This article reports on ethics issues involving school leaders. Some superintendents have landed in murky ethical waters for their ties to for-profit companies, highlighting the temptations administrators face as industry and education increasingly intersect. Some questionable judgments by superintendents--from accepting company-paid trips to…

Six legal issues surrounding a school district's reduction in force are described in this twelfth chapter in a book on school law. First, the courts generally hold that the school board must prove that a reduction in force (RIF) is inescapable. The second issue revolves around which positions and employees are being eliminated. In deciding such…

Presented here are the concerns raised in a series of public forums held in seven South Carolina cities in January through March 1981. The purpose of the forums was to give citizens an opportunity to express their views on the state's efforts to strengthen the quality of education in South Carolina's schools. Participants were also given the…

To meet the requirements under the South Carolina Education Finance Act, the Education Improvement Act, and the School Laws of South Carolina, the State Department of Education is required to catalog all professional personnel. The primary purpose of this publication is to catalog all professional staff employed by a district to: (1) update…

The regulations of the New York City Board of Education which spell out an individual's right to have access to Board of Education records are given. The regulations reflect the Board of Education's attempt to meet the requirements of the New York State Freedom of Information Law of 1977. The regulations deal with the following topics: (1) the…

The author makes two initial assertions regarding the use and presentation of closed meetings. First, the real problem is not how to present them to the public but how to present them to the media. Second, closed sessions should never be used unless absolutely necessary. After presenting the reasons for the "sunshine" laws, the author…

Recent activities of the National Education Association, state teachers' associations, and various local teachers' associations indicate that states which do not now have them should adopt statutes regarding collective negotiations. This report analyzes the laws of 17 states which do have such statutes. The recent New York act, one of the newest…

This booklet presents revised minimum standards for Oregon public schools, as formally adopted by the Oregon State Board of Education in June 1976. Separate sections of the standards focus in turn on educational goals, accreditation, instructional planning, instructional programs, student services, staff and class load, media and materials,…

Examines the use of final-offer arbitration in public sector collective bargaining in five states. (PKP)

Questions the current push to improve education through legislation of higher standards in education. In Virginia the school boards association distributes a handbook of policies and resolutions to state legislators and asks that schools delinquent in standards be placed in receivership rather than impose educational reforms from above that are…

A study of school board presidents and superintendents in Washington, Missouri, and New Jersey reveals that strict financial disclosure laws tend to reduce the number of professionals on boards; however, board members with professional occupations differ from other board members on a number of measures. (MLF)

This review of the Brown Act and other open-meetings laws in California has been prepared to assist school-board members in understanding the intent as well as the letter of the law governing deliberations and actions taken by school-board members in board meetings. This volume, published in 1999 to reflect the most current--at that time--changes…

Rebuttal to a statement in a previous article that called local control a myth. Provides strong personal opinions about who is running the educational machine. A related article is EA 501 349. (EA)

Assistant executive director of the Pennsylvania School Boards Association argues that local school districts, not the state legislature, should develop policies to allow home-schooled students to participate in extracurricular activities. (PKP)

Describes several legal issues involving school board member use of electronic mail, especially violation of state open-meeting laws. Offers several tips to avoid legal pitfalls. Briefly describes Freedom on Information Act issues related to electronic communication. Provides sample policies on e-mail use. (PKP)