Social Studies

Freedom of speech, religion in cheerleading sign

By Paul Katula •
A Texas high school cheerleading group is using religious sayings and texts to inspire their team, and a court is allowing it temporarily while it considers both sides of the First-Amendment debate.

MacArthur genius grants, 2012 edition

By Paul Katula •
The MacArthur Foundation announced this year's winners of fellowships, commonly called "genius grants," and the list has a few surprises.

Teachers’ strikes are illegal in most states

By Paul Katula •
In case you're wondering about the legality of teachers' strikes, they are legal in Illinois and 12 other states. But that's all, primarily because most state legislatures have put education on par with police and fire protection as essential services provided by government.

Nat’l Assoc. of Basketball Coaches files amicus brief in affirmative action case

By Press Release •
The National Association of Basketball Coaches has filed an amicus ("friend of the Court") brief with the US Supreme Court in the case of a white girl who was denied admission to the University of Texas, Austin, but says she was more qualified than many of the African-American students who were admitted, because the university uses race as one of the factors in deciding admission.

Alleged retaliation against a teacher who blew whistle

By Paul Katula •
A Maryland special ed teacher is suing his former school district, whose employees he says retaliated against him when he tried to report a security guard at the school who was shaking down his special ed students for money.

K.C. school district seeks strip-search suit dismissal

By Paul Katula •
A school district wants a federal court to dismiss a lawsuit brought by the mother of a female student who claims she was wrongfully strip-searched. The girl's mother says her daughter was forced to lift up her shirt and bra, exposing herself in front of a school nurse and vice principal.

Illinois court allows suit against abuser’s former school

By Paul Katula •
The Illinois Supreme Court is allowing a lawsuit to proceed in which a student who was the victim of sexual abuse by a teacher in one district is suing that teacher's previous district because they never told the district where she's a student about the past sexual abuse history of that teacher. How would you decide? How would you advise schools to handle this case?

Louisiana's new voucher program and religious freedom

By Paul Katula •
Gov. Bobby Jindal's religious school voucher program comes under attack not only for being an affront to the First Amendment but "bad for religious freedom" as well, Rev. C. Welton Gaddy writes in his open letter from the Interfaith Alliance.