When Columbia University's beleaguered officials resorted to a court injunction last month to clear the admissions office of student demonstrators, college administrators around the U.S. took notice. "The university has finally come up with a very effective—and invidious—device," said William Kunstler, a lawyer for the students. At least a dozen schools wrote to Columbia for details. "From the university's point of view, the technique is perfect," said L. D. Nachman, a political theorist at the City University of New York. "It will work. It really will work."
To be sure, students at...