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Frank S. Ravitch

Professor of Law & Walter H. Stowers Chair of Law and Religion, Michigan State University

Professor Ravitch's career has included experience in private practice and on Capitol Hill. Since joining Michigan State University's Law College he has authored several books, and a number of law review articles, essays, book reviews, and book chapters, as well as amicus briefs to the U.S. Supreme Court. He is the author of Freedom’s Edge: Religious Freedom, Sexual Freedom, and the Future of America (Cambridge University Press 2016); Marketing Creation: The Law and Intelligent Design (Cambridge University Press 2012), Masters of Illusion: The Supreme Court and the Religion Clauses (NYU Press 2007); Law and Religion: Cases, Materials, and Readings (West 2004)(2nd Ed. 2008) (3rd Ed. 2015 with Larry Cata Backer), School Prayer and Discrimination: The Civil Rights of Religious Minorities and Dissenters (Northeastern University Press, 1999 & paperback edition 2001). He is co-author, with the late Boris Bittker and with Scott Idleman, of the first comprehensive treatise on Law and Religion in more than one hundred years, Religion and the State in American Law (Cambridge University Press 2015) (this project was supported by a generous grant from the Lilly Endowment). He is also co-author of, Employment Discrimination Law (Prentice Hall, 2005) (with Pamela Sumners and Janis McDonald).

Louisiana's 'In God We Trust' law tests limits of religion in public schools

Oct 30, 2023 10:55 am UTC| Life

When Louisiana passed a law in August 2023 requiring public schools to post In God We Trust in every classroom from elementary school to college the author of the bill claimed to be following a long-held tradition of...

A 147-year-old dispute between church and state spills onto a school playground

May 03, 2017 02:03 am UTC| Insights & Views Law

The United States Supreme Court recently heard oral arguments in a case from Missouri that could have a significant impact on state funding of religious schools. The case involved a church in Missouri, the Trinity...

Economy

U.S.-Iran Tensions Escalate as Strait of Hormuz Crisis Disrupts Global Oil Markets

Geopolitical tensions between the United States and Iran continue to intensify, significantly impacting global energy markets and international diplomacy. U.S. naval forces recently intercepted a sanctioned vessel, the M/V...

Canadian Dollar Outlook: Resilient Performance Driven by Oil Prices and Market Dynamics

The Canadian dollar (CAD) has demonstrated notable resilience among G10 currencies in recent weeks, even as domestic economic data shows signs of softness. According to Goldman Sachs, this strength comes despite...

U.S.-Iran Conflict Stalls as Diplomatic Efforts Collapse and Global Oil Tensions Rise

Hopes for a diplomatic breakthrough in the ongoing U.S.-Israel conflict with Iran have faded as negotiations remain stalled, prolonging uncertainty in global markets and geopolitics. Efforts to end the two-month conflict...

U.S. Sanctions Target Chinese Refinery Over Iranian Oil Purchases

The U.S. Treasury Department has imposed new sanctions on Hengli Petrochemical (Dalian) Refinery Co., a major Chinese independent refinery, over its large-scale purchases of Iranian crude oil and petroleum products. The...

US Dollar Weakens as Iran Talks Boost Risk Appetite in Forex Market

The U.S. dollar edged lower on Friday as global investors shifted toward riskier assets, encouraged by renewed diplomatic signals between the United States and Iran. This movement in the forex market reflects growing...

Politics

Starmer Faces Political Pressure as Mandelson Appointment Controversy Impacts UK Markets

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has taken a firm stance amid growing backlash over his controversial decision to appoint Peter Mandelson as U.S. ambassador. Despite increasing political pressure and calls for resignation,...

White House Correspondents’ Dinner Shooting Raises New Security Concerns for U.S. Leaders

A shooting incident during the White House Correspondents Association dinner on Saturday night has reignited concerns about the safety and security of Americas top political figures amid rising political violence. The...

Taiwan Minister Visits Eswatini Amid Airspace Dispute and China Pressure Claims

Taiwans Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung has arrived in Eswatini, reaffirming Taipeis determination to expand its global presence despite alleged interference from China. His visit comes shortly after Taiwan accused Beijing...

Russian Drone and Missile Strikes Devastate Dnipro, Killing 10 and Injuring Dozens

Russian forces launched a series of intense drone and missile attacks on the southeastern Ukrainian city of Dnipro, killing at least 10 people and injuring dozens in one of the most prolonged assaults in recent months. The...

Ukraine Marks 40 Years Since Chornobyl Disaster Amid Ongoing War Risks

Ukraine is commemorating the 40th anniversary of the Chornobyl nuclear disaster under the shadow of continued conflict with Russia, raising fresh concerns about nuclear safety in the region. The 1986 explosion at reactor...

Science

China vs. NASA: The New Moon Race and What's at Stake by 2030

The space race is back and this time, its a direct competition between the United States and China for dominance on the lunar surface. NASAs Artemis II mission recently made history when four astronauts flew farther into...

NASA Artemis II: First Crewed Moon Mission Since Apollo Takes Four Astronauts on 10-Day Lunar Journey

NASAs Artemis II mission launched Wednesday, marking humanitys return to crewed lunar exploration for the first time since the Apollo era. Carrying four astronauts aboard the Orion spacecraft, this historic 10-day mission...

NASA's Artemis II Mission: First Crewed Lunar Journey Since Apollo

NASA's Artemis II Crew Arrives in Florida for Historic Moon Mission

The four astronauts chosen for NASAs Artemis II mission have touched down at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, marking the beginning of final launch preparations for the first crewed lunar journey in over 50 years. NASA...

SpaceX Pivots Toward Moon City as Musk Reframes Long-Term Space Vision

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has revealed a significant shift in the companys near-term space exploration strategy, announcing that SpaceX is now prioritizing the development of a self-growing city on the Moon rather than focusing...

Technology

Judge Dismisses Elon Musk’s Fraud Claims Against OpenAI, Trial to Proceed on Remaining Allegations

A U.S. federal judge has dismissed key fraud claims brought by Elon Musk in his high-profile lawsuit against OpenAI and its co-founder Sam Altman, marking a significant development in the ongoing legal battle. The ruling,...

$16B Michigan Data Center Project Boosts U.S. AI Infrastructure Expansion

Related Digital, a major data center developer, announced on Friday that it has secured $16 billion in financing to support the construction of a large-scale data center campus in Michigan. This significant investment...

U.S. Raises Alarm Over Chinese AI Firms’ Alleged IP Theft Through Model Distillation

The U.S. State Department has launched a global diplomatic effort to highlight what it describes as large-scale intellectual property theft by Chinese artificial intelligence companies. According to a diplomatic cable...

DeepSeek Launches V4 AI Models with Enhanced Reasoning and 1M Token Context Window

DeepSeek has unveiled preview versions of its latest open-source artificial intelligence models, marking a significant step forward in AI performance and reasoning capabilities. The new releases, DeepSeek-V4-Pro and...

Amazon Stock Rises as Meta Expands AWS Partnership for AI Infrastructure

Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) shares climbed around 2% শুক্রবার morning after Meta revealed a major expansion of its partnership with Amazon Web Services (AWS), signaling strong momentum in the growing artificial intelligence...