1. Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964​

“No person in the United States shall, on the ground of race, color, or national origin, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal Financial Assistance.”​

• Prohibits discrimination based on race, color or national origin.​

2. Office of Civil Rights May 25, 1970 Memorandum​

• Requires school districts to take affirmative steps to rectify language deficiencies in order to open instructional programs to all students.​

• Prohibits school districts from assigning LEP students to special education classes on criteria which essentially measure or evaluate English language skills.​

• School Districts have the responsibility to adequately notify parents with limited English proficiency of school activities which are called to the attention of other parents. Such notice in order to be adequate may be to be provided in a language other than English.​

• Forbids specialized programs for LEP students to operate as an educational dead-end or permanent track.​

3. Lau v. Nichols – 414 U.S 563 (1974)​

“Under these state imposed standards, there is no equality of treatment merely by providing students with the same facilities, textbooks, teachers, and curriculum; for students who do not understand English are effectively foreclosed from any meaningful education.”​

• Schools must take the affirmative steps to overcome barriers faced by non English speakers.​

• Schools must provide services aimed at teaching English to limited English proficient students.​

• Classroom teachers must modify instruction for English language learners.​

4. Equal Educational Opportunities Act of 1974​

“No state shall deny equal educational opportunity to an individual on account of his or her race, color, sex, or national origin by - The failure of an educational agency to take appropriate action to overcome language barriers that impede equal participation by its students in its instructional programs.”​

• Schools cannot deny educational opportunity based on race, color, sex, or national origin by deliberately segregating students or failing to remedy deliberate segregation. ​

5. The Lau Remedies (1975)​

They specified approved approaches, methods, and procedures for:​

• “Identifying and evaluating national origin minority students’ English language skills;​

• Determining appropriate instructional treatments;​

• Deciding when LEP children were ready for mainstream classrooms;​

• Determining the professional standards to be met by teachers of language minority children.”​

6. Castañeda v. Pickard (1981)​

The court of Appeals then formulated the following three-part test to measure compliance with the EEOA requirement of “appropriate action.”​

• The school system is pursuing a program informed by educational theory that is recognized by experts as sound.​

• They are taking steps to implement the approach, including providing the resources necessary to implement it effectively.​

• After a “legitimate trial” period, officials have examined the results and modified it as needed.​

7. Plyler v. Doe: Right to Attend Free Public School​

The US Supreme Court has ruled in Plyler v. Doe[ 457 U.S 202(1982)] that undocumented children and young adults have the same right to attend public primary and secondary schools as do U.S citizens and permanent residents. Like other children, undocumented students are not obliged under State law to attend school until they reach a mandated age.​

As a result of Plyler ruling, public schools may not:​

• Deny admission to a student during initial enrollment or at any other time on the basis of undocumented status.​

• Treat a student disparately to determine residency.​

• Engage in any practices to “chill” the right of access to school.​

• Require students or parents to disclose or document their immigration status.​

• Make inquiries of students or parents that may expose their undocumented state.​

• Require social security numbers from all students, as this may expose undocumented status.