The U.S. Supreme Court's 2018 decision in "Janus v. American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees" (AFSCME) (referred to as "Janus" hereafter) prohibited state and local government worker unions from negotiating collective bargaining agreements with fair share fee arrangements. In this report, the authors…

This case study focusing on journalism curriculum in Tennessee sheds light on the obstacles that journalism schools face in efforts to include more instruction of sunshine laws into courses. Journalists use these laws to gather information to write their stories, either by attending public meetings or by filing open records requests. This study…

Charter schools see as many as one in four teachers leave annually, and recent evidence attributes much of this turnover to provisions affected by collective bargaining processes and state laws such as salary, benefits, job security, and working hours. There have been many recent efforts to improve teacher voice in charter schools (Kahlenberg…

This hearing serves as a first in a set of hearings focusing on early learning. In his opening statement, Senator Tom Harkin, Chairman of the Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, strongly encouraged members of this committee on both sides of the aisle to hold roundtables and have discussions on early learning in their local…

Explains Tennessee's 1978 Community Schools Act and its implications for state school boards. Suggests ways for community educators to avoid legal problems related to governance, medical considerations, buildings and grounds, field trips and excursions, volunteers, and fiscal management. (SB)

The topic of state reappropriation of federal funds for higher education is addressed in this summary of a speech that sought to distinguish between reasonable program control by state legislatures and disruption of needed programs. The issue of a state legislature appropriating federal funds entering the state is before a number of legislatures.…