https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/bridgeport/oai:scholarworks.bridgeport.edu:20.500.14548/4033
type: CreativeWork
name: An Historical and Legal Analysis of United States Supreme Court Decisions Concerning the Use of Public Funds to Support Private Education Through Vouchers Programs, and Their Relevance to State Court Decisions in Four Regions of The United States
description: The purpose of this dissertation was to provide an analysis of state and federal judiciary decisions on the constitutionality of voucher programs in different regions of the United States. The research focused on the evolution of legislative enactments and case law that were affected by changing attitudes and legal interpretations of the First Amendment establishment and freedom of religion clauses to the United States Constitution and various state constitutions. The study focused on the constitutional challenges in order to determine how the fundamental requirements that church and state remain separate and that government remain “neutral” with respect to religion affected the judicial and legislative decision making processes concerning the use of public funds through vouchers to support private education. This research analyzed 45 United States Supreme Court decisions from 1879 to 2004 which concerned separation of church and state issues, especially those related to education. The research showed that the United States Supreme Court’s decisions have shifted on the question of separation of church and state. In recent years, the Court has upheld the use of funds in religious schools in a range of programs considered “neutral” towards religion. Specifically with regard to vouchers, the Court’s decision in Mueller v. Allen upheld the Minnesota law that provided education tax deductions for tuition, textbooks, incidental expenses and transportation for all parents, whether their children attended public or religious schools. In Witters v. Washington Department of Service for the Blind, the Court defended indirect support of religion saying, “Any aid provided ... ultimately flows to religious institutions only as a result of the genuinely independent and private choices of aid recipients.” The United States Supreme Court let stand a state ruling that upheld the constitutionality of voucher programs in Wisconsin in Jackson v. Benson in 1998, saying, “...there is stil…
abstract: The purpose of this dissertation was to provide an analysis of state and federal judiciary decisions on the constitutionality of voucher programs in different regions of the United States. The research focused on the evolution of legislative enactments and case law that were affected by changing attitudes and legal interpretations of the First Amendment establishment and freedom of religion clauses to the United States Constitution and various state constitutions. The study focused on the constitutional challenges in order to determine how the fundamental requirements that church and state remain separate and that government remain “neutral” with respect to religion affected the judicial and legislative decision making processes concerning the use of public funds through vouchers to support private education. This research analyzed 45 United States Supreme Court decisions from 1879 to 2004 which concerned separation of church and state issues, especially those related to education. The research showed that the United States Supreme Court’s decisions have shifted on the question of separation of church and state. In recent years, the Court has upheld the use of funds in religious schools in a range of programs considered “neutral” towards religion. Specifically with regard to vouchers, the Court’s decision in Mueller v. Allen upheld the Minnesota law that provided education tax deductions for tuition, textbooks, incidental expenses and transportation for all parents, whether their children attended public or religious schools. In Witters v. Washington Department of Service for the Blind, the Court defended indirect support of religion saying, “Any aid provided ... ultimately flows to religious institutions only as a result of the genuinely independent and private choices of aid recipients.” The United States Supreme Court let stand a state ruling that upheld the constitutionality of voucher programs in Wisconsin in Jackson v. Benson in 1998, saying, “...there is stil…
author: Gerber, Frances J.E.
keywords: United States of America, Supreme Court, School voucher, Public funding
date published: 2005
date modified: 2026-07-27T19:01:14Z
provider: University of Bridgeport
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: University of Bridgeport