Student E-Mails, FERPA and FOIA: What School Districts Must Disclose (and When)?
Among other things, the federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (“FERPA”) grants parents access to educational and related records concerning their child. Under FERPA, “education records” are...
View ArticleSchool Not Required to Pay Attorneys' Fees Even Where IDEA Violation Found
A hearing officer with the Arkansas Department of Education (“ADE”) finds that a school violated the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (“IDEA”) by failing to evaluate and develop a behavior...
View ArticleSee You In Court! - January 2020
The Nutmeg Board of Education provides for public comment at the beginning of its regular meetings. The Board permits members of the public to address the Board for three minutes or less, but the Board...
View ArticleLegislative Priorities For 2020
The Roetzel legislative team has been busy working on three (3) policy issues, all of which are poised for reform in 2020. ADC Reform The Roetzel legislative team has been leading the charge for...
View ArticleNew DCF Policy Facilitates Online Reporting and Creates New Unit for School...
The Department of Children and Families (DCF) adopted new procedures last month that will make life easier for some mandated reporters. DCF Policy 22-1-3, Mandated Reporter’s Failure to Report, has...
View ArticleCAS Legal Mailbag Question of the Week - January 2020
Dear Legal Mailbag: As a sixth grade teacher, I get nervous every time I read in the paper about teachers and administrators being arrested for failing to report allegations of neglect or abuse. I know...
View ArticleEducation Records Are Subject to FOIA Requests
In an unpublished decision, on December 17, 2019, the Michigan Court of Appeals issued an opinion that education records are subject to disclosure under Michigan’s Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”)...
View ArticleNew York State Mandates Subject Area Certification Requirements for Special...
New guidance from New York State requires one of two certification options in special class subject areas for special education teachers at the secondary level (grades 7-12). The New York State...
View ArticleNew York Board of Regents Approves Part 121 Regulations Required by Education...
January 14, 2020, the Board of Regents formally adopted Part 121 to the Commissioner’s Regulations to implement Education Law § 2-d. The regulation will become effective January 29, 2020. This...
View ArticleCAS Legal Mailbag Question of the Week – January 2020 #2
Dear Legal Mailbag: Teaching Civics or anything remotely connected to how our government functions (or doesn’t function) has become a contact sport for teachers and administrators. It seems that no...
View ArticleNew Education Laws
Part 1: California Laws Impacting Schools and School Districts for 2020 - Last year brought many changes to the legal landscape affecting educators. In this Best Best & Krieger LLP Legal Alert...
View ArticleNew Special Education Laws
Part 2: California Laws Impacting Schools and School Districts for 2020 - Last year brought many changes to the legal landscape affecting educators. In this Best Best & Krieger LLP Legal Alert...
View ArticleCAS Legal Mailbag Question of the Week – January 2020 #3
Dear Legal Mailbag: Under our teacher contract, requests for leave come first to me as the building principal, and then they go to the assistant superintendent with my recommendation. Yesterday, I got...
View ArticleVideo, Audio Recordings From PA School Districts That Employ School Police...
Under Pennsylvania’s Act 22 of 2017, a public school entity will be considered a “law enforcement agency” if it employs a court-approved “school police officer.” That status under the Act removes the...
View ArticleSDE Issues Revised Guidance on Initial Evaluation Timelines: Federal Timeline...
On January 23, 2020, the Connecticut State Department of Education (“SDE”) issued updated guidance on the timeline for initial special education evaluations (available here). This new guidance replaces...
View ArticleCAS Legal Mailbag Question of the Week – January 2020 #4
Dear Legal Mailbag: I am an avid reader of Legal Mailbag, and your advice has been helpful as I do my job as a principal. For example, I always thought that the First Amendment guaranteed teachers free...
View ArticleSee You In Court! - February 2020
Nellie Newbie was excited to be a newly-elected member of the Nutmeg Board of Education, but she admits that she has a lot to learn. Nellie thought that she would be able to ease into her...
View ArticlePreparing for School Closures: Key Takeaways from New State Guidance and...
As school districts consider the potential for school closures related to COVID-19, many are grappling with issues regarding continuity of learning; how to satisfy the state law requirement that each...
View ArticleYou Know the Drill, But Should You Do One? White Paper Highlights Active...
In Illinois, the School Safety Drill Act requires K-12 public and private educational facilities to conduct several types of safety drills, including law enforcement drills, to address potential...
View ArticleFederal Court in North Carolina Tackles Associational Discrimination Claim...
On February 26, 2020, in the case of Schmitz v. Alamance-Burlington Board of Education, the United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina granted in part and denied in part a...
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