It is important that teachers and administrators have at least a rudimentary knowledge and understanding of school law and how it affects their day-to-day classroom activities, since the courts have played an increasingly significant role in defining school policy. Decisions in school desegregation, prayer, public school financing, student rights,…

An analysis is provided of the status of collective bargaining in Illinois community colleges in 1983-84. Chapter 1 provides introductory material on: the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Act (H.B. 1530), a comprehensive collective bargaining law; the value of an examination of collective bargaining prior to the implementation of the law; and…

The dismissal of public school teachers in Oregon is governed by the Fair Dismissal Law. The statutory requirements of the law involve (1) a notice from the superintendent of intent to dismiss, (2) school board approval of dismissal, (3) the teacher's right to appeal to the Fair Dismissal Appeals Board (FDAB), and (4) the school board's and…

The Capital Area School Development Association, New York, sponsored a school law conference to fulfill a need in the region for school board members and administrators who desire to maintain and improve their knowledge in the area of school law. This document contains the text or outline of the following four presentations: (1) "Preserving…

Due process has become an important principle in higher education as a result of many new legal issues, including dismissals of students from campus, firings of staff members, faculty tenure and promotion, sexual harassment, discrimination, and substance abuse. This volume defines due process; explains when due process procedures are required;…

Except in matters of obvious race and/or sex discrimination, teachers in Catholic and other private schools have fewer Constitutional rights than public school teachers have. Contract law, rather than Constitutional law, governs most teacher employment situations in Catholic schools. An awareness of its implications, together with pastoral (moral…

A number of legal issues are involved in conducting a drug testing program to determine whether students--and occasionally teachers--are using illegal drugs. Two legal issues have been raised concerning the accuracy of the urinalysis test: whether it is chemically accurate and whether appropriate procedures have been followed to make certain that…

The laws affecting education in the United States today can generally be classified according to four categories: (1) Constitutional law (both state and federal); (2) statutes and regulations; (3) common law principles; and (4) contract law. Students and teachers in private schools are not protected by federal Constitutional law because they are…

This guide for school district administrators presents workshop materials for administrators' mutual training. The guide assists administrators in preventing lawsuits by teachers against the district for violations of the First Amendment right to freedom of speech. Section 1, the introduction, offers two objectives: to acquaint administrators with…

This short monograph details a simple system of documentation that can be used with any school district's personnel evaluation process. The goal of the monograph is to help supervisors, especially principals, accord fair treatment to employees who are systematically evaluated. The documentation system is founded on the concept of communication.…

In recent years the United States Supreme Court has ruled that the due process clause of the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments protects the liberty and property interests of public school students and public employees. This guide examines the applicability to school boards and administrators of court decisions regarding due process proceedings.…

This booklet examines the issue of trust within the context of school improvement. Specifically, it looks at teacher-teacher and teacher-principal relationships. Drawing on existing research and the experiences of individual schools, it offers a summary of current literature and identifies specific steps that educators can take to increase the…

Relationships between classroom teacher preemployment interview scores and performance during the first 6 months of employment were investigated in an Ohio school district. Permanently employed teachers were the target of the study, which used data from 4 aspects of interview scores and 13 performance criteria to study relationships between 2…

Cases involving public elementary and secondary education that were decided in state and federal courts from July 1984 to June 1985 are summarized in this review. The cases were selected on the basis of their relevance to contemporary problems in public schools, their definitiveness as articulations of existing law, and their reliability as guides…

Examines the issue of a professor's First Amendment right to academic freedom vs. a student's right to an effective learning environment free from sexual harassment in a 1996 case, Cohen vs. San Bernardino Valley College. Also explored is the right of a public employee to free speech. Recommendations are offered to college administrators on…