Class Projects

Brown v. Board of Education

Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954)

The landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court which ruled that American state laws establishing racial segregation in public schools are unconstitutional, even if the segregated schools are otherwise equal in quality. Handed down on May 17, 1954, the Court's unanimous (9–0) decision stated that "separate educational facilities are inherently unequal," and therefore violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

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Terry v. Ohio

Terry v. Ohio (1968)

"Stop-and-Frisk": Terry and two other men were observed by a plain clothes policeman in what the officer believed to be "casing a job, a stick-up." The officer stopped and frisked the three men, and found weapons on two of them. Terry was convicted of carrying a concealed weapon and sentenced to three years in jail.

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Tinker v. Des Moines

Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District (1968)

At the height of the Vietnam War, students in the Des Moines Independent Community School District in Iowa wore black armbands to school as an expression of their dissatisfaction with U.S. foreign policy. The district passed a rule prohibiting the armbands as part of a larger dress code, and students challenged the ban as a violation of the Free Speech Clause of the First Amendment. The Court agreed with the students and struck down the ban, saying that the school has to prove that the conduct or speech “materially and substantially interferes” with school operations in order to justify the ban.

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Force v. Pierce City

Force by Force v. Pierce City R-VI School District (1983)

In 1982, Nichole Force, a 7th grade middle-school student, was unable to try out for her school’s football team because the tryouts were restricted to boys only. She claimed that the school’s policy violated her Fourteenth Amendment equal protection rights. The district court ruled in the student’s favor, finding that the school offered no justifiable reason for preventing girls from trying out. The ruling allowed her to participate during her time as an 8th grader.

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United Nations Lawsuit on Climate Crisis

Petition to the United Nations CRC (2019)

Swedish activist Greta Thunberg, along with 15 other children from 12 countries, filed a complaint with the United Nations against five countries for violation of the activists’ rights as children to life, health and peace as protected under the 1989 UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. The children sued Argentina, Brazil, France, Germany, and Turkey but could not sue the United States and China—which contribute the most carbon dioxide and greenhouse gases—because those two countries have not ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) treaty for children to seek justice.

Web Links:
https://www.momscleanairforce.org/greta-thunberg-15-children-lawsuit-5-countries/
https://childrenvsclimatecrisis.org/
https://unfoundation.org/blog/post/5-things-to-know-about-greta-thunbergs-climate-lawsuit/

Great Migration Project

General online resources for the Great Migration Research Project

DPLA'S African American Experience (primary source sets)
PBS Learning Media's American Masters (videos)
BlackPast.org
Google Arts & Culture's Black History and Culture
The History Makers (biographies)
Biography.com's Black History
American Archive of Public Broadcasting (radio & TV sources)
National Archives' African American Heritage
LOC Research Guide: African American History Online
Getty Images

Young Activists

Greta Thunberg

Xiuhtezcatl Roske-Martinez

Mari Copeny

Sonita Alizadeh

Sophie Cruz

Melati and Isabel Wijsen

Jazz Jennings

Payal Jangid

Marley Dias

Kelvin Doe

Desmond Napoles

Asean Johnson

Jack Andraka

Gavin Grimm

Blair Imani

Coy Mathis

2020-2021 Black-Eyed Susan Award Nominees

Grades 6-9

Ansari, Rebecca K. S. - The Missing Piece of Charlie O' Reilly
Cartaya, Pablo - Marcus Vega Doesn't Speak Spanish
Dee, Barbara - Maybe He Just Likes You
Fletcher, Susan - Journey of the Pale Bear
Gemeinhart, Dan - The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise
Gibbs, Stuart - Charlie Thorne and the Last Equation
Gratz, Alan – Allies
Jacobson, Jennifer Richard - The Dollar Kids
Lackey, Lindsay - All the Impossible Things
Levy, Dana Alison - It Wasn't Me

Graphic Novels: Grades 6-9

Garcia, Kami - Teen Titans: Raven
Greentea, Vera - Grimoire Noir
Ha, Robin - Almost American Girl
Locatelli-Kournwsky, Loic – Persephone
Maclear, Kyo – Operatic
Palacio, R. J. - White Bird
Revoy, Antoine – Animus
Shirahama, Kamome - Witch Hat Atelier, Vol. 1
Vaughn, Sarah - Sleepless, Vol. 1
Walker, Suzanne - Mooncakes

Current Events

Roaring 20s Research Project

"Befriend An Organism" Project

Upper School

Upper School Theater Research Project Resources

Asian Traditional Theatre & Dance, by Jukka Mietinnen (Theatre Academy of Helsinki, 2010)
-- online book, arranged by country.

Chinese Shadow Puppetry (UNESCO Multimedia Archive, 2009) -- documentary included with Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity nomination.

Album of Chinese Opera Faces (Digital World Library, late 19th–early 20th century) -- visual record of makeup and costume drawn from nine plays.

"Commedia dell' Arte" (Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History, 2007) -- essay illustrated with holdings from the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

"An Introduction to Sanskrit Drama" by Dr. David Mason -- online lecture.

"Theater in Ancient Greece" (Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History, 2004) -- essay illustrated with holdings from the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

"Time Out of Memory: Ta'ziyeh, the Total Drama" by Peter Chelkowski (Asia Society, 2003)

Wacipi - Powow (Twin Cities PBS, 1995) -- documentary

Wayang: The Traditional Puppetry and Drama of Indonesia (UNESCO Multimedia Archive, 2008) -- documentary included with Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity nomination.

World Encyclopedia of Puppetry Arts (Union Internationale de la Marionnette, 2009-2018) -- online encyclopedia, indexed both alphabetically and geographically.

Absolute Monarch Resources for US Modern World History

Philip II of Spain

Charles I of England

Oliver Cromwell

Peter I of Russia

Frederick II of Prussia

Maria Theresa

Catherine II of Russia

Louis XIV of France