Law review digests--Universities & other institutions of higher learning

Journal of Law and Education, Oct 2002

Articles

Michelle Adams, Isn't it Ironic? The Central Paradox at the Heart of "Percentage Plans," 62 OHIO ST. L.J. 1729 (2001). Some states have eliminated college admissions departments' affirmative action plans and have replaced them with "percentage plans." A percentage plan is supposed to increase diversity in colleges by accepting the top percentage of applicants from each secondary education institution. The author explores the ironic notion behind the plan that secondary institutions are still racially segregated and unequal. She urges states to examine the underlying issue - that secondary schools are still racially segregated and unequal, and to work for the elimination of that inequality in secondary schools as well as higher education institutions.

Jon B. Gould, The Precedent That Wasn't: College Hate Speech Codes and the Two Faces of Legal Compliance, 35 LAW & SOC'Y REV. 345 (2001). The author reexamines college hate speech regulations in light of recent cases which found these codes to be constitutionally suspect. The author finds that these codes are increasingly prevalent, rather than disappearing, and discusses why these codes still exist. The author mentions concerns expressed by institutional officers about sexual and racial harassment.

Roberta Rosenthal Kwall, Copyright Issues in Online Courses: Ownership, Authorship and Conflict, 18 SANTA CLARA COMPUTER & HIGH TECH. L.J. 1 (2001). This article discusses the intellectual property questions generated by the advent of distance education and on-line courses in higher education. The author examines copyright authorship, ownership, attribution and integrity rights of educators producing on-line course materials.

Suzanne R. Painter, Improving the Teaching of School Law: a Call for Dialogue, 2001 B.Y.U. EDUC. & L.J. 213 (2001). The article is a discussion of the problems facing the teaching of school law. Applying recent developments in cognitive science, the author concludes by inviting dialogue among those interested in seeing reform in the education of preservice administrators.

Nancy Tribbensee, Tort Litigation in Higher Education: a Review of Cases Decided in the Year 2000, 28 J.C. & U.L. 271 (2002). This article discusses the legal duties of colleges and universities to their students, employees, contractors, and visitors. The author emphasizes the duty of colleges and universities to advise and communicate possible risks associated with academic experiences to students, the need for continuing reevaluation of campus policies dealing with harassment in order to adequately protect students from violence, and the importance of educating faculty and staff about defamation and privacy laws. The author believes that, using preventive law programs and effective risk assessment and management, colleges and universities can mitigate the recent trend of applying traditional tort liability theory to educational institutions.

Mark C. Weber, Disability Discrimination in Higher Education, 28 J.C. & U.L. 439 (2002). This article comprehensively discusses disability discrimination cases from the year 2000 and their application and relationship to higher education. The author divides these developments into five categories: (1) the definition of a qualified individual with a disability; (2) issues of accommodation, access, undue burden and fundamental alteration of programs; (3) intentional discrimination, harassment, and retaliation; (4) Eleventh Amendment immunity from liability; and (5) other issues, including limitations and party status.

Notes & Comments

"Time-Out" for Student Threats?: Imposing a Duty to Protect on School Officials, 49 UCLA L. Rev. 917 (2002). There should be an affirmative duty on school officials, similar to the duty on therapists after Tarasoff v. Regents of California, to protect potential victims when they have knowledge of a student threat.

Casenotes

Mary Kate Kearney, Deshaney's Legacy in Foster Care and Public School Settings, 41 WASHBURN L.J. 275 (2002). In DeShaney v. Winnebago County Department of Social Services, the Supreme Court found that the state did not have an affirmative duty to protect a four-year-old child from abuse by a third party (his father) and that the child's liberty interest under the Due Process Clause had not been deprived, despite the State's knowledge of an ongoing pattern of repeated and severe abuse. It was found that the State had no special relationship with the child creating a responsibility to protect him from his father's conduct. This article examines how this case relates to the State's obligation to protect children in the settings of foster care, residential public schools, and non-residential public schools. The author concludes that courts are misconstruing the special relationship doctrine as it applies to child custody and the duty to protect from private acts of violence.