Case law
- refers to principles of law established by courts, and is based on legal precedents declared in earlier court decisions in which there were similar situations
- it is believed that following precedent affords a greater likelihood that citizens will be treated equally and has the added advantage of allowing a degree of predictability in future disputes.
- Fed. courts have established a sizable body of case law. as a result, fed. case law has been an influential force in educational policymaking during the last half of the past century.
14th Amendment and Education
-a state can not deprive a person of rights he or she has as an American (ex. teachers may not be arbitrarily dismissed without due process, students may not be deprived of their freedoms pertaining to religion by school board policy that allows Bible reading for sectarian purposes or school sponsored prayers during normal school hours
State Statutes
- may regulate government functions (ie the method of selection of terms and responsibilities of state level education officials)
- statutes may also stipulate the type of local or regional school systems, the method of selection, responsibilities, and terms of local officials and the powers of local education units.
Sources of Law
Judicial Law-composed of fed. and state court decisions
Statutory Law-TEC (Texas Education Code-applies to the daily operation of schools-detailing the responsibilities and duties of the SBOE (state board of education, the TEA (texas education agency), school boards, charter schools, and school personnel
Administrative Law-SBOE and Texas Commissioner of Education enact rules, local school districts enact school board policies and admin. regulations
Constitutional Law-10th Amendment leaves education to the states
How the US Constitution and Federal Gov’t Affect Texas Schools
- Bill of Rights of the US Constitution
- 14th Amendment-due process, equal protection clause
- Statute 42 U.S.C., 1983-pursue claims in Fed. Court (Shinn vs College Station I.S.D., 1996), major source of litigation against both school districts and school personnel
- Important Federal Statutes
The Structure and Governance of the TX School System
- -TX Legislature-solely responsible for the structure and organization of TX public schools and is the biggest player in TX public education since 1980
- SBOE-estab. state curriculum and graduation requirements, determines the standard for satisfactory student performance on assessment instruments, adopts and purchases state textbooks, invests the permanent school funds
- TEA (Tx Ed. Agency)
- TX Commissioner of Education (other than the legislature, the most powerful state-level player)-appointed by the governor with the consent of TX Senate, serves 4 year terms, must be a US citizen, also serves as the executive officer and secretary of the SBOE
- Local Districts and Private Schools
- Local school Districts-Governance is left to the local school board of trustees (serve a 3-4 yr term and are not compensated)
- Private Schools-US Supreme Court declared that states can not require all children to attend public schools only (Pierce v. Society of Sisters, 1925)
- Charter Schools-operates fairly free of state regulation (3 forms of charter schools are-home rule school district charters, campus charters, open enrollment charters)
- School Administrators-Superintendent(chief operating officer, responsible for implementing the policies of the board)
- Principal-frontline administrator, day-to-day activities, “with increased responsibility also comes increased liability)
Lemon TEST
3 Part test for the courts to decide whether or not a challenged statute violates the constitution—a statute need only violate one of the three Lemon principles to be unconstitutional
- have a secular legislative purpose - have a principle or primary effect that neither advances nor inhibits religion - not foster an excessive entanglement with religion
Important Federal Statutes
- Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act (no discrimination based on race, color, or national origin in federal assisted programs)
- Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (no discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin in all aspects of public and/or private employment)
- Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA)
- Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA)-affords persons with disabilities meaningful access to the programs and facilities of public and private schools as well as most businesses in the country
- Individuals with Disabilities Education Act(IDEA)-requires public schools to identify students with disabilities and provide them with a free , appropriate education in the least restrictive manner
- Title IX of the 1973 Education Amendments-no discrimination of individuals on the basis of sex in any federally assisted education program
- NCLB Act-attempts to raise the achievement levels by holding states and school districts to strict accountability standards (NCLB was an amendment to the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965)
- Others- Equal Access Act, the Family Rights and Privacy Act
Compulsory Attendence
- Generally provide that children between certain ages must attend public, private, home or some form of online school and failure to comply may be a criminal violation
- Ensures that students receive an appropriate education
- gives parents the right to decide when and where their child attends school
Religion In Schools
- Bible reading for sectarian purpose and school-sponsored prayer during normal school hours was declared unconstitutional
- This issue and other dealing with religious activities at public schools remain highly charged and emotional
- Engel v. Vitale, Supreme Court of the US, 1962 370 U.S. 421–NY school children reciting the “Regent’s Prayer”…crossed the line of separation of church and state
- School District of Abington Township v Schempp, Murray v. Curlet, Supreme Court of the US, 1963 374 U.S. 203–disallowed the reading of the Bible and reciting the Lord’s Prayer
Texas Legislature
10 Objectives for public education
1. Participation of parents as full partners in the educational enterprise 2. development of full student potential 3. reduction of dropout rate to zero 4. a well balanced curriculum 5. recruitment and retention of highly qualified personnel 6. Exemplary student performance 7. a safe and disciplined learning environment 8. use of creative and innovative techniques to improve students' learning 9. Implementation of technology 10. preparation of students to become a productive citizen
Residency, Guardianship and the Right to Attend a District’s school
- student’s parents live in the district
- parents live in the district but the student does not
- the student and guardian are under a court order to live in the district
- the student is younger than eighteen, unmarried and has established a residence in the district separate and apart from the student’s parents
- the student is homeless and lives in the district
- the student is a foreign exchange student
- the student lives in a residential facility located in the district
- the student is at least 18 and lives in the district
- the student lives in the district and is younger than 18 and/or has been married or has had his/her minority status removed because the student manages his/her own affairs
- the student has been placed in foster care
11 the student’s grandparent is a resident and provides a “substantial” amount of after school care
Students and The Law
students do not shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate-Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District, 1969
-The Tinker Doctrine —recognized that students have rights—the issue was concerned with the right of students to wear black arm bands in protest of the Vietnam War.—as long as the activity does not interfere with the requirements of proper conduct, does not interfere with the normal school day (not disruptive, safe, discipline in the school)
Due Process
comes from the 5th and 14th Amendments of the US Constitution-requiring due process before the deprivation of life, liberty or property
Questions that due process hinges on
1. did the state take action
2. did the state deprive the individual of life, liberty or property
3. did the state provide the process that is due for such a deprivation
Chapter 37 (Texas Education Code):An Overview
- “Decisions should be made in local communities and not in Austin” the then Governor Bush yet…
- Gave state law more control over student discipline
- Clear desire to keep students in school if at all possible (despite “zero tolerance”)
- Great emphasis on DAEP (Disciplinary Alternative Education Program)
- Mandated coordination between schools and law enforcement
Student Code of Conduct (all encompassing)
- TEC requires that each district adopt a student code of conduct that will specify standards for student conduct and outline the types of behavior that might get a student in trouble (ex Student Handbook)
- Must indicate how a district will notify parents of any violations that could lead to suspension, DAEP (Disciplinary Alternative Education Program) removal, or expulsion
- developed with the advice of the district level committee
- it’s a basic rule of due process that students can only be punished for misconduct after they are advised that such conduct is prohibited
- Law requires 4 mitigation (preventive) factors to be taken into accnt. whenever a school orders a suspension, a DAEP or JJAED removal, or expulsion
- self-Defense
- Intent or lack there of (ex student unaware of prohibited weapon found in car)
- the students disciplinary history
- disability that substantially impairs his or her capacity to appreciate the wrongfulness of the conduct
Teachers and The Law-Non-Renewal and Dismissal
-Board of regents v. Roth-court said teachers were hired for one academic year, contract was not renewed, no infringement of liberty (the state did not lesson how others saw him), a one-year contract does not guarantee employment for the next year therefore there was no infringement of property
Teachers and The Law-Freedom of Expression for teachers
- Pickering v. Board of Education of Township School District 205 1968-freedom of expression outside of teacher duties, no general standard to judge all statements, his statements did not impede him from performing his duties as a teacher
- Two Step Process to determine teachers’ free speech protection under the 1st Amendment
- Is the subject matter of public concern?
- Pickering Balance-need for harmony in the work place, close working relationship between speaker and superiors, speech impedes employees ability to do their job, the time-place-manner of the speech, context of the dispute, public interest, would debate on the matter be vital to informed decision making
Teachers and The Law-documentation
schools must document teacher performance (have proof)
Settlegoode v Portland Public Schools-teacher won settlement after being dismissed-her appraisals worsened after she had spoken out-she received 952,000.00 in compensation
Russo v. Central School District-teacher can not be dismissed for not saying the pledge of allegiance
Palmer v Board of Education of the City of Chicago-teacher was terminated for not following the curriculum-court found in favor of the Board
Employment Relationship
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Personnel Issues
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Rational Basis Test
two-level test for measuring classifications against the Equal Protection Clause
- must be a sound reason for the classification and all those classified alike must be treated as uniformly as possible
- the burden of proof is on the complainant to demonstrate that a challenged law or policy has no rational basis to achieve a legitimate state objective
Strict Scrutiny Test
- is applied when a “fundamental interest” or “suspect classification” is involved-examples include race, national origin, alienage, indigency, and illegitimacy
- Plyer v. Doe (1982)-was a case in which the Supreme Court of the United States struck down a state statute denying funding for education to illegal immigrant children and simultaneously struck down a municipal school district’s attempt to charge illegal immigrants an annual $1,000 tuition fee for each illegal immigrant student to compensate for the lost state funding.
- the burden of proof is on the state to prove that a certain classification has been narrowly tailored to serve a compelling governmental interest
TEC
Texas Education Code
