Black Student "Pushouts" - A National Phenomenon

    NAACP LEGAL DEFENSE AND EDUCATIONAL FUND, INC. 
10 Columbus Circle, New York, N.Y. 10019 • (212) 586-8397 

Black Student "Pushouts" - A National Phenomenon 

Executive House 
Washington, n.c. 

A Consultation of Attorneys, 
Administrators, Students and 
Advocates to Plan Legal and 
Non-legal Strategies 

Sponsored By 

June 2-4, 1972 

Division of Legal Information and Community Service 

Shirley M. Lacy 
Director 

Northern Schools Program 

Contributions are deductible for U.S. income tax purposes 



In a week-end consultation held at the Executive House, 

Washington, D.C., June 2-4, 1972, over forty persons met to 

exchange information, to share their experiences and to devise 

strategies around the alarming number of Black students being 

forced out of schools. The meeting, sponsored by the NAACP 

Legal Defense Fund's Division of Legal Information and 

Community Service, was designed to focus on administrative 

practices and arbitrary school policies in school systems 

located in the South, the North and Mid-west regions of the 

country. 

LDF staff had made special efforts through personal inter­

views and follow-up on recommendations to bring together a 

group of participants who were not only aware or concerned about 

student issues, but to locate persons who were currently working 

to promote the rights of Black students. As a result, those 

who attended came with deep interest and special knowledge 

gained from practical day to day experiences in school systems, 

in legal practice, in schools of law and in community-oriented 

work situations. 

Seen by LDF attorneys close to the litigation and 

implementation of school desegregation orders in the South, 

the problems confronting Black students have been termed 

"second generation" problems. Some of the more overt ways in 

which they manifest themselves are in the form of mass suspen­

sions and expulsions, unequal treatment, illegal transfers, 

lack of uniform codes of conduct, discriminatory testing and 

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tracking patterns, student arrests and criminal prosecutions. 

Organizations attempting to document the number of 

students of school age, out of school, in the South have 

come up with figures for the 1970-71 school year that are 
1/ 

indeed alarming. Alabama 12,161; Florida 21,876; Georgia 

22,042; Kentucky 16,954; North Carolina 29,278; South 

Carolina 13,488; Tennessee 15,778. How many ~here are of 

these students out of school as a direct result of administrative 

suspension and expulsion actiTity on the part of school systems 

is difficult to determine. Acsording to the Dallas Times 

Herald, 12,000 student suspensions occurred in the first 

4 1/2 months of this year, and in Jefferson, Mobile and 

Montgomery Counties (Alabama), student suspensions are now 

reported to be averaging 1,200 - 1,500 a day. 

But the problem of student "pushouts" is not peculiar to 

the South. In the North and Mid-west, similar reports are 

coming to light. A "Dropout Profile" book, compiled by the 

Dayton (Ohio) Board qf Education, shows that 1,380 students 

dropped out of the city's high schools during the 1969-70 

school year.. However, the suspension rate is reported as 

approximately 3,500, a figure almost three times the number 

of "dropouts" that the school system is willing to acknowledge. 

One attorney working on student issues in Philadelphia 

-------------------------------------------------------------
1/ National Education Association, Southern Regional Council, 

Delta Ministry, Mississippi Teachers Association, American 
Friends Service Committee 

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has developed a projection of approximately 750 suspensions 

per day based on figures provided by the Philadelphia school 

system for several of its high schools. The heavily Black 

school district of Chester, Pennsylvani~ suspended close to 

2,000 students over the first five months of this school 

year. The dimension of the problem can further be seen in a 

statewide survey conducted by the Illinois State Department of 

Education. This special study identified,on a county by county 

basis, the number of students graduated and the number of 

students who had "dropped out" at the close of the 1970-71 

school year. Cook County, with its huge Chicago Public school 

system, graduated 49,304 students. In this same county, in 

the same school year, 21,066 students were reported as "drop­

outs". 

With such background information in mind, LDF staff 

shaped the direction of the consultation to deal with three 

main objectives: 

1. To more specifically identify issues and practices 

related to the suspension and expulsion of Black 

studentsi to look beyond these acts for root causes. 

2. To. develop legal strategies based on the current 

state of the law and to examine those problems 

requiring new and/or different legal challenges •. 

3. To devise supportive non-legal approaches for 

maximizing the use of local, regional and national 

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resources. 

The following report attempts to summarize the substantive 

issues discussed in the consultation, to set forth factual 

information provided by participants and contained in materials 

distributed, and to share some of the insights gained on the 

question of the Black Student "Pushout" as a national phenomenon. 

Friday Night - Opening Session 

In panel format, four Black students shared with the 

group some of their past experiences with suspensions and 

expulsions from their local schools. One student, now at a 

Ohio State University, described in detail his nine suspensions 

from the Dayton Public School system, his general distrust of 

teachers, the failure of the school system to inform students of 

their rights, the necessity for having these rights respected and 

the need to involve students in appropriate decisions. He felt 

strongly that school codes placed more emphasis on telling students 

what they cannot do, rather than what they can. 

A second student who had been around a fight was accused of 

being involved in it. He was arrested at three in the morning, 

handcuffed, convicted and jailed for three to four hours. 

This student tried to swear out a warrant against a white 

student. He was told by the Sheriff that he could not, nor 

could his parents. The student was put on probation by the 

Judge and told to "wait until he was notified" that the 

probation was over. As in many systems, this district in 

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Georgia has no student codes. 

A third student was accused of riotous behavior following 

a Black/white flare up at her school in February of this year. 

Her mother appealed to the school boardo The board suspended 

her until the last day of school (February to June). During 

her hearing, she had no opportunity to face her accuser. 

Hearsay evidence was used aga.inst her. At the same time, two 

white students who had also been suspended on the same charges 

were permitted to return to school. In Lima, Ohio, it is not 

uncommon for students who have been late three times to be 

suspended for the remainder of the school year. Many school 

districts make it possible for much discretion to be used in 

disciplinary decisions. 

The fourth student expressed strong feelings that teachers 

do nothing to help kids. As a student in Wilcox County, Alabama, 

he became involved in the Student Action Committee. Two days 

later, he was suspended without a hearing. In that school 

system, principals walk around with police dogs and guns. This 

student attended a "white" school. 

Students went on to further explain what was happening 

to them simply by going to school every day. In some places 

like Holt or Wilcox County, they have been expelled for walking 

out or peacefully demonstrating. One student felt that she 

had been singled out because her relatives were "trouble­

makers"; another student confirmed that his parents were the 

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reason he got into trouble. During a crisis, when students 

are expelled, those who. remain feel devastated by the fact 

that their brothers, sisters and leaders have been "pushed 

out." 

In ·some instances, students have run into problems 

protesting out of date books, meaningless curriculum and 

social issues. Non-conforming students get into trouble 

most. In many places, ·parents of students involved in 

protest have lost welfare payments. 

Feelings of the students on teacher/parent support 

were mixed and generally negative. They were in agreement 

on these statements: 

Teachers don't want you to think for yourself or have 
your own ideas. 

Teachers "boot" us everyday - ·the more you try, the 
harder you get it. 

Black teachers don't want to get involved. 

The teacher is always right. 

Students have a right to an education. 

White students don't want to hear about the contributions 
of Blacks. 

Black students are often provoked into fights with white 
students and end up getting arrested and even jailed. 

Students get little support from their parents. Parents 
are ignorant of or reluctant to use the appeals process. 
They believe it is futile. 

As the discussion moved to include all of the participants, 

the list of grievances grew. It was noted that in several 

districts, Black teachers do not support Black students: in 

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other cases, Black teachers do try to help and get fired. 

In some cases, those teachers who were fired continued to 

support students. In at least one district, teachers who 

do not do these things 'still get fired. There was general 

consensus that teachers are scared. They are ambivalent 

about the corporal punishment issue and know nothing about 

the civil rights of kids. 

Comments From The Group 

Leon Hall said we needed to identify interested students, 

interested groups and interested lawyers. College students 

need to be involved in the kinds of issues concerning Black 

high school students. 

Dondra Ford mentioned in-school suspensions, tracking 

with racial implications, Title I related issues, lay advocacy. 

Under the latter topic, she mentioned informing students.of 

their rights, that parents should obtain student records and 

examine testing programs. There is a need for getting this 

information to the public. 

Attorney Charles Williams urged the establishment of 

basic standards for suspensions/expulsions, and the need to 

relate this issue to. the fact that Black kids are the ones 

who are getting pushed out. 

Attorney Henry Marsh described the problem of transition 

schools and learning centers which include elementary students 

up through high school.. These are mainly Black and are places 

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for drop-outs or students suspended or expelled. He also 

mentioned state troopers arresting students for demonstrations, 

resulting in students being expelled. The lack of a Black 

curriculum, the fact that Black teachers get in trouble if 

they try to teach about Blacks and the lack of Black scholar­

ships were suggested as other causes leading to the Black 

Student "Pushout". 

Michael. Valder talked about a washing.ton, D.C. case in 

which Black students' names were used without proof of any wrong­

doing. He also emphasized that even where you have a decent 

code, as in Arlington, Virginia, enforcement is a problem, 

particularly if students and parents do not insist that the 

code be followed. 

Attorney Charles Becton said that schools are shifting 

their responsibility to solve these problems to the courts: 

that principals encourage white parents to take out criminal 

warrants. In Charlotte, North Carolina, students were 

accused of seven offenses involved in the same alleged act 

and had to post bond seven times. They were still sentenced, 

even after obtaining a lawyer. 

Attorney William London felt the need for a different 

focus, that is, the use of due process even if the lawyer did 

not think he could win. The point is to make the process so 

expensive for school boards that they must use other means. 

He recognized that procedural due process has severe limita­

tions and questioned whether or not it is possible to 

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completely eliminate expulsions. What are the alternatives? 

What is the extent of review available apart from legal attack? 

What review (statutory or common law} might be available 

from the Supreme Court? 

Attorney Steve Gold said that principals are too autonomous: 

that in 1970-71 in Philadelphia, there were 150,000 suspensions 

that year, that 18,000 of that district's 154,000 students were 

absent per day, that students are suspended and then transferred 

to another school which results in more days lost. He has 

some faith in going after due process. He also believes in 

such tactics as· trying to prove contempt against school 

officials, getting the principal arrested, always asking for 

damages, for a hearing, and always trying to go after as many 

of the school staff persons as are responsible for hurting kids. 

Lawyers and others in the community should help organize students. 

Attorney Alan Levine had doubts about due process but 

agreed that it does help "foul up" school systems .. 

Attorney Peter Rebold said that boards make rules retro­

acti velyr that rule making procedures are crucial to put the 

bad guys in jail. Testing is a problem. Since there will 

never be enough attorneys, lay advocates are needed. Students 

have no political power, so they have no political friends. 

State legislators are important to reach. 

Attorney George Strickler said that Black student problems 

are closely connected with desegregation: that he wants 

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affirmative, uniform approaches concerning the limits of power 

of school boards with regard to Black students' suspensions/ 

expulsions. Since the dismissal or other discriminatory 

treatment of Black teachers is part of the desegregation 

process, why should not Black student problems be considered 

in the same light? We need Singleton type orders with regard 

to Black students. We need an affirmative litigation strategy 

and need to try to put the burden squarely on school boards. 

We should not approach this problem as defense attorneys. 

Summary 

Law suits are not the only answer. There must be a 

larger approach that involves the community and the political 

process. School boards always have and always will get bad 

legal advice; thus, school boards will always be doing wrong. 

In too many parts of the country, there is a legal crisis 

in the existing shortage of lawyers to handle student problems. 

The task is to isolate the areas most susceptible to attack by 

lawyers, by the community, by students. We must then arrange 

a list of legal priorities, litigate some of these situations, 

but not spread ourselves too thin. 

At the same time, we must encourage the community to 

organize and fight for what is in the best interest of students 

and parents. We have to recognize that this approach may 

result in the lawyer becoming the target of that organizing, 

but we must bear in mind that non-lawyers often have more 

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freedom with regard to solutions than lawyers. There is a 

need to return to direct action. Teachers, parents, students 

and administrators are.badly needed, at this time, in working 

for change throughout the entire educational system. 

Saturday Morning 

Recognizing that there were many urgent student problems 

that could have been discussed over the remainder of the week­

end, limitations of time forced us to give priority to the 

suspension/expulsion issue. To move the consultation towards 

a practical discussion of legal and non-legal remedies, this 

morning session was devoted to further clarifying who or 

what a "push out" is, particularly in relationship to legal 

theories, established case law and the right of a child to be 

educated. 

Attorney Charles Becton of Charlotte, North Carolina, 

Prbfess.or. Charles A. Quick, university of Illinois School of 

Law and Professor Stephen R. Goldstein, university of 

Pennsylvania School of Law, made oral presentations to the 

group. Attorney Henry L. Marsh, Richmond, Virginia, served 

as the session Chairman. 

Attorney Becton stated that schools are the most 

authoritarian institutions in the country1 students have 

few rights with the typical school board. He then went on 

to define some of the factors that identify students as "push­

outs" in his state. 

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The process often begins with a Principal or Guidance 

Counselor encouraging a student to "dropout": disciplinary 

action for misconduct frequently results in the transfer of 

a student to a "restricted" school or facility such as a 

detention home: I.Q. tests or tests which discriminate 

against Black students not familiar with white-oriented tests 

lead to "in-school pushouts" - the filling of "special 

education" classes with Black students. The "curriculum push­

out" comes about where schools have strictly white-oriented 

courses, or where there is no appropriate education for Black 

students at integrated schools. Meaningless courses do not 

meet the needs of Black students. 

courts play a large role in creating pushouts. In­

creasingly, schools shift disciplinary action onto the courts, 

allowing Principals or white parents to take warrants out 

against Black students. The labelling of Black students as 

"unruly", "disrespectful", "disobedient" or "truant", by the 

school system paves the way for such students to end up in 

Juvenile Court. Here, they will either. be placed on probation 

or be sent to a Juvenile facility. Throughout this entire process, 

such students must remain on suspension pending the outcome 

of their court case. Whether a student is found innocent 

or not, he still fails his courses due to the time lost or 

the loss of grade points daily. There is often no automatic 

return after suspension since many suspensions are indefinite 

and not for a specific time. 

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In Charlotte, North Carolina, where 90% of the students 

suspended both this year and last have been Black, punishment 

has been extremely severe. Much discretion has been left 

up to Principals. As a matter of common practice, they can 

suspend a student for five days, obtain permission from the 

Superintendent and suspend for another five days. Two 

credit points are lost for each day of school missed. Many 

short suspensions do not require a hearing, but the 

cumulative effect of these is the same as for long suspensions. 

Attorney Becton stressed to lawyers the need to file 

motions for further relief in pending desegregation cases under 

the theory that Black student "pushouts" are a perpetuation of 

the dual school system. The court has inherent powers to remedy 

past segregation. Statistics on race may be developed to prove 

up racial motivation. Special safeguards, therefore, may be 

obtainable. Other legal theories providing bases for attack 

are related to: 

1. Classification methods which allow testing that 

produces different results for Black and white 

students. 

2. Classification standards whereby students are 

judged to be too good for juvenile institutions 

but too bad to go to school, so they receive no 

education at all. 

3. All students have a right to an education: to 

deny education is cruel and unusual punishment. 

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Most state laws are fairly strong with regard 

to the right to an education. 

4. If students have the right to an education at all, 

they have the right to an "appropriate education" 

which includes the right to treatment for those 

with special needs. 

Professor Charles A. Quick detailed speci;f.ic actions 

that attorneys can take within the confines of State 

regulations: 

1. Demand open hearings to get things out in the 

open, to show differences in treatment between 

Black and white students, to cross-examine 

administrators. Try to get the story to the 

press, especially where hearings are closed. 

2. Interim suspensions are very common. Make the 

constitutional argument that there must be a 

preliminary hearing before any type of interim 

suspension. Judge Boyle ruled in a Wisconsin 

Federal Court [Strickland] that some evidence 

is needed before the board can give an interim 

suspension because of the child's right to an 

education. The threat of Federal Court action 

may scare some school boards, making them less 

likely to issue temporary suspensions. Obtain·ing 

a Temporary Restraining Order immediately, will 

slow down interim suspensions, but an attorney 

must be immediately available. 

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3. With respect to acts occurring off school grounds, 

examine the school code and the common law in the 

jurisdiction: determine where does the school 

authority begin and end. 

4. Study Whittington v. Barr. (Ohio) for handling 

of many issues, especially separate determination 

needed to exclude for reasons of endangerment to 

the school. 

A 14 year old male, who bad been the subject of a 

highly contested and controversial juvenile 

delinquency proceeding was adjudged beyond 

rehabilitation and dangerous to the community. 

From August 1966 to June 196~, he was incarcerated 

in the Fairfield County Jail (except for a temporary 

stay in the Franklin County Detention Center) • 

During this period, be was not afforded any formal 

education. Upon his appeal and release, the school 

board passed a resolution excluding him without 

notice to Whittington and without testimony of 

anyone except the school Principal and Superintendent. 

5. Make use of the concept of Collateral Estoppel. 

The Board of Education is an administrative 

agency of the State. When it loses, it should not 

have another chance through state Juvenile Court. 

Proceedings. (See Article by Herb Simmel, 

Columbi.a Law Review, Fall 1970). 

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Professor Quick stated that the Supreme Court will 

probably not want to hear "hair" cases any longer, but that 
' 

work is needed on depriving pregnant girls of an education. 

He further suggested the need for more research and.the 

' working up of legal models on' harassment of Black kids by 

the school administration. 

Professor Stephen R. Goldstein.outlined the need to 

continue pressing for due process. Cases will be won on 

that basis until school boards. change their ways. 

Typically, school boards do a poor legal job until they 

lose cases. Due process, as a remedy is limited but still 

useful. 

Hearings help, including classification cases. These 

are tremendously burdensome because it must be determined 

where a child should be placed. Variables in this kind of 

litigation should include attacking forms of sanction when 

students are suspended, expelled or transferred and putting 

the case in a racial and due process context to help the 

Judge see the racial aspect. 

Federal Courts may. not be the best vehicle for 

finding relief. Legal challenges may be more successful 

if directed toward State rather than Federal Courts, especially 

outside the South. This decision will depend, in large 

part, on the state in which the action against the student 

occurs. 

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Attorneys should find out whether state statutes require 

hearings, and what kind of sanctions are permitted under State 

law. For example, in Pennsylvania where the law only allows 

suspensions which are preliminary to a school board determination, 

a suspension as an independent sanction is invalid. 

Entitlement statutes must be made to work for students. If 

a child is discontinued from attending school, provisions must 

be made to continue his education, to support hi~ right to an 

education beyond the limitations of providing him with "special 

education". In some states, children are entitled by the state 

constitution to an education between ages 5 - 21. Entitlement 

is a right which must not be confused with compulsory attendance, 

but entitlement requires the state to provide the education that 

justifies the compulsion. 

Group Comments 

Each of the presentations raised significant new ideas and 

concepts and provided an opportunity for broad discussion on 

specific situations: 

There will soon be a hearing in Virginia about putting 

Black kids in special facilities (ADA stays at the same level 

in that case). The confidentiality of students records is 

the only issue in that hearing. 

In ability grouping cases in Louisiana, there is trouble 

getting student records but courts are beginning to extend 

discovery rights. 

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' 

State laws concerning Freedom of Information may help. 

Discovery rights concerning student suspensions may be easier 

to get if that issue is raised in the school desegregation cases. 

Compulsory attendance laws give a strong implication of 

an entitlement to education. 

Any movement to abolish compulsory education may hurt the 

entitlement idea. 

A 1956 brief concerning a Virginia School District and a Yale 

Law Review article (1957) talk about the idea of private prose­

cution against public authorities. 

There is a connection between compulsory attendance and 

student protests. Can a suspended student be held in violation 

of compulsory attendance laws? 

It should be helpful for attorneys to use this year's 

suspension and expulsion statistics as a factor. in whether or not 

the plaintiffs approve next year's school desegregation plan. 

There is a connection between Black student suspensions and 

Title VII test cases. Suspensions are not necessary and, if they 

have a racial impact, then suspensions must go. 

Student disruptive activity may be upheld and should be 

upheld because students should be disruptive. 

We should try to shift the burden to the school board to 

make it justify suspensions as a compelling interest. 

We should make the school district show why a student is 

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"disruptive". 

A cumulative student record about lots of little stuff 

hurts. It is important to get at the permanent record 

issue. Parental permission might be needed to require 

a review of a student's files. 

Summary Conclusions 

Courts do not want to get into this issue. Good state 

laws help. Juvenile judges may sometime be better to go to 

than Federal Judges. We need to develop ideas about why 

students do what they do and then put that burden on the 

Board. We need to stress segregated school systems, due 

process and the racial impact. Collateral Estoppel motions 

should be prepared by LDF. Due process will help by getting 

information to the public. It can help develop community 

support and awareness. We need basic information about much 

of this from staff persons, parents, local groups, etc. 

Specifically, we need to: 

1. Look to state laws for protection. 

2. Litigate more issues related to problems occurring 

off school grounds. This may resolve jurisdictional 

questions. Problems resulting in double punishment 

(truancy and suspension) must also be attacked. 

3. Document underlying problems facing disruptive 

students. 

4. Where applicable, tie arguments to the perpetuation 

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of a dual school system, since courts have inherent 

powers to remedy past segregation. 

5. Expose legal strategies to non-lawyers to fashion 

better cases based on more information. 

Saturday Afternoon 

LDF Attorney Charles Ralston defined LDF's current approach 

in student cases and the general direction in which LDF would 

like to move. There are two fundamental notions that LDF is 

adhering to: 

1. School Desegregation - It is important for the 

courts to understand that Black students' problems 

evolve out of desegregation. School districts 

cannot remedy the situation by simply expelling 

kids. 

2. There is a fundamental right to an education. 

States must provide the best possible reason to deny 

a child his right to an education. Transfers or 

long term suspensions can only be used as a last 

resort. 

In answer to each of these, LDF will want to know what kind 

of substantive law can be applied to school districts before 

they can suspend or expel. LDF cannot just progra!I) litigation, 

but must also respond to day by day problems. LDF should be 

able to take individual cases and develop appropriate litigation. 

An example of the type of litigation in which LDF is now 

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involved is: 

Holt v. Tift County Board of Education (Georgia) 

This case involves a small rural county in which .the school 

system became integrated in the 1970-71 school year. 

There is one high school attended by both Black and white 

students. Black students requested inclusion of Black 

History in their curriculum. 

100 Black students conducted a silent vigil. 40 students 

were suspended and expelled without notice or hearing 

first and then were required to ask for a hearing themselves. 

Legal Issues Raised By LDF 

under Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment 

1. Arbitrary denial of an education 

2. Black kids suspended for absenteeism - white kids 

were not 

3. Different treatment due to race-development of stringent 

regulations in response to integration by school board 

Under Due Process 

1. Lapse of time until the hearing 

2. Procedural burden placed on the students 

3. Very slow appeal process 

4. No notification of regulations 

Summary conclusions 

Principals have total power and total discretion. 

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' 

There is a long time, in many cases, before a hearing 

takes place. 

There is a definite connection between administrative 

disciplinary action and the student ending up in Juvenile 

Court. A student's juvenile record can often end up in an 

arrest record. 

It is essential to establish the racial aspects of sus­

pensions and expulsions. 

It is especially difficult to show a connection between 

desegregation and Black student suspensions or expulsions in 

the North. 

Issues Raised For Further Consideration 

l. What kinds of records should and should not be 

allowed: who, if anyone, should have access to them? 

2. Criminal charges should be brought against administrators 

and teachers for damages with regard to the misuse of 

records. Cases of this type would have to be chosen 

very caredfully. 

3. What should be done about white parents taking warrants 

out against Black kids. 

4. What should be done to make a Prosecutor prosecute? 

5. Why not use conspiracy laws to go after individuals who 

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violate someone's civil rights? 

Community Strategy Discussion 

There was much lengthy discussion on such topics as the 

need for student power, drawing up model handbooks for 

distribution in schools, the involvement of lay advocates to 

do as much as they could, going to lawyers only when they 

had to, establishing a Students' Rights News service and 

publicizing excerpts from student records to demonstrate the 

damaging things that are in these records. 

The Dayton Center for the ptudy of Student Citizenship, 

Rights and Responsibilities hires community organizers which 

include people from NWRO, SCLC and other activist groups. The 

Center trains them and they, in turn, perform "watch-dog" roles 

on school officials. The Center helps students set up public 

hearings, with students as hearing officers. The hearings brings 

out even more information on what is happening in the schools. 

A program of lay advocacy may not work well if there is 

no attorney available. In many cases, lay advocates can help 

school boards work out solutions. Most administrators and 

teachers do not know school law. With hard decisions, 

administrators need support. 

It was recognized that in those Black communities where 

there are strong Student Organizations or community pressure, 

Black students do not encounter as many problems with the 

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' 

school system. In one district in Ohio, before a recommenda­

tion for expulsion is made, a committee of school personnel, 

parents and students decided what should be recommended to 

the school board. 

Informal Saturday.Night Session 

'l'he day had been long and filled with many concepts, 

ideas and theories. For the most part, the discussion had 

stayed "on the beam" as people searched for answers to 

troublesome questions. It had not been easy to talk about 

the Black Student "pushout" without getting into other 

related student problems. Yet, time was needed to explore 

some of these concerns outside the formal agenda. 

Two smaller groups were formed composed of lawyers and 

non-lawyers respectively. This facilitated the sharing of 

common problems, issues and strategies. 

Discussion in the Lawyers' Group 

With respect to developing a legal theory to show 

that Black student suspensions are a direct result of the 

dual school system, these questions must, be raised: 

What happened in all-black and all-white schools 

when there was a ·fight? What happens now? 

The answers to these questions should begin to shape the 

direction of the legal approach. Lawyers must then try to 

get the courts to buy the argument that school boards must 

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develop an affirmative plan to deal with discipline problems 

resulting from desegregation. The burden must be placed on the 

Board to do something different - not to kick kids out. 

This approach can lead to the setting up of alternative 

schools or classes, but this also has many built-in problems. 

Basically, the right to an education implies that there must 

not be separate alternative schools or classes. 

Long hair cases may provide some analogies. To kick a 

student out, thus depriving him of an education, is a denial 

of equal protection. Arbitrary classification becomes the 

issue here. The State should be forced to show a "compelling 

interest" based on a classification that is reasonable and 

rational, before kicking a student out. 

Some LDF approaches for beginning this type of litigation: 

1. Getting the right judge 

2. Getting the right attorney (local) 

3. Checking for a rigorous disciplinary code of 

conduct in the same year of desegregation 

4. Identification of Black students being treated 

differently for the same alleged act 

5. Showing failure of the school board to intervene 

before kids are suspended or expelled: failure 

to guarantee due process: failure to ensure the 

unqualified right to an education,especially 

if the state constitution provides an entitlement 

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clause 

6. Bringing a limited number of test cases in the 3rd, 

4th, 5th, 6th, 8th and 9th Circuit Courts. 

Other points to keep in mind include finding ideal 

plaintiffs - those who were involved in non-violent activities or 

students reacting to differences in treatment by white students, 

teachers and administrators. The need here is to educate 

the court. Incidents where kids knife each other would not 

make good first cases. Develop a "white flight" argument where 

there is a long record of school desegregation. This may 

provide a good fact situation to show efforts on the part of the 

school system to keep the Black percentage at a "desirable" 

level. 

There is a need to identify experts in this area of liti­

gation. Also, more litigation should be developed around tests 

which are being used today much like pupil placement laws. 

Lawyers in this meeting stressed the need to update informa­

tion about current fact· patterns, violations, race, precedents, 

etc. and to get this out to all lawyers working on these cases. 

Lawyers litigating in this field need to work with other 

groups ·such as the Congressional Black Caucus, the Urban League 

and the Office of Education. Segments of the Black community 

such as Black school board members, administrators and key 

community leaders should be brought together on a statewide 

basis. 

- 26 -



In the North, the legal approach will have to rely hea~ily 

on arguments based on the right to an education. It will not 

be as easy to attack from the racial element. More cases will 

have to be brought in state courts. 

Final note: Although it is important to develop affirma­

tive suits, it is also important to defend individual students, 

even where this may not lead to any new law. 

Discussion in the Non-lawyers• Group 

This group was composed of students, agency staff members 

and community advocacy types. The discussion here was focused 

on ways of involving the broadest segment possible of the 

school and community in issues affecting Black students. 

Persons from the South felt it was crucial to get broad support 

from the community so that lawyers do not get caught between 

their suits, the courts and community feelings. Emphasis was 

placed on getting out information on forthcoming strategies 

to agency workers and Black school board members to gain 

support and minimize fears. 

suggestions to lawyers litigating school desegregation cases 

were made with the idea of meeting specific demands from the 

Black community. These related to positions for and placement of 

Black teachers and administrators, teacher recruitment, hiring 

and firing practices in connection with school desegregation, 

specification for in-service training and Black studies courses. 

There should be a monitoring procedure included within the 

- 27 -



court order for desegregation. 

It was strongly recommended that within HEW (or some 

other federal agency) that there be a "watch-dog" function 

to oversee, receive and investigate complaints relating to 

Black Student "pushouts". 

As part of its litigation program, LDF should assign 

one or two attorneys to review criminal prosecutions connected 

with pushou.ts. The purpose of this would be to determine 

whether or not students had been properly advised. This would 

involve a large number of cases, but it was felt that patterns 

would evolve that might dictate new strategies for the Black 

community. 

Early testing of beginning students should be eliminated 

because this groups and determines tracking patterns before a 

child has had an opportunity to learn to read, to become 

adjusted to the school as an institution, to understand what 

the testing procedure is all about or to develop the necessary 

experience and language to take tests. At the higher grades, 

there should be a coordinated attack on the Student Achievement 

Test (SAT) • 

There must be a raising of the aspirations of Black students, 

more encouragement to go into fields of medicine, law and modern 

technology. Universities should be convinced to accept "pushouts" 

entering with fewer credits than normal. Activity should be 

escalated in getting Black students to take equivalency exams or to 

- 28 -



apply for quality vocational technical training. Finally, 

there must be a recognition of the need for alternative systems 

of teaching and training Black students. 

Sunday Morning Wrap-up 

This session was devoted to synthesizing much of the week­

end's discussion, with particular emphasis on reporting on 

the informal Saturday night session, defining what LDF can do 

in relationship to its own program and that of other private 

or agency attorneys, in finding out what resources will be 

available from within or outside the consultation group. 

LDF recognizes that technical assistance to local attorneys 

will be an essential part of a national solution to a national 

problem. "Canned" complaints, memoranda of law and the 

development of facts are some of the ways in which LDF will 

try to assist attorneys in the field. 

Using selected.Circuit Courts, LDF will take on a limited 

number of test cases on different issues, taking only the 

"best" cases to the Supreme Court. The goal of this litigation 

will be to establish the right to a Common School Education, to 

carefully define the role of alternative education and to tackle 

these issues in the North and in the South. Some "good" 

southern judges will understand some of these issues better than 

others because they have been working with school desegregation 

cases. 

LDF has a responsibility to the South based on past school 

- 29 -



cases, but statewide suits in the North are a possibility. 

LDF needs to develop relationships with new lawyers, 

~specially in the North, but also in the South. Legal Aid 

attorneys will probably be the most appropriate types. 

Cooperation would work best on an individual, not an agency, 

basis. There is also the possibility of setting up a regional 

legal support structure (multi-county, part of the state, etc.) 

where legal help is limited or practically non-existent. 

Local people can be trained to do fact finding, writing 

complaints, representing students, etc. Lay advocates working 

with lawyers can be very helpful. It will be more difficult 

(but not impossible) to use students as ombudsmen or advocates 

because of their vulnerability. Full understanding of the law 

must be made to extend to teachers and administrators, with 

required periodic review as part of staff development and in­

service training. School board members also need information 

on the law and facts. 

In some areas there may already be active organizations, 

informal groups or interested individuals with whom we can work. 

A single issue coalition in certain areas might be developed. 

Political action must be mounted to increase the number 

of Black school board members and elected officials. Black 

political groups must be kept informed and given an opportunity 

to become involved. 

Efforts should be made to establish coalitions with 

- 30 -· 



teachers. A good students' Bill of Rights can be rendered 

ineffective unless teachers can be made to see that they 

are as oppressed as students. 

Agency Support . 

Boyd Bosma :;iuggested that NEA' s -Dushane· Fund might get . 

into this type-of .p~ogrami that he·would.like to work with the 

rest of the agencies, that a coordinating agency is needed, 

that the Office of Education ought to also be involved. 

AFSC is interested in cooperating with LDFi student 

rights is a priority item with them. 

Dick Boone mentioned VEP as another group to work with. 

He wants to explore what the Kennedy Memorial people can do 

on a regional, not national basis. He also mentioned the 

need for a communications system. 

Michael Valder indicated that there are particular 

individuals at the Urban Law Institute interested in working 

in this area. 

* * * * 

The term Black Student "Pushout" carries with it the 
" strongest implication of acts on the part of school districts 

that are deliberate, calculated and devastating to Black 

students. It precludes the achievement of a workable, 

pluralistic society which respects and allows for differences 

from norms acceptable only to the majority group. It robs 

- 31 -



from the Black community; it perpetuates false and baseless 

self-images in the white community. The net accomplishment 

is the destruction of the human potential within both races. 

This consultation, in its limited assignment of time, 

could never adequately deal with the many crucial issues that 
! 

came before it. Time is often the enemy of change. It is 

our hope that students who await our help will understand the 

necessity for adults to meet, assess, diagnose and dissect in 

order to plan for their uncertain futures. 

The Division of Legal Information and Community Service 

is especially grateful to each of the persons who lent their 

presence, their ideas and their experiences to help strengthen 

LDF's goals and objectives. We trust that for those who are 

already hard at work on the huge task, this meeting will serve 

as an encouragement to persist and to work even harder. 

As for LDF, we see new challenges ahead while, at the 

same time, not abandoning our continuing responsibilities. We 

hope to take these new beginnings and to work diligently with 

them; to help mold them into the kinds of change mechanisms 

for the future that we have been a part of in the past. 

* * * * 

- 32 -



SUMMARY OF STRATEGIES 

PARTICIPANTS 

AGENDA 

LIST OF MATERIALS 

- :33 -



community Strategies 

What Community Groups Can Do 

l. Document and expose problems with full use of the mass media. 

2. Research state constitutions and relevant statutes. 

3. Educate the public on students' rights, including corporal punish­

ment; define the problems and stress the urgency of these issues. 

4. The ombudsman role: monitor the implementation of state laws 

and school board codes; serve as mediator or broker during 

periods of crisis. 

5. The advocacy role: advise students of their rights, help set 

up a students' rights center, represent students at hearings. 

6. Support students while they are out of school. 

7. Develop strategies focused on sympathetic administrators, 

black administrators,.black board members. 

8. Organize participation of parents and community leaders at 

suspension hearings, at school board meetings. 

9. Insist on the right to review anecdotal material in students' 

permanent records. 

10. Urge boards to have public meetings on students' rights. 

11. Promote student power; assist in the organizing of students. 

12. Find ways of developing understanding between teachers and 

students. A confrontation between organized teachers and 

students may be inevitable but the drive for students' rights 

and teachers' rights does not have to be mutually exclusive. 

- 34 -



13. Explore alternatives to suspension, including early college 

admission. 

14. Promote the training of non-lawyers to expand the lawyers' 

outreach and to deal with problems in areas where lawyers 

are not readily available. 

- JS -



Legal Strategies 

1. LDF is developing a program of litigation the long-run 

objective of which is to get a rule of law from the Supreme 

Court. Toward this goal, parallel cases raising a number of 

issues will be filed with the intention of securing orders 

from the Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Eighth and Ninth Circuit 

Courts of Appeal. 

There will be two major thrusts: 

a) One focus will be on school districts in the process 

of desegregating. The attempt will be to demonstrate 

that districts are continuing the dual school systems 

and perpetuating past effects of segregation; to show 

that they should be required to take affirmative steps 

to deal with these problems. The ideal plaintiffs should 

be students who have not been involved in violent acts. 

We should document the following: 

(1) Disparatfes in the administration of discipline 

between black and white students 

(2) The "disruptive" acts of black students are re­

actions to hostility from white teachers and 

students, and the failure of racist institutions 

to meet the needs of black students 

(3) Disruption should be expected from youth; it can 

often be creative and is sometimes necessary to 

- 36 -



bring about change 

(4) Patterns of handling discipline changed at the 

time of desegregation and became more rigorous 

(5) School officials failed to take constructive steps 

to prevent suspensions 

b. The other effort will be to enlarge the concept of the 

right of every child to a Common School Education. The 

entitlement to education can be denied only for very 

compelling reasons. Since the child has an absolute 

right to be educated, he cannot be expelled. This 

approach will force us to deal with the question of 

alternative forms of education. The focus here should 

be on intransigent school districts. 

2. Strategies focused on states should be immediately explored. 

The goal should be to get a clear ruling on the state's 

obligation and to get affirmative enforcement of it. The 

ideal target would be a state with a good department of 

education. 

3. Legal action, including damage suits against individual 

teachers, should be explored and initiated, where possible. 

- 37 -



PARTICIPANTS 

1. Miss Cloratine Alexander 
c/o The Garfield Opportunity Center 
614 East North Street 
Lima, Ohio 

2. F. Lawrence Anderson, Esq. 
1109 Broadway 
Gary, Indiana 46407 

3. Mr. Rims Barber 
Delta Ministry 
P. O. Box 3634 
Jackson, Mississippi 39207 

4. Charles Becton, Esq. 
c/o White House Inn 
237 West Trade Street 
Charlotte, North Carolina 28202 

5. James W. Benton, Esq. 
214 East Clay Street 
Richmond, Virginia 23219 

6. Richard Boone, Director 
Robert F. Kennedy Memorial 
1054 31st Street, N.W. 
Washington, D.C. 20007 

7. Dr. Boyd Bosma 
National Education Association 
1201 16th Street, N.W. 
Washington, D.C.20036 

8. John Brittain, Esq. 
Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law 
233 North Farish Street 
Jackson, Mississippi 39201 

9. Mr. Herman Brown 
Superintendent Jefferson Township Schools 
735 Argonne Drive 
Dayton, Ohio 

- i -



10. John Butler, Esq. 
NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. 
10 Columbus Circle 
New York, N.Y. 10019 

11. A. J. Cooper, Esq. 
1407 Davis Avenue 
Mobile, Alabama 36603 

12. Mrs. Dorothy Cotton 
Southern Christian Leadership Conference 
334 Auburn Avenue, N.E. 
Atlanta, Georgia 30303 

13. Miss Gloria Cruz 
Student NEA 
1201 16th Street, N.W. 
Washington, D.C. 

14. Mr. Frederick Cundiff, Sr. 
2214 New Castle Road 
Greenboro, North Carolina 27406 

15. Miss Cheri Dalton 
New York. N.Y. 

16. Miss Jean Fairfax 
NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. 
10 Columbus Circle 
New York, N.Y. 10019 

17. Miss Dondra Ford 
Metropolitan Applied Research Center 
60 East 86th Street 
New York, N.Y. 10028 

18. Miss Abeke Foster 
NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. 
10 Columbus Circle 
New York, N.Y. 10019 

- ii -



' , 

19. Mr. James Giddell 
Youth Project 
1000 Wisconsin Avenue, N.W. 
Washington, D.C. 20007 

20. Alton Gill, Jr., Esq. 
1104 Broadway 
Gary, Indiana 46407 

21. Steven Gold, Esq. 
Community Legal Service 
313 South Juniper Street 
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 

22. Professor Stephen R. Goldstein 
School of Law 
University of Pennsy.lvania 
3400 Chestnut Street 
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19102 

23. Mr. Joseph Grant 
Black Appalachian Commission 
291 Tube Hartwell Ext. 
Spartanburg, South Carolina 29301 

24. Miss Winnifred Green 
American Friends Service Committee 
52 Fairlie Street, N.W. 
Atlanta, Georgia 30303 

25. Mr. Leon Hall 
Southern Regional Council 
52 Fairlie Street, N.W. 
Atlanta, Georgia 30303 

26. Mrs. Shirley M. Lacy 
NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. 
10 Columbus Circle 
New York, N.Y. 10019 

27. Alan Levine, Esq. 
ACLU Student Rights Project 
84 Fifth Avenue 
New York, N.Y. 

- iii -



' ' 

28. Mrs. Lolita Livingston 
NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. 
10 Columbus Circle 
New York, N.Y. 10019 

29. William A. London, Esq. 
Cook County Legal Assistance Foundation 
9107 West Ogden 
Brookfield, Illinois 60513. 

30. Laughlin McDonald, Esq. 
1611 Crestwood Drive 
Columbia, South Carolina 

31. Mrs. Phyllis McClure 
NAACP Legal Defense Fund 
1028 Connecticut Avenue, N.W. 
Suite 510 
Washington, D.C. 20036 

32. Henry L. Marsh, III, Esq. 
214 East Clay Street 
Richmond, Virginia 23219 

33. Mr. Donnie Moore 
Ohio State University 
Steeb Hall - 418 
70 West 11th Avenue 
Columbus, Ohio 43210 

34. Professor Charles Quick 
School of Law 
University of Illinois 
Urbana, Illinois 61801 

35. Charles s. Ralston, Esq. 
NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. 
10 Columbus Circle 
New York, N.Y. 10019 

36. Gordon L. Rashman, Jr., Esq. 
Delaware County.Legal Assistance Foundation Inc. 
10 East 5th Street 
Chester, Pennsylvania 19013 

iv -



37. Peter Rebold, Esq. 
Dayton Legal Aid Services 
44 South Ludlow Street 
Dayton, Ohio 45402 

38. James Rosenberg, Esq. 
NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. 
10 Columbus Circle 
New York, N.Y. 10019 

39. Mr. Jimmy Samuels 
141 Myrtle Drive 
Augusta, Georgia 30902 

40. Kent Spriggs, Esq. 
118 North Gadsden Street 
Tallahassee, Florida 32301 

41. George Strickler, Esq. 
1110 Royal Street 
New Orleans, Louisiana 70116 

42. Mr. Larry Threadgill 
Post Office Box 453 
Camden, Alabama 36726 

43. Michael Valder, Esq. 
Urban Law Institute of Antioch College 
1145 19th Street, N~w. 
Washington, D.C. 20036 

44. Mr. Robert s. Valder 
Southeast Regional Director 
NAACP Legal Defense Fund 
c/o White House Inn 
237 West Trade Street 
Charlotte, North Carolina 28202 

45. Charles Williams, Esq. 
NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. 
10 Columbus Circle 
New York, N.Y. 10019 

- v -



,, 

AGENDA 

Friday Evening June 2 

6:00 p.m. 

8:00 p.m. 

Focus: 

8:15 p.m. 

9:15 p.m. 

10:30 p.m. 

Registration 

Opening Session - North panel Room 
A.J. Cooper, Esq. Chairman 
Mobile, Alabama 

Identification of Issues and practices 
Emerging as Regional patterns 

Introduction of the week-end 
Statement of purpose 

Shirley M. Lacy 
NAACP Legal Defense Fund 

student panel 

Leon Hall, Resource person 
Southern Regional Council 

Guided Group Discussion using case 
data, memoranda of law, statistics 
and techniques currently being 
used as avenues of redress 

Summary and Conclusions - A.J. Cooper, Esq. 

Saturday Morning June 3 

Focus: To Examine Legal Theories, Constitutional Issues 
and Remedies 

9:15 a.m. Legal session - Henry L. Marsh III, Esq., 
chairman 

The Black Student "Pushouts" - Legal 
and Non-Legal Challenges 

Charles Becton, Esq. 
Charlotte, North Carolina 

- i -



11:15 a.m. 

12:00 Noon 

12:15 p.m. 

The State of the Law -

Professor Charles Quick 
university of Illinois 

Developing Trends in Procedural 
Due Process 

Professor Stephen R. Goldstein 
University of Pennsylvania 

Discussion, Questions and Answers 

Summary and conclusions -

Henry L. Marsh, III, Esq. 

Lunch 

Saturday Afternoon - Strategy Planning 

Focus: To Develop Specific Strategies and 
Recommendations for LDF, Community 
Groups, Student Groups and 
Concerned Administrators 

1:30 p.m. General session 

3:30 p.m. 

Legal strategies - practical aspects of 
establishing substantive rules; 
what bases are proper; what do 
we want and how do we get there? 

Charles s. Ralston, chairman 
NAACP Legal Defense Fund 

Community Strategies -

Ombudsmen vs. Advocates 

Alan Levine, Director 
ACLU Student Rights Project 

peter Rebold 
Dayton Legal Aid services 

- ii -



5:30 p.m. 

7:00 p.m. 

Roles for Students, Agencies and 
Administrators 

Dinner 

Jean Fairfax, Chairman 
NAACP Legal Defense Fund 

Informal Session - Continuation of Strategy 
Planning 

Sunday Morning June 4 

9:15 a.m. 

12:00 Noon 

Summary of Recommendations 

Implementation - Where Do we Go 
From Here? 

Funding Sources and Support Systems 

Adjournment 

Shirley M. Lacy 
Robert Valder 
NAACP Legal Defense Fund 

- iii -



.. 

MATERIALS 

Handbooks 

Student Rights Handbook 
for New York City 

Some Educational Respon­
si~ili ties and Rights in 
Arlington County Public 
Schools - Preamble and 
Statement 

Model High School Dis­
ciplinary Code 

Student Rights Handbook 

Student Rights Litigation 
Packet 

Articles 

Protecting Students Rights: 
Ombudsmen v. Advocates by 
Ira Glasser and Alan Levine 

Forceouts, Their Plight 
studied at Meeting by 
Boyd Bosma 

The Public High School 
Student's Constitutional 
Right to a Hearing 

School Pushouts - A 
Commentary by Nicholas 
Von Hoffman 

Suspension Procedures in 
the New York City Public 
Schools: A Report on the 
Failure to Implement Legal 
Rights of Students 

- i -

ACLU Student Rights Project 
84 Fifth Avenue 
New York, N.Y. 10011 

Arlington Public Schools 
Arlington, Virginia 

St. Louis University 
National Juvenile Law Center 
3462 Lindell Boulevard 
St. Louis, Missouri 63108 

Center for the Study of Student 
Citizenship, Rights and 
Responsibilities 

1145 Germantown Street 
Dayton, Ohio 45408 

Center for Law and Education 
Harvard University 

Civil Liberties (ACLU) 
April/72 

South Today 
52 Fairlie Street, N.W. 
Atlanta, Georgia 30303 

Clearinghouse Review, Vol. V, 
No. 8 Dec./71 

Washington Post April/72 

Prepared by The Student Rights 
Project of NY CLU 



What you should 
Student Rights 
Gordon G. Greer 

Know about 
by 

Reflections on Developing 
Trends in the Law of 
Student Rights (Reprint) 
by Stephen R. Goldstein 

Procedural Due Process for 
School Disci'pline: Probing 
the constitutional Outline 
by William G. Buss 

Model Complaint 

Holt v. Tift county Board 
of Education [George case] 

Bibliographies 

Juvenile Law and Related 
Materials 

Rights of Students in the 
Public Schools 

Protecting Students from 
Arbitrary Discipline 

Better Homes and Gardens 
Feb./72 

University of Pennsylvania 
Law Review, Vol. 118, No.4 
Feb./70 

Pennsylvania Law Review, 
Vol. 119, No. 4 

NAACP Legal Defense Fund 

National Juvenile Law Center 
St. Louis University 

ACLU, New York 

Charles A. Quick 
University of Illinois, School 
of Law