School Law and the Public Schools : A Practical Guide for Educational Leaders

by Essex, Nathan L.

• ISBN13: 9780205412051
• ISBN10: 020541205X
• Edition: 3rd
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2005-01-01
• Publisher: Allyn & Bacon

Summary

A concise, easy to read, and convenient paperback, this text contains relevant information on historical and contemporary legal issues affecting the organization and administration of schools in the United States. School Law and the Public Schools: A Practical Guide for Educational Leaders, Third Edition, is a must have for educators and policy makers at all levels. This text provides valuable information regarding gangs, school safety, Homeland Security, No Child Left Behind Act, Gun Free School Act, legal aspects of personnel selection, landmark cases involving Affirmative Action and college admissions, homosexuality, Pledge of Allegiance, and much more. Legal issues are covered thoroughly yet succinctly, and are discussed in a way that is informative, entertaining, and useful so the educator or administrator can effectively perform professional duties within the boundaries of constitutional, statutory, and case law.

Table of Contents

List of Cases	xv
Preface	xxiii
About the Author	xxiv
CHAPTER 1 Legal Framework Affecting Public Schools	1	(11)
SOURCES OF LAW	1	(4)
Bill of Rights and the Fourteenth Amendment	1	(1)
The Federal Constitution	2	(1)
State Constitutions	2	(1)
Statutes	2	(1)
Court or Case Law	3	(1)
State Agencies	3	(1)
School Board Policies	4	(1)
THE U.S. SYSTEM OF COURTS	5	(2)
Federal Courts	5	(1)
State Courts	6	(1)
ANALYSIS OF AN APPELLATE COURT OPINION	7	(2)
Case (Citation)	8	(1)
Procedure	8	(1)
Facts	8	(1)
Ruling and Justification	8	(1)
Disposition	8	(1)
THE SUPREME COURT	9	(2)
Supreme Court Ritual	10	(1)
U.S. Supreme Court Decisions	10	(1)
Administrative Guide: Legal Framework	11	(1)
ENDNOTES	11	(1)
CHAPTER 2 Religion and the Public Schools	12	(31)
SCHOOL-SPONSORED PRAYER	13	(2)
SCHOOL-SPONSORED BIBLE READING	15	(1)
SILENT PRAYER AND MEDITATION	16	(1)
AID TO PAROCHIAL SCHOOLS	17	(3)
Religious Symbols	19	(1)
Religious Displays	19	(1)
Ten Commandments	20	(1)
PRAYER AT SCHOOL EVENTS	20	(3)
Student-Led Prayer at Public School Events	20	(1)
Athletic Contests	21	(1)
Prayer at Athletic Contests	22	(1)
Administrative Guide: Prayer, Bible Reading, and Silent Meditation	23	(1)
VOLUNTARY PRAYER AT COMMENCEMENT EXERCISES	23	(3)
Landmark Rulings	24	(1)
Impact of Ruling	25	(1)
Prayer at School Board Meetings	25	(1)
Administrative Guide: Prayer at School Events	26	(1)
USE OF SCHOOL FACILITIES BY RELIGIOUS STUDENT GROUPS	26	(6)
Legal Precedents	27	(2)
Administrative Guide: Equal Access	29	(1)
Use of School Facilities by Outside Religious Groups	29	(2)
Use of School Facilities by Community Groups	31	(1)
Right to Deny Access	32	(1)
Administrative Guide: Use of Facilities by Outside Religious Groups	32	(1)
RELIGIOUS ACTIVITIES AND HOLIDAY PROGRAMS	32	(6)
Released Time for Religious Instruction	33	(1)
Posting Religious Mottos and Expressions	34	(1)
Distribution of Religious Materials	34	(2)
Pledge of Allegiance	36	(8)
Administrative Guide: Religious Activities	37	(1)
CASE STUDIES	38	(4)
ENDNOTES	42	(1)
CHAPTER 3 Students, the Law, and Public Schools	43	(39)
FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION	44	(8)
Administrative Guide: Freedom of Expression	46	(1)
Protests and Demonstrations	47	(1)
Administrative Guide: Protests and Demonstrations	47	(1)
School-Sponsored Newspapers	47	(3)
Administrative Guide: Student Newspapers	49	(1)
Nonschool-Sponsored Newspapers	50	(1)
Administrative Guide: Nonschool-Sponsored Student Publications	51	(1)
Censorship	51	(1)
Administrative Guide: Censorship	52	(1)
DRESS AND APPEARANCE	52	(2)
Administrative Guide: Dress and Appearance	53	(1)
Health and Safety Issues	53	(1)
Controversial Slogans	54	(1)
SEARCH AND SEIZURE	54	(9)
Reasonable Suspicion	55	(1)
Student Desks	56	(1)
Student Lockers	56	(1)
Book Bags	57	(1)
Automobiles	57	(1)
Personal Searches	58	(1)
Strip Searches	59	(1)
Involvement of Law Enforcement Officials	60	(1)
Use of Canines	61	(4)
Administrative Guide: Search and Seizure	62	(1)
"NO PASS, NO PLAY" RULE	63	(1)
Administrative Guide: No Pass, No Play	64	(1)
USE OF PAGERS AND CELLULAR PHONES	64	(1)
Administrative Guide: Pagers and Cellular Phones	65	(1)
CORPORAL PUNISHMENT	65	(8)
Reasonable Punishment	70	(1)
Minimal Due Process	71	(1)
Excessive Punishment	71	(2)
Administrative Guide: Corporal Punishment	73	(1)
CLASSROOM HARASSMENT	73	(3)
The Supreme Court's Decision	73	(1)
A Dissenting Opinion	74	(1)
Danger Signals	74	(1)
The Pivotal Case	75	(7)
Administrative Guide: Classroom Harassment	75	(1)
PREGNANT STUDENTS	76	(1)
MARRIED STUDENTS	77	(1)
Administrative Guide: Pregnant and Married Students	77	(1)
CASE STUDIES	78	(3)
ENDNOTES	81	(1)
CHAPTER 4 Due Process and Student Safety	82	(23)
HOMELAND SECURITY	82	(4)
Preparing for National Emergencies	84	(2)
HANDLING GANG VIOLENCE IN SCHOOLS	86	(2)
Gang Characteristics and Membership	87	(1)
Gang Dress	87	(2)
Administrative Guide: Gang Violence	88	(1)
SCHOOL UNIFORM DRESS POLICIES, SCHOOL SAFETY, AND STUDENTS' FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION RIGHTS	88	(1)
Early Legal Challenges	88	(1)
Administrative Guide: Uniforms	89	(1)
ZERO TOLERANCE AND SCHOOL SAFETY	89	(5)
Zero Tolerance	89	(4)
Recent Zero Tolerance Practices	93	(1)
Administrative Guide: Zero Tolerance	93	(1)
SCHOOL SUSPENSION	94	(3)
Administrative Guide: Suspension	94	(1)
Procedural and Substantive Due Process	95	(2)
EXPULSION	97	(3)
Administrative Guide: Expulsion	99	(1)
METAL DETECTORS	100	(1)
Administrative Guide: Metal Detectors	101	(1)
DRUG TESTING	101	(2)
Administrative Guide: Drug Testing Student Athletes	102	(1)
CASE STUDIES	103	(1)
ENDNOTES	104	(1)
CHAPTER 5 Individuals with Disabilities	105	(30)
INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES EDUCATION ACT OF 1990 (IDEA)	107	(2)
Mandatory Requirements	107	(2)
NATIONAL COUNCIL ON DISABILITY	109	(11)
Functional Exclusion of Disabled Children	110	(1)
Interpretation and Identification of Children with Disabilities	110	(1)
Prereferral Intervention	110	(2)
Individualized Educational Program Requirement	112	(1)
Equal Access to Assistive Technology for Students with Disabilities	112	(1)
Program Review and Changes	113	(1)
Education-Related Service Requirement	113	(1)
Least Restrictive Environment	114	(2)
Inclusion of Children with Disabilities	116	(1)
Length of School Year	117	(1)
Residential Placement	117	(2)
Private School Placement	119	(1)
DISCIPLINING STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES	120	(4)
Expulsion	120	(2)
Suspension	122	(2)
INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES EDUCATION ACT OF 1997	124	(9)
Amendments Regarding Discipline	124	(4)
Administrative Guide: Student Disabilities	128	(1)
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and Federal Protection	128	(1)
Correctable messes and ADA	129	(7)
Administrative Guide: Americans with Disabilities	132	(1)
CASE STUDIES	133	(1)
ENDNOTES	134	(1)
CHAPTER 6 School Personnel and School District Liability	135	(33)
THE SCHOOL AS A SAFE PLACE	135	(1)
LIMITING LIABILITY FOR SCHOOL VIOLENCE	136	(5)
Schools as Safe Places	137	(1)
School Violence and Negligence	137	(1)
Emerging Legal Issues	137	(1)
Freedom of Expression: Prohibitions and School Violence	138	(1)
Administrative Guide: School Violence	139	(1)
Legal Challenges Related to School Gangs	139	(1)
Duty of Care and Gang Violence	140	(1)
Administrative Guide: Liability and Gang Violence	140	(1)
LIABILITY OF SCHOOL PERSONNEL	141	(4)
Individual Liability	141	(1)
Vicarious Liability	141	(1)
Foreseeability	142	(1)
Nuisance	142	(2)
Parental Access to School Premises	144	(1)
INTENTIONAL TORTS	145	(4)
Assault	145	(1)
Battery	145	(1)
Defamation	146	(1)
Libel and Slander	147	(1)
Mental Distress	147	(1)
False Imprisonment	148	(1)
Trespassing on Personal Property	148	(1)
UNINTENTIONAL TORTS	149	(3)
Standard of Care	150	(1)
Breach of Duty	151	(1)
Proximate Cause	151	(1)
Injury	152	(1)
DEFENSES FOR NEGLIGENCE	152	(5)
Contributory Negligence	152	(1)
Assumption of Risk	153	(1)
Comparative Negligence	154	(2)
Immunity	156	(1)
DUTIES OF SUPERVISION	157	(5)
Supervision Before School	157	(2)
Supervision During School	159	(1)
Supervision After School	159	(2)
Field Trips	161	(1)
Parental Consent and Written Waivers	162	(1)
LIABILITY INVOLVING CIVIL RIGHTS STATUTES	162	(2)
Administrative Guide: School Liability	163	(1)
CASE STUDIES	164	(3)
ENDNOTES	167	(1)
CHAPTER 7 Liability and Student Records	168	(19)
SANCTIONS FOR VIOLATING FAMILY PRIVACY RIGHTS	168	(2)
RIGHTS OF PARENTS	170	(1)
RIGHTS OF NONCUSTODIAL PARENTS	171	(1)
RIGHTS OF ELIGIBLE STUDENTS	171	(1)
RIGHTS OF SCHOOL PERSONNEL	171	(1)
ENFORCEMENT OF STATE OR FEDERAL STATUTES	172	(1)
FAMILY EDUCATION RIGHTS AND PRIVACY ACT	172	(2)
Recent U.S. Supreme Court Rulings	172	(1)
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit Rulings	172	(2)
NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND ACT OF 2001	174	(3)
Annual Notification Requirements	174	(1)
Transfer of School Disciplinary Records	174	(1)
Armed Forces Recruiter Access	175	(1)
Student Privacy and Physical Exams	175	(1)
U.S. Department of Education Surveys	175	(1)
Surveys Funded by Other Sources	176	(1)
DEFAMATION INVOLVING SCHOOL PERSONNEL	177	(5)
Slander	178	(1)
Libel	178	(1)
Privilege	179	(1)
Good Faith	179	(1)
Acts of Malice	180	(2)
DEFENSES AGAINST DEFAMATION	182	(2)
Privilege	183	(1)
Good Faith	183	(1)
Truth	183	(5)
Administrative Guide: Liability and Student Records	184	(1)
CASE STUDIES	184	(2)
ENDNOTES	186	(1)
CHAPTER 8 Teacher Freedoms	187	(27)
SUBSTANTIVE AND PROCEDURAL CONSIDERATIONS	187	(1)
FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION	188	(7)
Speech Outside the School Environment	188	(3)
Academic Freedom	191	(4)
FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION	195	(3)
Membership in Subversive Organizations	196	(1)
Political Rights	197	(1)
Right to Hold Office	197	(1)
Participation in Political Campaigns	198	(1)
DRESS AND GROOMING	198	(4)
Community Norms and Expectations	200	(1)
Unwed Pregnant Teachers	201	(1)
RIGHT TO PRIVACY	202	(3)
Administrative Guide: Teacher Freedoms	204	(1)
RELIGIOUS FREEDOMS	205	(4)
Religious Rights of Teachers in the School Environment	205	(3)
Use of Religious Garb by School Personnel	208	(1)
TITLE VII: RELIGIOUS DISCRIMINATION	209	(1)
Administrative Guide: Religious Discrimination	210	(1)
CASE STUDIES	210	(2)
ENDNOTES	212	(2)
CHAPTER 9 Discrimination in Employment	214	(29)
TITLE VII: DISCRIMINATION	214	(4)
Sexual Discrimination	217	(1)
THE REHABILITATION ACT OF 1973 AND THE AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT OF 1990	218	(8)
Qualifications for Employment	219	(1)
Scope of Protection: Section 504 and ADA	220	(1)
Gender Discrimination	221	(1)
Racial Discrimination	222	(3)
Religious Discrimination	225	(1)
AFFIRMATIVE ACTION: CALIFORNIA AND PROPOSITION 209	226	(7)
Landmark U.S. Supreme Court Rulings	228	(2)
Age Discrimination	230	(3)
PREGNANCY AND PUBLIC SCHOOL EMPLOYMENT	233	(5)
Administrative Guide: Discrimination	234	(1)
Sexual Harassment	234	(4)
ISSUES INVOLVING NATIONAL ORIGIN: PROPOSITION 187	238	(1)
CASE STUDIES	239	(2)
ENDNOTES	241	(2)
CHAPTER 10 Recruitment, Tenure, Dismissal, and Due Process	243	(36)
RECRUITMENT OF PERSONNEL	243	(2)
The Employment Interview	243	(1)
Hiring Discrimination	244	(1)
TENURE	245	(6)
Acquisition of Tenure	246	(2)
Nonrenewal	248	(2)
Administrative Guide: Tenure	249	(1)
Tenure for Principals	250	(1)
Administrative Guide: Principal Tenure	251	(1)
DISMISSAL FOR CAUSE	251	(18)
Incompetency	252	(1)
Insubordination	253	(2)
Immorality	255	(1)
Homosexuality and Employment	255	(4)
Conduct Involving Morality	259	(2)
Criminal Activity	261	(1)
Sexual Advances Toward Students	262	(3)
Administrative Guide: Dismissal	265	(1)
Financial Exigency (Abolition of Positions)	265	(3)
Administrative Guide: Financial Exigency	268	(1)
Good or Just Cause	268	(1)
Administrative Guide: Good or Just Cause	269	(1)
COLLECTIVE BARGAINING	269	(5)
Private Sector versus Public Sector Bargaining	270	(1)
State Involvement	270	(1)
Scope of Collective Bargaining	271	(1)
Impasse and Bargaining	272	(1)
Legal Issues	272	(1)
Workers' Compensation	273	(7)
Administrative Guide: Collective Bargaining	274	(1)
CASE STUDIES	274	(3)
ENDNOTES	277	(2)
CHAPTER 11 The Instructional Program	279	(29)
CONTROL OF PUBLIC SCHOOLS	279	(1)
COMPULSORY ATTENDANCE	280	(3)
Compulsory Attendance Exceptions	281	(1)
Home Schools	281	(2)
HEALTH REQUIREMENTS	283	(1)
RESIDENCE	284	(1)
CURRICULUM STANDARDS	285	(2)
NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND ACT OF 2001	287	(3)
Increased Accountability	287	(1)
More Choices for Parents and Students	287	(1)
Greater Flexibility for States, School Districts, and Schools	288	(1)
Summary and Implications	288	(2)
USE OF THE INTERNET FOR INSTRUCTION	290	(4)
School Officials' Responsibility	290	(1)
Children's Internet Protection Act	290	(2)
School or District Responsibility	292	(1)
Teacher's Responsibility	293	(1)
Parent's Responsibility	293	(1)
Administrative Guide: Use of the Internet	293	(1)
GRADING AND ACADEMIC REQUIREMENTS	294	(7)
Student Testing	294	(3)
Grade Reductions for Absences	297	(1)
Grade Reduction for Unexcused Absences	297	(2)
Grade Reduction for Academic Misconduct	299	(1)
Physical Punishment for Poor Academic Performance	299	(1)
Withholding Diplomas	300	(1)
EDUCATIONAL MALPRACTICE	301	(4)
Professionalism in Education	301	(1)
School-Based Management	302	(1)
Educational Malpractice Cases	302	(7)
Administrative Guide-Educational Malpractice	304	(1)
Administrative Guide-Instructional Program	305	(1)
CASE STUDIES	305	(1)
ENDNOTES	306	(2)
CHAPTER 12 School Desegregation	308	(16)
DE JURE SEGREGATION	308	(1)
BROWN II IMPLEMENTATION	309	(3)
Racial Balances or Racial Quotas	310	(1)
One-Race Schools	311	(1)
Remedial Altering of Attendance Zones	311	(1)
Transportation of Students	311	(1)
FREE TRANSFER AND FREEDOM OF CHOICE PROGRAM	312	(3)
De Jure Segregation	313	(1)
De Facto Segregation	314	(1)
THE CIVIL RIGHTS ACT OF 1964	315	(1)
INTRA-DISTRICT SEGREGATION	316	(5)
Attendance Zones	316	(1)
Busing	317	(1)
Faculty Desegregation	318	(1)
Seeking Unitary Status	319	(2)
Administrative Guide: De Jure Segregation	321	(1)
CASE STUDIES	321	(2)
ENDNOTES	323	(1)
APPENDIX A THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES: PROVISIONS AND AMENDMENTS AFFECTING EDUCATION	324	(5)
APPENDIX B SUMMARY OF RELEVANT FEDERAL STATUTES	329	(18)
Glossary of Relevant Legal Terms	347	(4)
Index	351