From the Education Law Group
Continuing Education Offerings for 2011
As a service to our clients in the Education Law Group, Walter & Haverfield is offering, without charge, a variety of brief presentations geared toward educating district personnel on timely topics facing public school districts. Conducted on-site at the district, each continuing education presentation is designed to assist district representatives in identifying and addressing legal issues before they cause significant financial liability, operational harm or negative publicity. Each session will run approximately one hour and will provide sufficient time for any questions that may arise. For 2011, the Education Law Group has identified the following topics: What Administrators Need to Know in 2011 This session will provide a comprehensive update on the status of various recent school law developments. Specific topics of discussion will include: (1) bullying; (2) regulating employee and student use of technology; (3) state funding issues; and (4) an update on other timely legislative and judicial developments including collective bargaining and health care reform. School Law Awareness for New Teachers This session will provide a basic overview to new teachers and is designed to assist them in spotting legal issues as they arise and in handling those issues properly. The session will highlight a variety of areas including bullying, harassment and discrimination, privacy concerns, child abuse reporting obligations and other common legal issues which teachers may encounter. Regulating and Managing Student Use of Cell Phones This session will discuss issues faced by schools related to student use of cellular or "smart" phones, including how to regulate student use, rights related to searching and confiscating phones, and responding to inappropriate content such as "sexting." Learn how to address these situations, in order to avoid liability by going too far ... or not going far enough. Responding to Use - and Misuse - of Social Media MySpace, Facebook and YouTube - the possibilities and problems are endless. Can you discipline students or employees for posting material to a social media or other website that attacks teachers, administrators, board members, or other students? What about teachers posting provocative pictures or discussing intimate details of their personal lives on social media? How do you address students posting pictures of themselves drinking beer at a party, or what about students recording teachers in the classroom and posting it on YouTube? We'll discuss how to address these and other scenarios that are all too commonplace in today's world of Web 2.0. Perhaps no other topic commands more attention in today's educational society than bullying. With the combination of recent tragic events and Ohio's anti-bullying laws, it is critical that administrators understand their obligations and appropriate responses when faced with potential bullying situations, including how to manage bullying occurring via the Internet, cell phones or through other technology. Student Suspensions/Expulsions 101 Suspending and expelling students can be a legal minefield in light of the numerous constitutional, statutory and contractual rights students have. This session will walk you through the suspension/expulsion process and provide practical tips on how to: (1) comply with notice and other procedural requirements; (2) avoid infringing upon students' rights; (3) properly document the disciplinary incident; and (4) successfully prosecute the suspension/expulsion and/or defend legal challenges to the suspension/expulsion, including compiling and identifying necessary evidence. How to Properly Discipline Employees This session will provide practical advice on how to: (1) properly discipline employees, even when faced with the most difficult employees and challenging situations; (2) maintain control of the disciplinary process; and (3) properly document and investigate the disciplinary action so that the Board is best positioned to defeat challenges to the disciplinary action in arbitration or court. Don't get stuck with a bad employee for decades because of one missed procedural step! During this session, we will discuss the procedural and substantive requirements necessary to non-renew both teaching and non-teaching staff. We will also provide practical tips on how to (1) avoid common pitfalls; (2) ensure a non-renewal decision is supported by adequate documentation; and (3) handle any apparent flaws that may have occurred. In today's economic climate, the importance of passing a levy cannot be overstated. What can a board member or district employee do in his or her official capacity to support a levy, and what can he or she do as a private citizen? What is the role of the levy committee? In this session, we'll discuss the permissible, and impermissible, actions that a district and its employees may undertake to advocate for the passage of a levy. Teacher Misconduct and Licensure Issues What is conduct unbecoming to the teaching profession? What is a reportable offense? What happens when a teacher is accused of misconduct? What happens to a teacher's license in these instances? How do you make a report to the Office of Professional Conduct? What happens once a report has been made? We'll discuss these issues and other related issues in this session. Tuition, Residency and Custody Do we have to enroll this child? Which district is obligated to pay for his education? What if his parents offer to pay tuition? There aren't always clear-cut answers to these questions under the law. Come ready to work through tuition, residency and custody conundrums. Learn how to best insulate your district in these situations. Navigating the Family Medical Leave Act Recent revisions to the FMLA have complicated what was already a complex set of regulations. In this session, we will discuss the recent changes to the FMLA and the impact of those changes upon school districts. Among the items for discussion are the revisions to the eligibility, medical certification, notice, and other provisions of the FMLA, including the military leave amendments. We will also discuss the application of these provisions in evaluating and addressing requests for FMLA leave from both certificated and non-certificated staff members. Additional topics, including special education topics, are available upon request. If you are interested in scheduling one or more of these sessions for your district, please contact one of our Education Law Group attorneys:
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