Higher Education Law and Policy

This course introduces students to the legal, institutional, and political processes that shape education policy in the United States on the federal and state levels and then moves on to contemplate certain contemporary challenges including those related to affordability.

Throughout the course, we will pay close attention to how different legal frameworks, including constitutional standards and civil rights legislation, impact the educational system. We will open our discussion by investigating the manner in which multiple bodies of law address discrimination on campus on the basis of race, sex, disability, sexual orientation, and gender identity, before proceeding to review other areas of concern such as violence and bullying against students, and the First Amendment landscape at colleges and universities.

The course weaves into the examination of the legal terrain a detailed discussion of both the obstacles facing institutions and ways in which the limitations of the current debate on education reform hampers our ability to change the status quo. We will explore the rapid rise in the cost of education in tandem with the deficiencies of the financial aid laws, before moving on to examine the crisis in admissions.

There are no prerequisites for taking this course.