Green v. County School Board,

Green v. County School Board, Raney v. Board of Education of Gould School District and Monroe v. Board of Commissioners of Jackson, Tenn. Were all argued in front of the Supreme Court at the same time. All cases involved follow up on the Brown v. Board decision, and school integration/segregation, and a State's right to relegislate a national policy.

In Monroe, the plan in question was called free transfer. Samuel W. Tucker argued the case for the petitioners, Frederick Gray for the Board. Louis Claiborne, represented the federal government. While the Court did not rule that "freedom of choice" plans were always unconstitutional, it did note that they tended to be ineffective at desegregating a school system, and held that in New Kent County's case the freedom-of-choice plan violated the Constitution. The decision led to the search for other options, such as zoning, for the placement of students.

Green v. County School Board., 391 U.S. 430 (1968) -- Supreme Court case dealing with educational Freedom of Choice Plans created to comply with Brown v. Board (1954) and segregation/integration.

New Kent County is a rural county in Eastern Virginia. About one-half of its population of some 4,500 residents were black. There was no residential segregation in the county. The school system had only two combined elementary and high schools, one for whites, one for blacks. The 21 school buses traveled overlapping routes throughout the county. The segregated system was initially established and maintained under the state mandated racial segregation in public education. The School Board continued the segregated operation of the system after the Brown decisions, on the authority of several statutes enacted by Virginia in resistance to those decisions

The Court held that New Kent County's freedom of choice plan did not constitute compliance with the school board's responsibility to determine a system of admission to public schools on a non-racial basis. The Supreme Court mandated that the school board must formulate new plans and steps towards realistically converting to a desegregated system (Green v County in www.findlaw.com).

Raney v. Board of Education., U.S. 443 (1968) -- The Gould Arkansas School District which, at the time, had about 60% African-Americans and no racial segregation, maintained two combination elementary and high schools located about ten blocks apart. In order to remain eligible for Federal funding, the school adopted a "freedom of choice" plan in which students were annually required to choose a school. No White students opted for the Black school, but 85 Black students were enrolled at the formerly all-White Gould school. A new building was needed, and petitioners enjoined to have it built near Gould, to avoid continued segregation. The District denied all relief, and the Court of Appeals affirmed the dismissal. The Court found that a constitutionally acceptable plan was necessary with the goal of rapid and complete desegregation.

Monroe v. Bd of Commr r's, 391 U.S. 450 (1968). -- 1/3 of the City of Jackson's population of 40,000 were African-American, most who live in the city's central area. The school had 8 elementary, 3 middle, and 2 senior high schools for the 7600 students, 40% who were black. In 1954, State law required segregation. The plans of converting from this system to a biracial then into a nonracial system, particularly in view of busing, zoning, and overcrowding. The case was part of the May 1968 Court decision on the elimination of segregation within all public schools.