Legal Precedents in Education Law: State ex. Rel. James v. Ohio State University

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Table of Contents

Issue
Rule(s)
Analysis
Conclusion
References

Issue

William Calvin James, the assistant professor of the Department of Geological Sciences, Ohio State University, requested to give him access to the information contained in his promotion and tenure files, as well as in the files of other faculty, and to provide copies of the records. James’s requirements were met with resistance: the dean complied with it only in part. Particularly, the dean agreed to give James the redacted copy of the information contained in his file but rejected the request about providing information from the files of other faculty.

Besides, the dean refused to give James a copy of the evaluation letter where the chairperson of the department evaluated James’s work and did not agree to disclose information on persons who fulfilled the evaluation. The position of the university was that the tenure files were protected by the Ohio Public Records Act and that disclosure of the information would be a violation of “the university’s academic freedom” (Kaplin & Lee, 704). James applied to the Supreme Court of Ohio.

The question: Should the dean provide the information requested by Jones?

Rule(s)

Ohio Public Records Act

U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in the University of Pennsylvania v. EEOC.

Analysis

The Court discussed the university’s defenses and rejected both of them. As regards the first defense, the Court argued that only “confidential law enforcement investigatory records” were exempt under the Ohio Public Records Act (Leap, p.178). Besides, the Court emphasized that, according to the guidelines on promotion and tenure files, the information contained in evaluation letters was to be disclosed. As for the second defense, the Court cited the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in the University of Pennsylvania v. EEOC and emphasized that making information on promotion and tenure decisions secret contradicts the notion of “academic freedom” (ibid.). Thus, the Court decided that the university should provide James with the information requested by him.

Conclusion

State ex. Rel. James v. Ohio State University became one of the landmark cases in education law, as it contributed to the interpretation of the notion of academic freedom that is often used in other cases related to education, as well as of the matters of confidentiality in higher education institutions.

References

Kaplin, W.A., & Lee, B.A. (2006). The Law of Higher Education: A Comprehensive Guide to Legal Implications of Administrative Decision Making. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Leap, T.L. (1995). Tenure, Discrimination, and the Courts. Ithaca, NY: ILR Press.

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Legal Precedents in Education Law: State ex. Rel. James v. Ohio State University

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