Legal Clips

Resources

• Parents who enroll their child in a private school for reasons unrelated to educational issues associated with his identifiable disability are not entitled to reimbursement for private school tuition under IDEA [HTML 4,444kb]
  A federal district in Oregon has ruled that the equities do not support reimbursing parents for their child’s private school tuition under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) when the parents enrolled the student based on drug abuse and behavior problems, rather than educational difficulties associated with ADHD.
  
• Teacher’s filing of union grievance did not constitute protected First Amendment speech [HTML 8,163kb]
  In a 2-1 split, a three judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (NY, VT, CT) has ruled that a former teacher failed to state a valid claim for First Amendment retaliation based on his filing of union grievance because his grievance was filed pursuant to official duties and, therefore, was not protected speech.
  
• Mississippi district is immune from negligence suit for wrongful death of high school football player [HTML 4,241kb]
  The Mississippi Supreme Court has ruled that a school district is immune from a negligence lawsuit for the wrongful death of a high school football player. Lonnie Magee, a student at Mount Olive Attendance Center and a member of the school’s football team, collapsed during practice on a hot August day.
  
• Board’s practice of holding serial meetings does not violate Alabama’s open meeting law [HTML 3,245kb]
  Montgomery County Circuit Court Judge Eugene Reese dismissed a suit challenging the Montgomery County Board of Education (MCBOE) practice of holding serial or subgroup meetings, says the Montgomery Advertiser.
  
• Teacher union emails are not public records under Michigan FOIA [HTML 5,512kb]
  The Michigan Court of Appeals has ruled that personal emails sent by teachers’ union leaders are not public records under Michigan’s Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) “solely because they were captured in the [school district] email system’s digital memory.”
  
• Washington state middle school students facing felony charges in “sexting” incident [HTML 4,396kb]
  Three Chinook Middle School students were formally charged in juvenile court with felonies stemming from a "sexting" incident in which they allegedly sent nude photos of a 14-year-old girl via their cell phones, according to the News Tribune.
  
• South Carolina district could be responsible for housing and transportation costs of charter schools [HTML 3,890kb]
  The Post and Courier reports that a state trial court has ruled that state legislation known as Act 189, applicable only to Charleston County, is valid under the state constitution. Act 189 prohibits Charleston County School District (CCSD) from denying a charter school anything that is otherwise available to a public school.
  
• Obama administration seeks sweeping overhaul of NCLB [HTML 3,789kb]
  The Obama administration is proposing a major overhaul of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), says the New York Times. The proposal calls for broad changes in how schools are judged to be succeeding or failing, and the elimination of the law’s 2014 deadline for bringing every American child to academic proficiency.
  
• District not liable under Title IX for former teacher’s sexual misconduct subsequent to employment by another district [HTML 6,988kb]
  The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit (IL, IN, WI) has ruled that a school district in Illinois was not liable under Title IX for a former teacher teacher’s sexual abuse of a student that occurred after the teacher was employed by another school district.
  
• DOJ intervenes in support of gay student’s Title IX suit against New York district [HTML 2,785kb]
  The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has intervened in the civil case of a former Mohawk Central School District student, says the Utica Observer-Dispatch, citing Title IX of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 as the basis for joining the lawsuit.
  
• Arkansas district’s superintendent tells federal court state, federal mandates make court desegregation monitoring unnecessary [HTML 997kb]
  The Associated Press, reporting on North Little Rock School District’s (NLRSD) legal efforts to be declared unitary, i.e. officially desegregated, said that Superintendent Ken Kirspel testified that state mandates and the federal No Child Left Behind Act’s requirements duplicate much of the district's desegregation plan.
  
• Wyoming board votes to prohibit display of banners promoting an anti-discrimination campaign sponsored by gay rights group [HTML 2,845kb]
  According to an Associated Press report, the Wheatland School Board has voted 4-3 to prohibit the display of banners promoting an anti-discrimination campaign because a gay rights group is helping sponsor the program.
  
• Threat of lawsuit prompts Connecticut district to consider moving graduation to secular site [HTML 1,811kb]
  The Windsor School Board has directed Superintendent Elizabeth Feser to explore the cost and availability of alternative sites for the June graduation of Windsor High School, reports the Hartford Courant.
  
• Former board member files suit challenging Georgia’s nepotism law [HTML 2,809kb]
  According to the Gainesville Times, former Gainesville school board member Kelvin Simmons has filed a federal lawsuit challenging a state law that barred him from seeking re-election.
  
• Texas district’s at-large method of electing board members does not violate Hispanic voters’ rights under § 2 of VRA [HTML 3,312kb]
  A U.S. district court in Texas has ruled that Irving Independent School District’s (IISD) at-large method of electing school board members does not violate § 2 of the Voting Rights Act (VRA).
  
• Suit charges Louisiana district should impose higher academic standard required of cheerleaders on other student-athletes [HTML 2,077kb]
  According to the Advocate, the father of a Lafayette High basketball player has filed suit against the Lafayette Parish School Board (LPSB), demanding it raise its expectations of student-athletes like his son.
  
• New Jersey court dismisses student’s suit challenging district’s off-campus drug and alcohol use policy [HTML 3,324kb]
  A Camden Superior Court judge has told a Haddonfield Memorial High School student challenging Haddonfield Borough School District's policy on off-campus drug and alcohol use that she will have to continue her battle before the state commissioner of education.
  
• Federal class action suit charges New York City schools safety officers with use of “excessive force” [HTML 2,542kb]
  The New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) has filed suit on behalf of all middle and high school students attending New York City public schools, says the New York Daily News, alleging school safety officers have subjected kids to "excessive force."
  
• Student’s suit prompts Pennsylvania district to consider revising dress code and anti-bullying policies [HTML 2,639kb]
  Pennsylvania’s Patriot-News reports the West Shore School Board (WSSB) was considering changes to four district policies, including two that were challenged in a lawsuit in the fall.
  
• ALCU investigating suspension of Pennsylvania teacher over Facebook photo of her with male stripper [HTML 2,558kb]
  The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is looking into the case of a Fayette County high school teacher who was suspended from her job after someone posted photos of her with a male stripper to an online social networking site, says the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.
  
• DCPS Chancellor Rhee clarifies remarks regarding some of 266 teachers laid off [HTML 2,982kb]
  The Washington Post reports that D.C. Public Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee has sent a letter to D.C. Council Chairman Vincent C. Gray and members Kwame R. Brown and Marion Barry explaining her statement to a national business magazine that some of the 266 teachers laid off in last October's budget cuts "had sex with children," hit them, or were chronically absent without authorization.
  
• Charter school was not a state actor for purposes of former employee’s substantive due process claim under § 1983 [HTML 3,732kb]
  The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has ruled that a former teacher failed to state a valid claim under § 1983 alleging that an Arizona charter school violated his substantive due process rights because the school was not a state actor acting under color of state law.
  
• Parents were prevailing party under IDEA entitled to attorneys’ fees even though child received FAPE [HTML 2,594kb]
  The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has ruled that the parents of a special education student who succeeded in having his disability reclassified were a prevailing party under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) entitled to attorneys’ fees, even though the student was provided with a free appropriate public education (FAPE) as required by IDEA.
  
• Houston district plans to tie teacher retention to student performance [HTML 2,590kb]
  The Houston Chronicle reports that Houston Independent School District’s (HISD) board has given initial approval to a policy that allows the district to dismiss teachers whose students consistently perform below expectations on standardized tests.
  
• District’s attorney says board member did not violate California’s open meeting law [HTML 1,902kb]
  An attorney for the Garden Grove Unified School District has advised the board that Trustee Lan Quoc Nguyen did not violate the public meetings law when he had separate discussions with two other board members minutes before the start of a regular board meeting last month, reports the Orange County Register.
  
• Community group charges Pennsylvania board’s proposed registration and admissions policy targets minorities [HTML 2,389kb]
  According to the Standard Speaker, Hazleton Area School District’s proposed registration and admissions policy is being criticized by members of the community. Concerned Parents of the Hazleton Area (CPHA) argues that the policy unfairly targets newcomers and students who would enroll in the district's English as a Second Language program.
  
• Los Angeles board imposes personal financial disclosure requirements on charter school operators [HTML 2,222kb]
  The Los Angeles Times reports that the Los Angeles Unified School District's Board of Education (LAUSDBOE) has adopted a policy that will require charter school operators to disclose details about their personal financial holdings.
  
• 28 Seattle students suspended for using Facebook to engage in cyberbullying [HTML 2,905kb]
  A number of students at McClure Middle School in Seattle have been suspended for allegedly bullying a classmate on the Internet, says the Seattle Times. According to Seattle Public Schools spokeswoman Patti Spencer, school administrators began an investigation when they learned about a Facebook page targeting the victim.
  
• Federal appeals court considers whether sexting teenagers can be prosecuted for pornography [HTML 3,638kb]
  The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit has heard arguments in a case involving three Pennsylvania teenage girls threatened with criminal prosecution on pornography charges after taking sexually provocative photos of themselves on their cellphones.
  
• Minnesota considers withholding state aid to local districts to avoid funding shortage [HTML 2,511kb]
  Gov. Tim Pawlenty's administration could withhold nearly $1 billion in state aid payments to public schools through May to ensure the state's checkbook doesn't run dry, under a plan unveiled Wednesday at a legislative committee meeting, according to the Minneapolis Star Tribune.
  
• Tennessee appellate court rules City of Memphis owes school system additional $50 million in funding [HTML 3,153kb]
  The Tennessee Court of Appeals, reports the Memphis Daily News, has ruled the city of Memphis owes the Memphis school system $50 million in funding by the end of June. The ruling affirms an earlier decision from the Chancery Court of Shelby County and is likely to be appealed.
  
• President Obama to seek additional $1.35 billion in RTTT funds [HTML 3,200kb]
  President Obama plans to seek $1.35 billion in his next budget to expand Race to the Top (RTTT), his signature education initiative to improve schools, says the Washington Post. RTTT uses the lure of grants to encourage school districts to raise standards, make better use of data to track student achievement, and take more forceful steps to intervene in failing schools.
  
• All but 10 states have entered the first round RTTT competition for funds [HTML 2,844kb]
  According to Education Week, 40 states and the District of Columbia applied for the first round of $4 billion in the Race to the Top Fund (RTTT) competition, which pits states against each other for desperately needed money, bragging rights, and leverage to implement controversial education reforms such as merit pay for teachers.
  
• Legal Clips Delivery FAQ [HTML 2,124kb]
• Legal Clips Testimonials [PDF 187,675kb]
  See what Legal Clips readers are saying.
  

Add Legal Clips headlines to your news reader:

Or, paste this URL into your preferred RSS reader:
http://nsba.org/RSS/MainMenu/SchoolLaw/LegalClips.aspx