Georgia Southern Higher Ed Law EDLD – 8431
Course textbook
Kaplin, W. A., & Lee, B. A. (2014). The law of higher education: Student version (5th edition). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bas

Written Research Brief – Overall Project Format
Topic:
Weapons on Campus: Can/Should we allow people who have permits to carry a weapon on campus? A number of states have introduced legislation to permit or require colleges to allow individuals with concealed carry licenses to bring their guns on college campuses. Some states are even considering allowing college students to openly carry weapons. Colleges in those states are feeling pressured to make a decision and are caught in the middle between advocates for and against carrying on campus. Should students, faculty, employees who have weapons permits be allowed to carry concealed or openly displayed weapons on the campus? Do we have to do it? Can we do it if we want? NOTE: For this issue, assume the college is located in Pennsylvania.
• Specifically, the premise is that the student has been asked to research the question/issue and brief a senior official of the college (who has to make the decision) on the nature and implications of the associated legal considerations and to recommend a position/ approach the institution would be wise take in order to avoid legal problems. [NOTE: assume the college is a public institution and, unless specified in the text of the question, the Team should assume the college is located in Georgia. Only two of the above situations involve non-GA institutions]
I interviewed our Chief of Police at my place of employment, which is a technical college in Georgia and he said that the major problem they see is that there are minors on campus and the laws states that you can not have a firearm in the presence of a minor. The other issue is that the faculty can not disclose that there is a minor in class which puts the student with the firearm in danger of being prosecuted for breaking the law. He also said that our school has a problem with students bringing “hunting” guns in their vehicles.

Each student is to identify and investigate some aspect of the question/issue with which they are working, and in which he/she has a particular interest, and prepare an APA format 7 page written “brief” in which he/she explores what he/she has learned. This should include extensive scholarly citations from the course and beyond (including case law). Each of the eight areas below should be discussed in the paper.
• Environmental Scan – The extent to which this issue has come up at other institutions across the nation and how it played out…what those other institutions did right or wrong.
• Lawsuit Scan – The nature and findings associated with the various courts cases involving institutions of higher education that have arisen in regard to this issue.
• Case Analysis – A detailed exploration of a particular prevailing court case related to the question/issue…preferably one that we haven’t covered in class in detail
• History – An exploration of the history and reasons for this legal requirement came about
• Compliance – An exploration of what a college or university must do to comply with this obligation in practice. (For example, the Dept. of Education requires that all campus conduct officers who sit on hearing boards in sexual assault cases must be
• Disparate Impact – How a legal requirement might affect a particular group of students differently than others (e.g. whether transgender students may be covered by Title IX)
• Challenges – Apparent issues, problems, gaps or short-comings in the law associated with this matter and how that might affect various colleges and universities
• Legal Conflicts – How a state law might overlap or conflict with a federal law or legal precedent that complicates things for a college (for example, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Fair Housing Act, and various state laws have different definitions of what a “service animal” is)
• Risk Analysis – Where the particular legal risks associated with a question/issue may lie for a college or university. (for example, there are state laws concerning hazing in Greek Organizations…but the biggest risk may be violations of alcohol laws)

Rubric