David Barrett, Clemson Univ.
Antonis Katsiyannis, Clemson University

In a recent ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court in Parents v. Seattle (2007) determined that race cannot be the sole factor in the assignment of children to public schools. The court also identified the conditions which would justify the use of race in assigning children to schools. In this article we (a) provide a historical background to the Supreme Court decision, (b) summarize the facts and analyze the reasoning of the majority and dissenting opinions in the decision, and (c) address the implications of the Parents v. Seattle decision for the field of special education. We suggest that at present the Court appears determined to weight substantive educational gains for students more heavily than social integration in evaluating the constitutionality of school policies aimed at equalizing opportunities for students.

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