of non-English-speaking students. The Supreme Court agreed with the
students and held that the lack of sufficient remedial English instruction violated Title VI.
Castenada v Packard
In this case, the Court found that the challenged bilingual programs were
nondiscriminatory. Later, in 1986, in Castaneda II, the Fifth Circuit upheld the school
