In this article, we consider a series of U.S. Supreme Court rulings that place public school students under an expansive shield of constitutional rights while often hampering the ability of administrators to engage in flexible and creative conflict resolution in the context of the school's mission. The court's readiness to adjudicate a large range…

This chapter deals with due process in student suspensions, including the implications of the Goss v. Lopez decision. In the Goss case, the Court essentially said that prior to the imposition of any suspension an informal hearing must occur in which the student charged has the opportunity to present his side of the controversy and thereupon…

A brief history of corporal punishment in the public schools, a review of major federal court decisions regarding corporal punishment and due process for students, and an analysis of current trends in disciplinary policy are presented in this report. The conservative trend revealed in school discipline is identified in large part as a response to…

Discusses five landmark Supreme Court rulings that continue to affect the daily operations of public schools regarding equality ("Brown v Board of Education"), students' freedom of expression ("Tinker v. De Moines,""Bethel v. Fraser," and "Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier"), and preservation of due process ("Goss…

The purpose of this study was to help public school administrators, especially principals, to understand the legal and constitutional limitations of their authority in dealing with students. Control of students is discussed as five separate topics, each representing a chapter, as follows: (1) freedom of expression and First Amendment rights; (2)…

This chapter's discussion of student discipline stresses a student's right to due process when he or she is faced with suspension or expulsion from school. To determine procedural requirements, the paper states, a school must examine both the statutes of the state and the requirements imposed by state and federal constitutions. The major topic of…

Chapter 18 of a book on school law summarizes court decisions that have established the responsibility of school officials, when taking disciplinary action, to conduct hearings to protect employees' and students' due process rights. The courts have used a balancing test to determine whether a trial procedure or a more informal procedure can be…