Hunter College - Fall 2017
POLSC  294.14-01
Tu/Fri 2:10 p.m. - 3:25 p.m.
Room - West Bldg., W208

Religion and the Constitution

Course Description:

This course examines the First Amendment's Establishment and Free Exercise Clauses. The two Religion Clauses continue to be a focus of controversy in the legal and political arenas. The course will examine Supreme Court opinions interpreting the Religion Clauses. Topics arising under the Establishment Clause include prayer in public school classrooms, religious symbols on public property, and government funding of parochial school education. Topics arising under the Free Exercise Clause as well as statutory analogs for freedom of religion such as the Religious Freedom Restoration Act include the rights of members of a religion to be exempt from compulsory education laws and the rights of religious objectors to be excused from legal requirements such as compliance with the Affordable Care Act and antidiscrimination laws.

Required Reading:

The readings for the course have been prepared by the instructor. They consist of introductory material for each subject followed by heavily edited versions of U.S. Supreme Court decisions on the various subjects covered in the course. These readings will all be posted on this website as PDF documents that can be printed out to bring to class to enhance class discussions. The materials are divided into chapters with each one devoted to a covered subject. The syllabus will divide the chapters into reading assignments for each class. Typically, each class will cover 2 or 3 court decisions. Students will not be required to purchase a textbook or other reading material.

For students who have not previously read court opinions, a short description of the process is available: Reading A Judicial Opinion.

Below is a link to the course syllabus which provides links to the course reading, a list of assignments, and other information about the course including information about grading.

Course Syllabus

All materials projected in class are available under the Classroom Materials link and Additional Class Materials will be updated to include information relevant to the subject of the course.

Classroom Materials

Additional Class Materials