Article VII, Section 14 of the Texas Constitution
As amended November 6, 1984:
Prairie View A&M University in Waller County is an institution of the first class under the direction of the same governing board as Texas A&M University referred to in Article VII, Section 13, of this constitution as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas.
Editor Comments
As adopted in 1876, this section read: "The Legislature shall also when deemed practicable, establish and provide for the maintenance of a College or Branch University for the instruction of the colored youths of the State, to be located by a vote of the people; provided, that no tax shall be levied, and no money appropriated out of the general revenue, either for this purpose or for the establishment and erection of the buildings of the University of Texas."
The section has been amended once. The amendment was part of a ballot proposition that, through modification made to other parts of Article VII, was intended to improve the university's long-term financial situation.
The college established pursuant to this section, now known as as Prairie View A&M University, became operational in 1878. Cf. John J. Lane, History of Education in Texas (Washington D.C. 1903), p.312 ("After one year's trial as an agricultural college, it was not considered a success, and the normal feature was engrafted. . . . The school is well patronized, and has done much to elevate the educational standard among the colored race in Texas.")
Recent Decisions
None.
Historic Decisions
- Sweatt v. Painter, 210 S.W.2d 442, 443-44 (Tex.Civ.App.–Austin 1948, ref'd), rev'd, 339 U.S. 629 (1950) ("Admittedly, he possessed every essential qualification for admission, except that of race . . . . At the outset it should be borne in mind that the validity of state laws which require segregation of races in state supported schools, as being, on the ground of segregation alone, a denial of due process, is not now an open question. The ultimate repository of authority to construe the Federal Constitution is the Federal Supreme Court. We cite chronologically, in a note below, the unbroken line of decisions of that tribunal recognizing or upholding the validity of such segregation as against such attack.")
Library Resources
- Vernon's Annotated Constitution of the State of Texas (this multi-volume and up-to-date resource is available at all law libraries and many municipal libraries)
- The Texas State Constitution: A Reference Guide (this one-volume resource is available at most law libraries and some municipal libraries)
- The Constitution of the State of Texas: An Annotated and Comparative Analysis (this two-volume resource is available at most law libraries and some municipal libraries)
Online Resources
- Constitution of the State of Texas (1876) (this resource is published and maintained by the University of Texas School of Law)
- Amendments to the Texas Constitution Since 1876 (this resource is published and regularly updated by the Legislative Council)
- Reports Analyzing Proposed Amendments (this resource is published and regularly updated by the Legislative Reference Library)