Related to: School Law
On May 13, 2016, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights and the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division issued a joint guidance document regarding transgender students. The guidance, which is not in the form of a regulation but rather a Dear Colleague Letter, states, “The Departments interpret Title IX to require…
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As we celebrate National Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day today, it is important to reflect upon the legal requirements and best practices relating to the education of children with mental health disorders. This is a complex matter, as it involves the intersection of legal issues, educational issues, and medical issues. A child’s mental health disorder…
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Last week, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals overturned a lower court’s decision dismissing a transgender student’s Title IX discrimination claim against his school district. Notably, the Fourth Circuit deferred to the Department of Education’s interpretation of the Title IX regulations in making its decision. Because the Fourth Circuit is the highest court to have…
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On Friday, April 8, 2016, a Dane County Circuit Court judge struck down Wisconsin’s Right to Work law, thirteen months after the law first took effect in the state. In his opinion, Judge William Foust held that Wisconsin’s Right to Work law is an unlawful taking that violates the Wisconsin Constitution because the law obligates…
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A federal district court in Wisconsin recently dismissed one of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (“EEOC”) well-publicized attacks on employer wellness programs. Our earlier legal updates regarding this case and some other EEOC challenges can be found here: August 2014 Legal Update and October 2014 Legal Update. In EEOC v. Flambeau, Inc., No. 14-cv-638…
Read MoreAs the February-April 2016 regular open enrollment application period approaches, school districts should review their open enrollment policies to confirm that they are in compliance with the open enrollment statute (Wis. Stat. § 118.51) and DPI regulations (Wis. Admin. Code Chapter PI 36), both of which have undergone recent changes. Any policy revisions should be…
Read MoreQ: What is a current school law issue that every school district should have on its radar? A: Results Driven Accountability (RDA). On June 24, 2014, the U.S. Department of Education announced a major shift in the way it will evaluate the effectiveness of state special education programs. Until then, the focus had been primarily on procedural…
Read MoreRecently, the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction issued an IDEA Complaint Decision (Decision 15-029, 2015) 115 LRP 31928, in which it determined that a parental request for all of their child’s education records under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) does not include any e-mails not within the student’s actual file. The DPI…
Read MoreOn June 25, 2015, Governor Walker signed a bill modifying the Gun-Free School Zones Act (Wis. Stat. § 948.605). The new law, which goes into effect today, modifies the Gun-Free School Zones Act to permit certain off-duty, out-of-state, and former law enforcement officers to possess firearms in school zones. The Gun-Free School Zones Act prohibits…
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