David Hudson serves as an attorney for the First Amendment Center at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee. The Center, which is funded by the Freedom Forum, seeks to foster a greater public understanding and appreciation for First Amendment rights and values. Hudson writes for the Freedom Forum's online publication, The Freedom Forum Online, and other leading publications devoted to First Amendment issues. He contributes regularly to the American Bar Association's Preview of United States Supreme Court Cases, the Commercial Speech Digest and the ABA Journal.

The Establishment Clause of the First Amendment arguably provides us with the most controversial body of law in American jurisprudence. The clause provides that "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion."

The Establishment Clause and its counterpart, the Free Exercise Clause, ensure that the government will not proscribe or prescribe religious faith to Americans.

Legal scholars and historians have engaged and still engage in vigorous debate over the Founding Fathers' precise meaning with respect to the Establishment Clause. Some believe, as does Chief Justice Rehnquist, that the Establishment Clause merely forbids the government from favoring one religious faith over others.

This online course will test participants knowledge though several case studies representing real appellate cases.