Paulus

Plaintiffs, Oregon public school students and their parents, challenge the constitutionality of the Oregon Educational Act for the 21st Century, Or.Rev.Stat. §§ 329.005-329.975, alleging that the Act violates the First and Fourteenth Amendments. The district court granted summary judgment to the state defendants. We affirm that decision on the First Amendment claim; we vacate the disposition of the Fourteenth Amendment claim because the district court lacked subject matter jurisdiction.

I.

The Oregon Legislature passed the Oregon Educational Act for the 21st Century in 1991 and amended it in 1995. See 1995 Or. Laws 660 . The Act restructures the public school system in Oregon by imposing a “rigorous academic program,” Or.Rev.Stat. § 329.015(2)(a); implementing periodic assessments of students’ progress in the form of “Certificates of Mastery,” see id. §§ 329.035(4)(b), 329.445-.489; developing “alternative learning environments,” see id. §§ 329.035(4)(c), 329.485(4)-(5), 329.860; establishing “early childhood programs,” see id. §§ 329.035(4)(d), 329.160-.245; and emphasizing “work-related learning experiences,” see id. §§ 329.035(4)(e), 329.447(4), 329.475, 329.855. Part of the…