Strategic Cultural Partnerships
[PAST EVENT] Hauben Distinguished Lecture: Professor of Law Derek Black, expert in education law and policy
Location
School of Education, Matoaka Woods301 Monticello Ave
Williamsburg, VA 23185Map this location
Access & Features
- Open to the public
- Registration/RSVP

Join us for a book signing and lecture with Professor of Law Derek Black, Carolina Distinguished Professor and Ernest F. Hollings Chair in Constitutional Law at the University of South Carolina School of Law. Black also directs the law school’s Constitutional Law Center.
“Dangerous Learning: The South’s Long War on Black Literacy”
Join the W&M School of Education and The Institute for the Study of Education, Democracy & Justice for a book signing and lecture with Derek Black. One of the nation’s foremost experts in education law and policy, Black will discuss his most recent book, “Dangerous Learning: The South's Long War on Black Literacy” (Yale University Press, January 2025). In it, he shows that in the American South, between Revolution and Reconstruction, one resource was perhaps more coveted and contested than any other: literacy. For Black citizens, it was a weapon of empowerment and rebellion, while for whites, it was the only tool that could destabilize their grip on power. The ghosts of this fight live on today.
Ahead of the lecture, join us for a book signing with Professor Black from 5:30 p.m.- 6:00 p.m. The lecture followed by a brief Q&A will be held from 6:00 p.m.-7:30 p.m. Please RSVP by Jan. 27.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Derek Black’s scholarship focuses on the intersection of constitutional law and public education, particularly as it pertains to educational equality and fairness for disadvantaged students. His research has been published in the "Yale Law Journal,” “Stanford Law Review,” “NYU Law Review,” “California Law Review,” “Virginia Law Review,” “Cornell Law Review,” “Northwestern University Law Review,” “Vanderbilt Law Review” and dozens of others. He is also the author of a leading education law casebook, “Education Law: Equality, Fairness, and Reform,” and two other books aimed at wider audiences in addition to "Dangerous Learning." These are “Schoolhouse Burning: Public Education and the Assault on American Democracy” and “Ending Zero Tolerance: The Crisis of Absolute School Discipline.”
Black offers expert witness testimony in school funding, voucher, and federal policy litigation, and his research is routinely cited in the federal courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court. He is also a regular commentator and op-ed contributor in outlets like USA Today, New York Times, Washington Post and Wall Street Journal, among others. He appears on radio and television, including National Public Radio stations and affiliates across the nation, PBS, cable television networks and CSPAN.
He began his career in teaching at Howard University School of Law, where he founded and directed the Education Rights Center. Prior to teaching, he litigated education cases at the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.
About the Hauben Distinguished Lecture Series
This lecture is supported through a generous endowed gift established by Margaret Divens Hauben ’59 and her husband, the late Lawrence A. Hauben with the purpose of supporting the School of Education in its efforts to bring renowned scholars to William & Mary.
Sponsored by: W&M School of Education & The Institute for the Study of Education, Democracy and Justice
Contact
Jamel Donnor, [[jkdonnor]]