Education Law

Cost Effective Research Tip: The text and CRS summary of all the laws below, beginning with those passed after 1972, are freely available on the Congress.gov website.

• Northwest Territory Ordinance of 1787                                                    
  Set aside land to support schools. Enacted under the Articles of Confederation. July 13, 1787.                               

• First Morrill Act (Land Grant College Act of 1862)
  Granted every state establishing a public agricultural college 30,000 acres of public land for each of its Congressional seats. 12 Stat. 503 (1862).
• Second Morrill Act
  Provided for appropriations for land grant colleges. Separate but equal requirement led to creation of 17 black colleges in the South.  26 Stat. 417 (1890)
• Vocational Education Act of 1917 (Smith-Hughes Act)
  Provided support for secondary school level vocational education. 39 Stat. 929 (1970).
• George-Barden Act (Vocational Education Act of 1946)
  Provided support for agricultural, industrial, and home economics training for high school students. 60 Stat. 775 (1946)
• Lanham Public War Housing Act of 1941
  Eased burden on communities affected by Federal installations by making payments to school districts. 54 Stat. 1125 (1941)
• Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944 (G.I. Bill)
  Provided returning WW II veterans with cash payments of tuition and living expenses to attend college, high school or vocational education. 58 Stat. 284 (1944).
• Impact Aid Act of 1950 (Educational Agencies Financial Aid Act)
  Provided federal assistance to educational agencies in areas affected by Federal activities. 64 Stat. 1100 (1950).
• National Defense Education Act of 1958
  Provided federal support to a wide range of educational activities, triggered by desire to compete successfully with the U.S.S.R. 72 Stat. 1580 (1958).
• Civil Rights Act of 1964
  Title VI provided for withdrawal of federal aid from schools which discriminated on the basis of race. P.L. 88-352, 78 Stat. 241, 42 U.S.C.A. § 2000e-2a (1964).
• Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965
  Title I authorized federal aid to disadvantaged children in poor urban and rural areas. Title IV provided for aid to handicapped children, 79 Stat. 27 (1965).
• Higher Education Act of 1965
  Authorized assistance for postsecondary education, including financial aid programs for needy college students. 79 Stat. 1219 (1965).
• Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 1970 (IDEA), The pivotal special education law that helped ensure special needs children an education that accounts for their disabilities. P.L 91-230, 84 Stat. 175. 
• Education Amendments of 1972
  Title IX prohibited discrimination on the basis of sex in educational institutions receiving federal aid. 86 Stat. 235 (1972).
• Rehabilitation Act of 1973
  Section 504 prohibited discrimination on the basis of disability. P.L. 93-112, 87 Stat. 355 (1973).
• Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975 (EAHCA)
  Mandates free appropriate public education designed to meet the individual needs of all handicapped children. 89 Stat. 773 (1975).
• Department of Education Organization Act of 1979
  Established the modern Department of Education as a cabinet-level department. 93 Stat. 668 (1979).
• No Child Left Behind Act of 2001
  Requires states to develop assessments in basic skills which must be given to all students in order to receive federal school funding. P.L. 107-110, 115 Stat. 1425 (2001).
• Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 (IDEIA)
  Revised the requirements for evaluating children with disabilities. P.L. 108-446,118 Stat. 2647 (2004).

The U.S. Constitution is silent on the issue of education, making its administration largely the responsibility of the individual states. However, all levels of government must adhere to the Constitution's dictates, particularly those prohibiting discrimination. Therefore,  there is a considerable amount of federal legislation governing education policy. See the adjoining column.

From the South Carolina Constitution
Section 3. System of free public schools and other public institutions of learning.
The General Assembly shall provide for the maintenance and support of a system of free public schools open to all children in the State and shall establish, organize and support such other public institutions of learning, as may be desirable. (1972 (57) 3193; 1973 (58) 44.) S.C. Const. art. XI, §3

Chapter 59 of the Code of Laws of South Carolina covers education - Cost Effective Resource

• Education Commission of the States - Cost Effective Resource
  Clickable map links to state education statutes, administrative codes

• State Statutes
  State Statutes Annotated Multibase has statutes and constitutions from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. (WestlawNext) 

•  State Laws & Regulations
  Clickable map links to state education statutes, administrative codes (Bloomberg Law) 

Should you need to do legislative history research, the Library database ProQuest Congressional is a source for prepared legislative histories, CRS Reports, House and Senate Reports, and House and Senate documents.

Cost Effective Resource - Congress.gov, from the Library of Congress. The legislative history material found here extends only as far back as 1973.