Both freedom of speech and freedom from discrimination are generally accepted expressions of public policy. The application of these policies, however, leads to conflicts that pose both practical and conceptual problems. This paper presents a review of court litigation and addresses the question of how to reconcile the conflicting societal goals…

This checklist is designed to reduce the prospect that a termination decision will be reversed in a grievance procedure, arbitration, state agency hearing, or court proceeding. The checklist is arranged under the following headings: (1) What is the real reason for considering firing this individual? (distinction between reduction-in-force and…

Since employee salaries and fringe benefits make up the major part of school budgets, any reduction in budgets must be accomplished by reducing personnel. Concentrating on Oklahoma, but citing legal decisions in other states as well, a legal summary is presented for reduction in force when funds are unavailable to complete a school budget. As in…

When Colorado's Tenure Reform Bill, House Bill 1159, was signed into law, the work of teachers was not significantly changed. However, the law did make some significant inroads in the work of administrators and streamlined the due process accorded to teachers in the event that dismissal becomes necessary. This paper addresses whether the…

This paper addresses the legal issues surrounding a university or college's action of dismissing tenured faculty members because of the school's troubled financial condition or program discontinuance. It explores various legal principles through an examination of specific questions. These questions are: (1) How do the courts define financial…

The background on academic freedom in the United States and the current situation are discussed by former North Carolina Governor and Duke University President Terry Sanford. Academic freedom had not been established in the United States even as late as the beginning of the 20th century. In fact, the meaning of academic freedom or faculty rights…

Political repression of faculty members and the use of an archive of records to help remedy this phenomenon are discussed. The focus is the use of coercion to compel the behavior of politically dissident faculty members, particularly by the use of dismissal. The archive of records would indicate faculty members fired, not hired, or harassed for…

This paper presents examples of judicial reasoning in conflicts involving governing board bias and the power to decide in higher education and in various public school settings. Two cases, "Simard v. Board of Education" and "Hortonville Joint School District No. 1 v. Hortonville Education Association," provide the general…

This paper explores the implications for democratic policy making and school governance of collective bargaining with teachers. Based on a case study of the 1992 Teachers Strike in Detroit, Michigan, the research examines the relationships among actors involved in the strike and in its settlement. Findings of this research suggest that the strike…

Statutory and case law since 1953 have created a firm basis for personnel policy in Mississippi public school districts. House Bill No. 11 (1953) prescribed methods for the selection and employment of professional staff and conditions for their suspension and dismissal, establishing rights of proper notice and due process. Standards for…

Five topics or "realms" of access to education in China are discussed in this paper presented in the form of a panel discussion by four Chinese, one Filipino and one Mauritian graduate student. The scope of the research includes three historical periods: (1) the beginning of the People's Republic of China (PRC) from 1949 until the…

This paper provides legal information about the role of physical conduct in student-teacher, teacher-teacher, and administrator-teacher roles. The two legal theories that pertain to physical conduct in the schools are found in Title IX of the Education Amendment of 1972 and 42 U.S.C. (1983) for violations of due process and equal protection…

To guarantee an efficient educational system, effective evaluation and supervision of teacher performance are necessary. However, the evaluation of teacher performance presents two major problems: first, no clear definition or measure of effective teaching exists, and second, evaluation is perceived to have conflicting purposes, either as a…

At least 17 university faculty members have been the direct objects of unfavorable public commentary by the conservative organization Accuracy in Academia, Inc (AIA). Two case studies that have received much attention involve two political science professors: Dr. Terry Anderson of Texas A & M University, and Dr. Mark Reader of Arizona State…

This speech reviews the power of school boards with respect to dismissal, and identifies implications of due process for supervision and evaluation, particularly as it relates to incompetence as a basis for dismissal. The first section defines the state-sanctioned powers of a school board, including the difference between discretionary and…