Meet Paige Duggins-Clay, J.D., IDRA’s Chief Legal Analyst. She will coordinate IDRA’s legal research and strategy, expert testimony, and amicus curiae advocacy to elevate the voices of students and coalition partners. Her work builds on IDRA’s almost 50-year legacy of support to families, educators and their attorneys seeking education justice through the courts. Ms. Duggins-Clay also leads our policy advocacy related to school discipline and policing in Texas.
Prior to joining IDRA, Ms. Duggins-Clay worked as an associate at Husch Blackwell LLP, where she handled litigation, investigations, training and compliance on behalf of education institutions, with a focus on equity and organizational response to misconduct. In 2019, she was named a “Top 20 Up and Coming Lawyer” by the Austin Black Business Journal.
Her co-authored article, Youth Dignity Takings: Understanding and Restoring the Involuntary Property Loss of Book Bans and Trans Bans, appears in the Loyola Interdisciplinary Journal of Public Interest Law. She also co-authored an amicus brief filed in support of the George family in George v. Barbers Hill Independent School District, urged the court to uphold the Texas CROWN Act and protect students from the severe harms caused by discriminatory policing of students’ dress and grooming.
Ms. Duggins-Clay also served as a law clerk for Texas Supreme Court Justice Jeff Boyd and intern for federal district court Judge Lee Yeakel. As a law fellow for the Texas Civil Rights Project, Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, and Texas Rio Grande Legal Aid, she supported the organizations’ litigation and policy advocacy. As a legislative aide, she advised Texas Senators Judith Zaffirini and Wendy Davis on school finance and school-to-prison pipeline issues.
Ms. Duggins-Clay has a law degree from the University of Texas School of Law, where she was the inaugural G. Rollie White Public Service Scholar. She also earned a certification in human rights, conflict management, and community development from the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University in South Africa. She has a bachelor’s degree in education and English and a minor in race and ethnic studies from Southwestern University.
Media featuring Paige Duggins-Clay, J.D.
Youth Dignity Takings: How Book and Trans Bans Take Youth Property and Dignity, Sarah M. Camiscoli, Maryam Salmanova, & Ibtihal Chamakh, in Loyola Interdisciplinary Journal of Public Interest Law, August 2024
The Supreme Court ends affirmative action in college admissions, Nadra Nittle, The 19th, June 29, 2023
Bill requiring armed security at all Texas schools heads to Gov. Abbott’s desk, Courtney Friedman, KSAT-TV, June 12, 2023
Texas Legislature’s response to Uvalde: Armed security officers at every school, by Talia Richman, Dallas Morning News, June 1, 2023
Commentary: Texas bills offer illusion of school safety, Paige Duggins-Clay, San Antonio Express-News, May 2, 2023
House committee hears testimony from LCISD parents on anti-identity-based bullying bill, by Jaxie Pidgeon, Everything Lubbock, April 18, 2023
Families could face steeper penalties for truancy under Texas bill up for debate, Talia Richman, Dallas Morning News, April 11, 2023
A ‘Dark Vision’ Of Discipline: Zero Tolerance Makes A Comeback, by Josephine Lee, Texas Observer, March 10, 2023
A Reckless Anti-Immigration Lawsuit Challenges Texas Tuition Laws, Latino Business Report Podcast, August 23, 2022
Most efforts to ban books in Texas schools came from 1 politician and GOP pressure, not parents, Houston Chronicle, Hannah Dellinger & Alejandro Serrano, August 10, 2022
Parental rights bills have been introduced in most states. Teachers are pushing back, Nadra Nittle, The 19th, March 25, 2022
Writings
- Students, Schools, and Service Organizations Continue to Be Harmed by Federal Funding Freeze – Rule of Law Prevails in Court, But Not in Practice, February 28, 2025
- Confronting Hair Discrimination in Schools – A Call to Honor Black History by Protecting Student Rights, February 17, 2025
- All Students, Regardless of Immigration Status, Belong in School – How the Plyler v. Doe U.S. Supreme Court Ruling Protects Students, January 30, 2025
- Restorative Practices Can Prevent and Heal Bias-based Harm, August 29, 2024
- Severe Implications of the Loper Bright Decision for Education and Civil Rights – 2024 U.S. Supreme Court Recap, August 29, 2024
- Language Rights are Civil Rights – 50th Anniversary of the Lau v. Nichols Ruling, April 30, 2024
- Students Demand Safe, Supportive Schools – Student Authors Call for Ending Zero Tolerance and School-Based Policing, March 27, 2024
- Black Students Belong – The Case for an Afrofuturistic Education, February 26, 2024
- Texas Legislature Fails to Address the Needs of Texas Students and Teachers – More Censorship and Little Action on Teacher Shortage or Bilingual Education, July 31, 2023
- Identity-Based Bullying Undermines Student Safety and Success, May 30, 2023
- Bans on Black Literature and Learning are Nothing New – State Lawmakers Must Reject Calls to Reinstate Antebellum-era Policies, February 24, 2023
- School Segregation through Vouchers – What Policymakers Can Learn from a History of State Efforts to Use Vouchers to Avoid Integration, February 07, 2023
- A Policy Roadmap – School Safety for All Students, July 29, 2022
- Letters Demand Books Returned to Shelves in Four School Districts, May 05, 2022
- Realizing Our Common Humanity – Restorative Practices Can Build and Strengthen Relationships in Post-Pandemic Schools, March 23, 2022
- Reclaiming the U.S. Constitution – Legal Considerations for Combatting Classroom Censorship Laws, February 28, 2022
- Your Story Matters – Share How Classroom Censorship Laws are Impacting Your Community, February 17, 2022
- You Can’t Erase Herstory – Reflections on Rubye Holliman’s Legacy, February 02, 2022
Podcasts
- The Law in Education – Gun Free Schools Act – Classnotes Podcast 244, September 16, 2024
- The Law in Education – YCT v Smatresk at UNT – Classnotes Podcast 243, July 01, 2024
- The Law in Education – U.S. Supreme Court Update – Podcast Episode 231, December 08, 2022
- The Law in Education – Students Press for Affirmative Action – Podcast Episode 229, October 26, 2022
- The Law in Education – Plyler v Doe – Podcast Episode 224, June 27, 2022
- The Law in Education – Brown v Board of Ed – Podcast Episode 223, May 16, 2022
