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• Arizona attorney general approves online school board meetings [HTML 2,270kb]
  Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard has issued an opinion that the state’s Open Meeting Law (OML) allows local school boards to conduct deliberations and discussions in an online meeting, provided the school board gives proper notice under law and facilitates public access to the online meeting through the Internet.
  
• Court rules that upcoming board election violates minority voting rights [HTML 4,022kb]
  The Los Angeles Times reports that a state court has taken the unusual step of tossing out, in advance, the results of an upcoming school board election after finding that it violated the terms of the California Voting Rights Act.
  
• Milwaukee school board votes to dissolve school district [HTML 3,732kb]
  Following a 6-3 vote by the Milwaukee School Board to explore the dissolving of Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS), Governor Jim Doyle has called for “a complete evaluation of exactly where MPS is” as a first step toward any action by state government to do more for Milwaukee schools or change the way the school system is run, reports the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
  
• Tennessee school boards weigh in on four-day week, fiscal independence [HTML 4,355kb]
  As part of a legislative survey to guide its advocacy, the Tennessee School Boards Association (TSBA) is asking school board members across the state to indicate if they would be in favor of changes in Tennessee law to implement four-day school days by lengthening the school day to about eight hours, the Kingsport Times-News reports.
  
• Vermont teacher sues school board over legislative advocacy [HTML 2,968kb]
  The Rutland Herald reports a teacher is suing the Town School District of Fair Haven over its use of public funds to lobby state legislators for public education causes.
  
• Court upholds school closing in Waco, Texas [HTML 2,862kb]
  In the latest chapter in the open-again, closed-again saga of a long-troubled East Waco middle school, a state judge has denied the temporary injunction that would have kept the school open while two families and a support group pressed a lawsuit against the Waco school district, according to the Waco Tribune-Herald.
  
• New wave of school district consolidations predicted in Iowa [HTML 4,905kb]
  The Chicago Tribune reports that schools in Iowa facing declining enrollment, budget cutbacks, and increases in operating costs no longer can look to the state for the financial assistance they received in the past.
  
• Louisiana law requires training for school board members [HTML 4,202kb]
  To comply with an amended state law requiring school board members to receive more training in education-related issues, school officials next year will be going back to the classroom.
  
• Georgia school district loses accreditation [HTML 4,703kb]
  The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) announced today that the 50,000-student Clayton County school system is the first in the nation to lose accreditation since 1969.
  
• Court orders schools transferred from Kansas City to Independence [HTML 2,568kb]
  The Independence Examiner reports that a Missouri state court has ruled that seven buildings in western Independence and Sugar Creek belong to Independence School District (ISD) ISD and no longer to the Kansas City Missouri School District (KCMSD) or to the Kansas City Missouri School District Building Corporation (KCMSDBC).
  
• NJ imposes mandatory budget restrictions to reign in local districts’ spending [HTML 2,459kb]
  According to the Daily Record, the New Jersey Department of Education (NJDE), acting on orders from the state legislature, has drafted regulations that limit what school districts can spend funding on, at the risk on having state aid withheld for noncompliance.
  
• Georgia school districts apply to be charter systems [HTML 1,916kb]
  The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that both Decatur and Marietta city schools have became two of Georgia's first “charter” systems.
  
• Iowa district to sue state over new school board election law [HTML 1,702kb]
  The Des Moines Register reports that the Des Moines school board has voted to reduce the terms of members Jonathan Narcisse and Patty Link to two years, but that the board of Iowa's largest school district will pursue a lawsuit against the state regarding a new elections law passed during the 2008 legislative session that changed school board elections statewide.
  
• Georgia district tries to address board dysfunction, save accreditation [HTML 6,281kb]
  At a joint news conference just two days into his job as “corrective superintendent,” John W. Thompson tried to display confidence about the tremendous challenge before him: keeping the Clayton County public school system from losing its accreditation on Sept. 1.
  
• Department of Defense adopts new restrictions that may affect military reservist school board members [HTML 2,009kb]
  Stuart Knade, Chief Counsel of the Pennsylvania School Boards Association and a Lieutenant Colonel in the Army Reserve, calls our attention to recent legal changes that may affect school board members who serve in the military reserves, including the National Guard.
  
• Maine board’s executive session complied with state open meetings law [HTML 4,662kb]
  The Maine Supreme Judicial Court has vacated a trial court’s ruling that a local school board’s executive session violated Maine’s Freedom of Access Act (FOAA) and that certain notes taken during the session, and documents prepared for the session, are “public records” subject to public inspection.
  
• Georgia task force to look at how local school boards operate [HTML 2,117kb]
  At the request of the state Board of Education, a coalition of business and education groups are putting together a task force that will take a broad look at how local school boards in Georgia operate.
  
• PA district settles suit over minority representation on school board [HTML 4,530kb]
  The Bethlehem Area School Board, in a 9-0 vote, has approved a settlement agreement to a 2006 voters' rights lawsuit that, if accepted, by a federal judge, will change the way voters elect school directors, with the overall goal of helping a Hispanic win a seat on the board, which is all non-Hispanic whites.
  
• Iowa union bargaining bill worries school boards [HTML 3,723kb]
  A controversial labor-backed bill will soon head to the governor's desk and union officials believe that's a sign that Gov. Chet Culver may sign it into law.
  
• Parent group argues Dillon's Rule bars Virginia school boards from considering socioeconomic diversity or instructional effectiveness in drawing attendance zones [HTML 4,340kb]
  Last week’s Legal Clips included an excerpt, now at the first link below, of a Washington Post article about a lawsuit by some parents in Virginia’s Fairfax County over the school board’s redrawing of high school attendance zones.
  
• Parents sue over Virginia board’s decision to redraw attendance zones [HTML 1,526kb]
  A parent group from western Fairfax County announced that it is seeking a legal order to reverse a School Board decision to reroute thousands of students among five high schools in coming years.
  
• Proposed Iowa law: More frequent school board elections but longer terms [HTML 2,583kb]
  Iowans unhappy with their school board could sweep out a majority of the members under a bill passed by the Iowa Senate.
  
• NY bill would bar districts from tying test scores to teacher tenure [HTML 4,031kb]
  While the state was consumed by the downfall of Gov. Eliot Spitzer last week, the New York Assembly passed a bill that would pre-emptively bar New York City and other school districts from linking teacher tenure to students’ test scores.
  
• Some states granting school districts more flexibility [HTML 6,137kb]
  The push to give school districts greater operating flexibility—a grassroots rallying cry eclipsed in recent years by the charter school movement—is seeing a resurgence, as states seek to spur innovation that will help raise student achievement.
  
• Georgia school district to become charter system [HTML 2,119kb]
  Marietta City Schools has become the second Atlanta metro area school system to step into uncharted waters, agreeing to petition the state to become one of Georgia's first charter school systems.
  
• Arizona considers mandatory training for school board members [HTML 2,176kb]
  School-board members would lead more effectively and make better financial decisions if they were required to receive training, a state lawmaker contends.
  
• School board member in Michigan sues board for misuse of funds [HTML 2,113kb]
  A Highland Park Board of Education member has filed a lawsuit against the president and his own board, alleging some members inappropriately used taxpayer money for personal items such as computers, BlackBerrys and home telephone calls.
  
• Arizona weighs state takeovers [HTML 3,475kb]
  Arizona lawmakers are moving closer to giving the state power to take over an entire school district where students fail to learn year after year.
  
• Arizona administrators denounce school-district-unification plans [HTML 4,220kb]
  Administrators across Arizona say the school-district-unification plans sent to Gov. Janet Napolitano are not the answer to higher academic results. The report submitted by the Arizona School District Redistricting Commission would affect more than 330,000 Arizona students.
  
• Detroit voters to decide whether to allow board to subpoena during investigations [HTML 1,778kb]
  Detroit voters will decide this month whether to allow the school board to subpoena school officials and pertinent documents when investigating possible fraud and corruption.
  
• Mayor of Washington, D.C. wants to give Chancellor Rhee power to fire district employees [HTML 3,322kb]
  Mayor Adrian Fenty of Washington, D.C. is calling on the D.C. Council to amend city personnel rules to give D.C. Public Schools (DCPS) Chancellor Michelle Rhee the power to fire hundreds of employees in a planned restructuring of the system's central administration.
  
• Detroit activist convicted of disorderly conduct [HTML 1,816kb]
  A Detroit activist has been convicted of disorderly conduct at a public meeting after an incident in which she hit a school board member with a grape during a contentious Detroit Public Schools board meeting.
  
• D.C. Schools Chancellor plans to fire several hundred employees [HTML 4,166kb]
  District of Columbia Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee is preparing plans to fire up to several hundred employees over the coming year, part of a major restructuring of the school system's central office aimed at streamlining operations.
  
• Mayor Villaraigosa partners with former Los Angeles Unified School District adversaries [HTML 3,040kb]
  Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and his former adversaries from the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) have announced a partnership that will provide the mayor with a scaled-back version of the authority he has sought over city schools.
  
• Proposal to abolish Richmond's elected school board faces uphill battle [HTML 2,635kb]
  The proposal by Richmond, Virginia business and civic leaders to abolish the elected school board and replace it with an appointed board faces an uphill battle from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and state legislators.
  
• Richmond businesses seek to abolish elected school board [HTML 4,042kb]
  Richmond, Virginia’s business community, led by powerful allies of Mayor L. Douglas Wilder, has asked the mayor and City Council to seek the abolishment of an elected school board.
  
• Oakland Unified School District board regains some control [HTML 1,662kb]
  After serving as little more than an advisory board for almost four years, the Oakland Unified School District board has regained some control over policy decisions, officials say.
  
• South Carolina Supreme Court to decide how public agencies reveal finalists for top jobs [HTML 2,047kb]
  The South Carolina Supreme Court is expected to decide how public agencies reveal who the finalists are for top jobs after hearing arguments in a case involving Spartanburg District 7 and a newspaper.
  
• D.C. Superior Court ruling ends efforts to force voter referendum on school takeover [HTML 4,333kb]
  A ruling by the D.C. Superior Court has apparently ended efforts by a community activist to force Mayor Adrian Fenty to submit his schools takeover plan to a D.C. Superior Court .
  
• Maine to consolidate 152 school administrative systems into 80 [HTML 4,046kb]
  Maine’s Governor John Baldacci has signed a $6.3 billion state budget that includes a provision for consolidating the state’s 152 school administrative systems into 80 in the biggest public school system reorganization since the Sinclair Act of 1957, which set off a decade-long process of consolidation of Maine school districts.
  
• Senate unanimously approves D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty’s school takeover legislation [HTML 2,324kb]
  The U.S. Senate has unanimously approved District of Columbia Mayor Adrian Fenty’s school takeover legislation after a hectic day of negotiations with city officials, leaving the mayor one signature away from taking control of the troubled public education system.
  
• Los Angeles mayor abandons efforts to obtain control over the operation of Los Angeles Unified School District [HTML 2,466kb]
  Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa of Los Angeles has decided to abandon efforts to obtain control over the operation of Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD).
  
• Prince George’s County School Board votes unanimously to remove one member for "immorality and misconduct" [HTML 1,955kb]
  The Prince George’s County School Board in Maryland has voted unanimously to ask the Maryland State Board of Education to remove one of their members for “immorality and misconduct” in office.
  
• Mayor L. Douglas Wilder says he doesn’t want control over Richmond, Virginia schools [HTML 2,713kb]
  Unlike the mayors in other cities, Mayor L. Douglas Wilder says he doesn’t want control over the Richmond, Virginia, schools.
  
• D.C. mayor meets with Board of Education President and Superintendent [HTML 1,916kb]
  Following the D.C. Council’s final vote approving Mayor Adrian Fenty’s proposal to take over D.C. Public Schools (DCPS), the mayor has met with Board of Education President Robert C. Bobb and Superintendent Clifford B. Janey.
  
• D.C. City Council has given preliminary approval to Mayor Adrian Fenty’s takeover [HTML 7,523kb]
  The Washington, D.C. City Council has given preliminary approval to Mayor Adrian Fenty’s takeover of D.C. schools. Meanwhile, a California law that would give Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa substantial authority over L.A.'s schools has come under stiff scrutiny.
  
• D.C. Council and D.C. Public Schools squabble over building contracts [HTML 3,876kb]
  Although parents, teachers, and officials agree that many school buildings in the District are in dire need of renovation and repair, the D.C. Council and D.C. Public Schools (DCPS) are squabbling over who will have control over contracts to make necessary changes.
  
• Washington, D.C., City Council prepared to place school system under control of Mayor Fenty [HTML 3,502kb]
  The Washington, D.C., City Council is prepared to place the D.C. school system under the control of Mayor Adrian M. Fenty as early as next month, but council members acknowledge some public opposition and describe the takeover as one of the biggest gambles the city will have taken.
  
• Schools boards change their focus to improving student achievement [HTML 3,328kb]
  Schools boards are changing their focus from the day-to-day minutiae of running a school district to concentrate on their larger goal of improving student achievement.
  
• D.C. Board of Education presents alternative proposal to improve city schools [HTML 6,895kb]
  Responding to Mayor Adrian Fenty’s plan to take over Washington, D.C.’s public schools, the D.C. Board of Education has unanimously passed and presented to the D.C. city council an alternative proposal that outlines specific academic targets to improve the city's low-performing school system within two years.
  
• Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa issues 52 proposals for bringing about sweeping reform [HTML 4,519kb]
  While Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa’s legislatively sanctioned school takeover bid is tied up in litigation, he has issued a list of 52 proposals for bringing about sweeping reform of Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD).
  
• New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg unveils sweeping school reform plans [HTML 2,941kb]
  In his state of the city address, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has unveiled sweeping new plans to overhaul the public school system by giving principals more power and autonomy, requiring teachers to undergo rigorous review in order to gain tenure, and revising the school financing system that has allowed more-experienced teachers to cluster in affluent areas.
  
• State intervention to shift control of Missouri’s St. Louis Public Schools to unelected board nears reality [HTML 4,486kb]
  A proposed state intervention that would shift control of Missouri’s St. Louis Public Schools to an unelected board for the next six years has edged toward reality.
  
• Mayor Fenty briefs D.C. Council on his proposal to overhaul the public schools [HTML 6,088kb]
  Washington, D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty has briefed the D.C. Council on his proposal to take direct responsibility for overhauling Washington's ailing public school system.
  
• Los Angeles judge to issue ruling soon on mayoral takeover [HTML 1,902kb]
  After hearing three hours of testimony in the lawsuit brought by the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) and others challenging a state law that gives Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa partial control over the schools, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Dzintra Janavs has indicated that she expects to issue a ruling shortly.
  
• Texas parent sues school district for complying with open records requests [HTML 4,642kb]
  A Texas parent has sued Eanes school district, saying officials waste taxpayer money by complying with open records requests. Thomas Ratliff says the district is distributing too much information that isn't for the public good.
  
• D.C. Superintendent Clifford Janey mounts defense of current reforms and planned improvements for city schools [HTML 4,816kb]
  In his first formal public statement since his future came into question when Mayor-elect Adrian M. Fenty said in September that he might seek to take over Washington, D.C.’s Public Schools (DCPS), D.C. Superintendent Clifford Janey has mounted a vigorous defense of the reforms he has already put in place and his future plans to continue improvement of the city’s public schools.
  
• Mishawaka, Indiana group want elected school board [HTML 2,001kb]
  A group of about 50 citizens in Mishawaka, Indiana, known as Mishawaka Education Focus (MEF), wants an elected school board, rather than an appointed one.
  
• Group of Baltimore parents, students, and activists demands an elected school board [HTML 1,992kb]
  Saying Baltimore's students are being "robbed" of an adequate education, a group of parents, students, and activists has rallied to demand an elected school board.
  
• D.C. mayoral candidate Adrian Fenty hints at school takeover plan [HTML 2,779kb]
  Adrian Fenty, the prohibitive favorite to become mayor of Washington, D.C. in the upcoming election, has given a hint of his school takeover plan, saying high-performing public schools would get more autonomy and failing schools could be closed and reopened with new staffs and extra resources.
  
• District of Columbia Board of Education considers giving up authority over charter schools [HTML 3,560kb]
  The District of Columbia Board of Education is considering giving up authority over charter schools and transferring oversight of the 18 public charter schools it monitors.
  
• Los Angeles Unified School Board names new superintendent [HTML 3,434kb]
  The Los Angeles Unified School Board (LAUSB) has unanimously named a new superintendent, without consulting with Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.
  
• Coalition of groups challenges L.A. law giving Mayor Villaraigosa partial control of the school district [HTML 6,496kb]
  A coalition led by Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) and including the League of Women Voters, the California School Boards Association (CSBA), the Associated Administrators of Los Angeles, the district’s two PTA groups, and several parents has filed suit in state court challenging California’s recently enacted law giving Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa partial control over the nation’s second largest school district.
  
• District of Columbia mayoral candidate, Adrian Fenty, believes D.C. schools should be under mayoral control [HTML 2,289kb]
  Adrian Fenty, the Democratic candidate for mayor of the District of Columbia, believes the quickest way to fix D.C.’s public schools is for the next mayor to take control of them.
  
• Colorado districts challenge law allowing creation of charter school without local school board approval [HTML 4,967kb]
  Three Colorado school districts are challenging a state law that allows the state Charter School Institute (CSI) to create a charter school without seeking approval of the local school board in the district where the school will be located.
  
• LA school board votes to file suit seeking to overturn "takeover" legislation [HTML 2,726kb]
  As anticipated the Los Angeles school board has voted 6-1 to file suit to overturn legislation giving Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa substantial authority over Los Angeles Unified School District’s (LAUSD) schools.