History of American Public Education By dianacap Aug 5, 1635 Boston Latin School Forms First Public School in Colonies Period: Dec 5, 1635 to Dec 5, 2015 Important Dates in American Public Education Dec 5, 1751 Benjamin Franklin Establishes "English Academy" in Philadelphia Dec 5, 1852 Massachusetts Enacts First Mandatory Attendance Law Dec 5, 1896 Plessy v Ferguson Dec 5, 1918 Mandatory Attendance Laws in All 48 States Dec 5, 1954 Brown v Board of Education of Topeka Dec 5, 1979 Title IX Enacted Dec 5, 2001 No Child Left Behind Dec 5, 2008 Talk of Common Core Begins Dec 5, 2010 Race to the Top Dec 5, 2013 School District of Philadelphia Cuts 4,000 Employees Dec 5, 2015 No Child Left Behind Overturned in House of Representatives