Additional Resources
School Safety and Emergency Preparedness
This outline provides a comprehensive list of considerations, recommendations and federal guidelines on school safety and emergency planning, management, and recovery. It focuses on an all-hazards approach that can be used for violent incidents, as well as natural disasters. Issues addressed include crisis communication, information-sharing, and community partnering.
An Update from the Courts: A Snapshot of the NSBA Legal Advocacy Agenda and Selected Federal Cases
This article summarizes court cases in which NSBA is participating and watching due to their impact on boards of education and school system practices.
Collective Bargaining: The Role of the School Attorney
This article describes the most common collective bargaining processes, explains the role of the school attorney in the process, and provides tips and strategies for successful negotiations and interactions with the Board .
Due Process Liberty Interest Claims Pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983 School District Responsibilities and Employee Rights
This article examines employee rights and employer responsibilities with respect to liberty interest claims, focusing primarily on the factors government employees must satisfy to assert liberty interest claims and the responsibilities of both the employee and employer with regard to name-clearing hearing requirements.
Legal Challenges in Evaluating Teachers Based on Student Achievement
This article discusses how school districts are revising teacher and administrator evaluation systems to include student achievement as a criterion, though dismissal and non-renewal statutes do not touch upon student achievement data, and the resulting conflicts and legal challenges to such dismissal and non-renewal decisions.
Legal Issues Surrounding the Identification and Education of Autistic Students
This article discusses the forthcoming revisions to the definition of autism in the DSM-5 Diagnostic Manual to be released in May 2013, and its implications on the schools’ responsibilities related to providing educational services to students diagnosed with autism across the spectrum.
Legal Pointers on School Board Authority
The authority of school boards is derived from state constitutional, statutory, and/or administrative provisions. The specific scope of authority, as well as potential liability, is defined through statute, administrative regulations, and case law. School boards are also subject to laws governing public bodies, such as open meetings requirements.
Legal Pointers on Sexual Harassment
Sexual harassment lawsuits are serious threats to schools in terms of legal liability, damage to the learning environment and loss of community support. Sexual harassment is considered a form of sex discrimination. For schools, sexual harassment cases generally fit into two categories: employee complaints brought under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and student complaints brought under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972.
Lessons Learned from Penn State: Allegations of Employee Misconduct
This article provides advice on communicating to the public about and during a crisis, using the Penn State scandal as a case study.
Open Meetings and Records in the Digital Age
This article examines how state open meetings and records laws treat electronic communications by school board members and school staff. It also discusses how the requirements of the Federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act apply to electronic media containing information about students.
Providing Services to Students with a Disability Enrolled in Private or Parochial Schools
This article describes the federal statutory and regulatory framework prescribing public school district obligations to students with disabilities who are placed by the parents in private schools.
School District Contracting: Lessons Learned and Best Practices for School Attorneys, Superintendents and Boards of Education
This article uses common contracting scenarios to illustrate the pitfalls school districts may encounter if they do not clearly understand the role of the board, superintendent and school attorney
in the process of procuring goods and services. The article presents suggestions to avoid these pitfalls and provides sample tools that will help improve school district contracting practices.
Sex Stereotyping and Gender Identity Employment Discrimination After the EEOC's Mia Macy Ruling
This article discusses the EEOC’s ruling in Macy v. Holder, harassment and discrimination in the workplace based on gender identity, the application of federal anti-discrimination law on such behavior, the concept of gender identity as a disability under state laws, and recommended best practices for employers.
The Ethics of Email and Social Media a Top Ten List - Hypotheticals and Analyses
The Internet, email, and social media have drastically affected the ease, quantity, and error rate of communications. This article provides up-to-date information on the many ways that electronic communications have impacted lawyers’ obligations under professional codes of ethics. Topics include how electronic communications affect privilege, waiver, and the forming of an attorney-client relationship; the ethics of firm blogs and marketing and of “friending” judges; and the ethical consequences of inadvertent transmissions, adding third parties to an email, and a “reply to all”— which includes your adversary’s client.
Zeno, OCR & the State: Recent Developments in Bullying & Harassment Regulation
This article reviews the different standards used by the OCR and the courts for determining school board liability in bullying and harassment cases, and summarizes the holdings in recent bullying and harassment cases. The article also provides suggestions for investigating and responding to complaints, and for writing effective anti-bullying policies.