Much Ado about a C?

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FROM kindergarten through grade 8, Brandy H. was an honor roll student at Island Union School District, which is in central California. She received numerous awards for both her academic and athletic performance. In the fourth quarter of grade 7, which was in spring 2003, Brandy and three other girls each received a C in physical education, or PE, which focused on track and field events. Brandy and another girl in the group were African American; the other two were white. As stated on the report cards, the grades in Island Union's PE classes are based on effort and attitude only, not athletic ability. Thus they are not included in the calculation of a student's grade-point average for placement on the honor roll. The four girls' PE teacher, Julie Hansen, was a long-term sub who also taught sixth grade and was one of the track coaches. Brandy's parents had observed various track practices and meets, which were part of the PE grade and had yielded only positive feedback. On 10 July 2003, Brandy's father sent a letter to the superintendent complaining about the C in PE and adding that in a conversation with the assistant track coach, which the assistant had reported to him, Hansen had referred to the four girls as bitches and stated that she wanted to wring their necks. The superintendent tried to reach Hansen, but she was away on summer vacation. He did speak to other PE teachers to find out what they knew about the situation. On July 24, he sent Brandy's father a reply, explaining that the reason for the C grade was insufficient effort and attitude during PE class and confirming that Hansen had apparently made the alleged statements. On August 8, the superintendent received a letter from attorney Kevin Little on behalf of Brandy's parents and sent it to the school district's legal counsel for a response. On August 20, the district's legal counsel sent a letter to attorney Little inviting him to contact her if he had any questions or additional information. The parents did not contact her further, directly or via their attorney. They also did not resort to the California statutory procedures for a parent to request a grade change, which include an appeal to the school board and, thereafter, the right to judicial review in state court. Instead, on 24 April 2004, Brandy's parents filed suit in federal court against Hansen and the superintendent, alleging that the PE grade constituted unfairness, in violation of 14th Amendment substantive due process, and racial discrimination, in violation of the 14th Amendment equal protection clause. They sought money damages and a corrected grade that truly reflects her performance in the track and field class. On 28 April 2005, the federal district court granted the defendants' motion for summary judgment, meaning a decision in their favor without a trial.(1) The judge rejected the substantive due process claim for two reasons. First, the magistrate judge distinguished the Supreme Court's pertinent substantive due process decisions as arising from academic dismissals, not grades in a particular course, much less a seventh-grade PE class that is not even part of the student's GPA.(2) He reasoned: At best, the Supreme Court has recognized a fundamental right to an education, nothing more. Second, the magistrate judge cited precedent in the Ninth Circuit that negates substantive due process claims based on deprivation of a state-created property interest and not a separate constitutional violation, where state law remedies are adequate. He concluded that California's statutory procedures for correcting student records are obviously adequate to address such fairness challenges. As for the equal protection claim, the court pointed to precedents that require specific facts showing intentional racial discrimination and concluded that the parents' arguments failed to meet this threshold standard. While asserting that Brandy was consistently cooperative and diligent and that Hansen never gave her any indication otherwise, the parents largely relied on simple statistics and Hansen's statements. …