Principals are the chief teachers of law in their schools. However, many principals would say that teaching law is not in their job description and that they do not need another responsibility, but intentional or not, most principals already teach law--in staff meetings; in teacher conferences; in informal conversations; and when they develop,…

The purpose of this national survey is to determine secondary school principals' knowledge of the rights of students and teachers, how often principals are legally threatened and sued, how they adjust their behaviors in response, and how they obtain and disseminate legal information. Survey results show that a majority of principals are uninformed…

What is the scope of First Amendment free expression rights of public school employees and students? Following a long period with no Supreme Court rulings pertaining to public employee or student speech, the Court since 2006 has delivered significant opinions in this regard. These decisions continue the trend of narrowing the circumstances under…

Newly hired teachers regularly have questions about whether their lifestyles and actions outside of school could have repercussions on their career. Because they are expected to be role models for their students and thus held to a higher level of discretion than the general citizenry, educators have had restrictions placed on their living…