Too often, the government has not attempted to resolve the many problems at public and nonprofit colleges, targeting the for-profit ("proprietary") sector instead. It should not be possible to shut down a college over a technical violation--but, under antagonistic actors, that is how regulations on for-profit colleges operate. Congress…

In the early 1990s, the Supreme Court established standards to facilitate the release of school districts from racial desegregation orders. Over the next two decades, federal courts declared almost half of all districts under court order in 1991 to be "unitary"--that is, to have met their obligations to eliminate dual systems of…

This essay discusses the contentious events leading to the decision by the University of California's Board of Regents to end affirmative action in admissions, hiring and contracting at the university in July 1995. This controversial decision provided momentum for California's passage of Proposition 209 the following year ending "racial…

This article reports on a nationally-watched case by educators and families which is scheduled to be heard by the Florida Supreme Court. The court is to decide whether Opportunity Scholarships, available to students enrolled in Florida's persistently lowest-rated public schools, run afoul of a prohibition on using public money in religious…

The legal situation of a college being sued by a group of students following elimination of a graduate program is outlined and analyzed in terms of other related court litigation, the possible directions of the case, and the college's possible legal defenses. (MSE)

The rights of students to complete programs into which they have matriculated and the obligations of colleges and universities to maintain these programs for sufficient periods of time to fulfill any existing contracts with students are discussed. Contract principles are applied in protecting a student's right to complete degree programs. (MLW)

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) will not ask the Supreme Court to review a lower court's decision to exempt the Michigan Education Trust from federal income taxes. The state college tuition prepayment plan was discontinued in 1991 due to legal challenges but promised to honor its commitments to 55,000 participants. The program may now be…

A federal jury has decided that the University of Iowa did not discriminate against three female professors in eliminating their department, but the jury found the university guilty of retaliating when the women spoke out. The case arose over closure of an all-female dental hygiene program. (MSE)

The materials in this compendium are intended to assist counsel and administrators at institutions of higher education faced with the need to consider and plan for program closures. Some materials also deal with the closely related issues of financial exigency, faculty reductions, and reductions in force. Section I offers the following papers:…

Financial pressures and the possibility of a major desegregation suit have dominated the 1980-81 academic year for Tennessee's public colleges and universities. The higher education community is moving toward managing the decline with limitations on enrollment and by eliminating unnecessary duplicated academic programs. (MLW)

While college and university officials tend to say they have fraternity hazing under control due to school policies and state criminal laws, critics find the laws have been ineffective, in part because of a tendency to blame the victims. Punishment of some student perpetrators has been minimal. Liability of schools can be substantial, with…

This paper focuses upon a variety of curriculum related issues that have potential legal connotations, such as whether the college bulletin forms a contract, whether advertisements can be considered contracts, and determining the appropriateness of student discipline for academic and other reasons. Presented first is a brief overview of contract…

Legal issues in program discontinuance and resulting lawsuits are considered, including liability to the faculty, students, and other constituencies; freedom of speech; due process; contractual obligations; legal defense; and consideration of program alternatives. A list of related resources is appended. (MSE)

In 1978 a complaint was filed by New Hampshire Legal Assistance against Laconia Developmental Services, New Hampshire's only public institution for children and adults with developmental disabilities. The decision from the Federal district court judge in August 1981 ordered the state to devise a plan for: institutional improvement; development of…

This articles examines litigation which has been generated as a result of fiscal cut-backs at institutions of higher education and looks at the rights and obligations of college and university administrators and students as well as possible future trends. A first section details the effects of budget reductions at California state institutions…