{"feed":{"date":"2014\/11","num_posts":8,"item":[{"id":"1135","title":"Ed Law Biefly: Students Allege Discriminatory Discipline, Court Lands on School District's Side","byline":"","excerpt":"
RCEd Commentary<\/em><\/p>\n Background:<\/strong> Several Louisiana students sued the Morehouse Parish school district claiming various discriminatory discipline practices and due process violations. The African American plaintiffs alleged that when it came to suspensions and expulsions, they were treated differently than white students. The complaining students highlighted several incidents to prove their case. For example, they questioned why a first grader was suspended two days for arson without evidence, a hearing, or witnesses. They pointed to the fact that on multiple occasions two white students who misbehaved did not receive the same discipline imposed on African American students.<\/p>\n Issue:<\/strong> Did school officials violate the students’ rights under the due process and equal protections clauses of the U.S. Constitution’s Fourteenth Amendment?<\/p>\n Legal Principles:<\/strong> Regarding the 14th Amendment due process claim, the plaintiffs are required in court to demonstrate that the district violated fundamental fairness in conducting disciplinary procedures. An example: if the students were not allowed to present a witness at a hearing. When establishing a case for discrimination (equal protection clause), the students needed to prove that African American students received more severe punishment than white students for essentially the same offenses.<\/p>\n","author":"","link":"http:\/\/www.realcleareducation.com\/articles\/2014\/11\/26\/ed_law_biefly_students_allege_discriminatory_discipline_court_lands_on_school_districts_side_1135.html","image":"5","postDate":"November 25, 2014"},{"id":"1134","title":"Time for Policy Leaders to Make the Tough Decisions in Education","byline":"","excerpt":" Former District of Columbia Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee, Thursday, Sept. 23, 2010. (AP file photo).<\/em><\/sub><\/p>\n RCEd Commentary<\/em><\/p>\n A decade ago, the debate about Washington D.C.’s public schools turned on school vouchers. How many students in the city’s beleaguered schools should get a lifeline out and how many national Democrats would break ranks and support vouchers? As a new report released last Friday makes clear<\/a>, the questions now are how fast can the city’s booming public charter school sector grow and how quickly -- not if -- the city’s traditional public schools can improve as well.<\/p>\n How D.C. went from punchline to touchstone in a relatively short period of time is an important question. Education advocates are always ready to hop planes to Finland and Singapore, but America’s capital city offers some lessons closer to home.<\/p>\n There are two reasons behind Washington’s unexpected improvement (unexpected because for years, there was a consensus that D.C., considering the generous per-student spending, was probably the worst-run school district in the country). And they are reasons other cities might want to study because D.C. is not an educational snowflake. What’s working there is portable.<\/p>\n","author":"","link":"http:\/\/www.realcleareducation.com\/articles\/2014\/11\/20\/education_policy_decisions_1134.html","image":"http:\/\/images.realclear.com\/270739_5_.jpg","postDate":"November 19, 2014"},{"id":"1133","title":"Ed Law Briefly: Running For School Board As a Convicted Felon Will Not Play in Peoria, Federal Court Says","byline":"","excerpt":" RCEd Commentary<\/em><\/p>\n Background:<\/strong> General Parker was convicted of felony theft more than 30 years ago. Still, he wanted to run for the local school board in Peoria, Illinois. The state’s attorney in Peoria sued in state court to prevent Parker’s candidacy, citing his prior crime. An Illinois state law prohibits individuals convicted of certain crimes from running for office. Therefore, General Parker’s name was removed from the ballot. He reacted by filing a federal lawsuit alleging that his constitutional rights were being violated, including due process, equal protection (since he did not have a chance to defend himself) and free speech. He also claimed he was being targeted as an African American male.<\/p>\n Issue:<\/strong> Does a person have a constitutional right to seek election as a school board member, or can state law set limits based on crimes in the distant past?<\/p>\n Legal Principles:<\/strong> The United States Constitution’s Equal Protection Clause counsels that all citizens should be treated the same under the law. Here, Parker asserts that he is not only being dealt with unfairly, but also being treated differently from others due to his race. Specifically, he contended that the Illinois law created an outsized burden (disparate impact) on African American men, given the statistical rates of imprisonment. Under the First Amendment, Parker argued broadly that he has a right to speak freely, and that his right was being infringed by the prohibition.<\/p>\n","author":"","link":"http:\/\/www.realcleareducation.com\/articles\/2014\/11\/18\/ed_law_briefly_running_for_school_board_as_a_convicted_felon_will_not_play_in_peoria_federal_court_says_1133.html","image":"5","postDate":"November 17, 2014"},{"id":"1132","title":"Creating a Level Playing Field in Education","byline":"","excerpt":" RCEd Commentary<\/em><\/p>\n Are charter schools a thinly disguised attempt to privatize our public education system?<\/a> Is the main function of teacher unions to protect “bad teachers<\/a>?” Such are the Molotov cocktails often hurled at each other by charters and unions. But what if we had a mind shift and could see important areas where our hopes and ideas could converge? A group of charter and union leaders did shift, doing what has long been accepted as impossible by starting a real conversation through recent seminars<\/a> run by the Pahara Institute in collaboration with the Aspen Institute.<\/p>\n Mutual understanding replaced acrimonious insult, as we engaged in respectful discussion based on evidence rather than on myths in order to alleviate the regrettable accusations in a regrettable fight. The 50 million public school students and their families are the losers when we battle, when all educators should be collectively working on behalf of all children.<\/p>\n All of us who work as teachers, union or not, entered the profession with hearts and minds fully committed to teaching children. We all seek to ensure that the next generation of citizens is ready to take on life’s challenges. While there are disagreements about the role of testing, standardized curricula, and teacher evaluations, the discussion should begin by recognizing our shared commitment to educate all of our nation’s children.<\/p>\n","author":"","link":"http:\/\/www.realcleareducation.com\/articles\/2014\/11\/13\/education_charter_traditional_schools_1132.html","image":"http:\/\/images.realclear.com\/269490_5_.jpg","postDate":"November 12, 2014"},{"id":"1131","title":"Ed Law Briefly: School Officials Had No Actual Knowledge of Harassment","byline":"","excerpt":" RCEd Commentary<\/em><\/p>\n Background:<\/strong> A high school freshman basketball player accused four senior teammates of physically harassing him in the locker room and again on a bus trip on the way home from a game. The freshman claimed that in the locker room the upperclassmen grabbed his genitals, flashed their own genitals, dragged him into the showers while pulling down his pants, and taunted him with sexual innuendos almost every day. On the bus ride home from the game, three of the four students sat on his face and tried to pull down his pants. One of the seniors tried to stick a finger through his pants.<\/p>\n The freshman said nobody helped him, despite the fact that he screamed out. At the time, all of the coaches were seated toward the front of the bus and the bus was very loud. After the bus incident, a mother of another student called the school nurse to report the abuse. This report was given to administrators who then contacted the police department.<\/p>\n All four of the students were eventually suspended and expelled. The victim’s father withdrew his son from the school district because three of the four seniors were allowed to re-enroll. A lawsuit against the school system followed, alleging that the school let the sexual harassment to occur. The federal district court (the trial court that originally heard the controversy) granted the district’s request to dismiss the case, setting up this appeal.<\/p>\n","author":"","link":"http:\/\/www.realcleareducation.com\/articles\/2014\/11\/12\/ed_law_briefly_school_officials_had_no_actual_knowledge_of_harassment_1131.html","image":"5","postDate":"November 11, 2014"},{"id":"1130","title":"An Education Mission for Our Veterans","byline":"","excerpt":" RCEd Commentary<\/em><\/p>\n When Adam Beatty sat down to write his college application essay, he faced a different set of anxieties than most prospective students. For one thing, Adam was writing from a desert in Iraq, where he was serving his second tour of duty as a Marine infantryman. For another, he was about to go on patrol, and had heard that a suicide bomber was looking to target U.S. troops.<\/p>\n Adam successfully completed his patrol, his tour -- and his essay -- before enrolling at Northeastern University, the institution I lead. But, he says, although many of his fellow veterans aspire to higher education, they often lack the support they need to navigate the college process, make it through, and make the most of the talents they bring by virtue of their military experience.<\/p>\n So as we reflect on this Veterans Day on how best to honor our women and men who’ve worn the uniform, one thing we can do is take action to make America’s colleges work better for them.<\/p>\n","author":"","link":"http:\/\/www.realcleareducation.com\/articles\/2014\/11\/11\/education_veterans_mission_1130.html","image":"http:\/\/images.realclear.com\/269306_5_.jpg","postDate":"November 10, 2014"},{"id":"1129","title":"Ed Law Briefly: Georgia Appeals Court Says Parents Are Potentially Liable For Son’s Social Networking Activities","byline":"","excerpt":" RCEd Commentary<\/em><\/p>\n Background:<\/strong> Dusty Athearn, a 7th grader, and one of his female classmates at Palmer Middle School in Cobb County, Georgia, created a phony Internet Facebook account targeting one of their classmates. Dusty and the female classmate created the fake Facebook page impersonating Alexandria Boston. The duo posted derogatory and false statements making it appear that Alexandria was gay, racist, and mentally ill. The contents of the page were e-mailed to classmates, friends, and teachers with a “friend request.”<\/p>\n When Alexandria’s parents complained, the school principal determined that Dusty and his friend were responsible for creating the sham Facebook profile. Both students admitted their involvement and were given two days of in-school suspension. The principal sent Dusty’s parents a notice of the disciplinary actions.<\/p>\n Alexandria’s parents sued Dusty Athearn’s parents for libel and negligence. The site remained active for nearly a year until company officials at Facebook deactivated it. The Bostons alleged that Dusty’s parents made no efforts to view the fake Facebook page or demand that Dusty take it down. The Boston family said Dusty’s parents were told by the principal early on about the derogatory contents and still did not act.<\/p>\n","author":"","link":"http:\/\/www.realcleareducation.com\/articles\/2014\/11\/05\/ed_law_briefly_georgia_appeals_court_social_networking_activities_1129.html","image":"5","postDate":"November 4, 2014"},{"id":"1128","title":"The Teachers Unions First Lost The Media; Have They Now Lost Everyone Else, Too?","byline":"","excerpt":" Superintendent of Pubic Education Tom Torlakson (left) who is seeking reelection, is being challenged in the November election by Marshall Tuck (right), a former charter schools executive. (AP Photos)<\/sub><\/p>\n RCEd Commentary<\/em><\/p>\n Five years ago, we published an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal<\/a> laying out the reasons why the teachers unions were “losing” the national press. At the time, it was controversial; we both got angry phone calls from the usual cadre of union leaders dressing us down.<\/p>\n Now, nobody seems surprised that “reformer” Marshall Tuck<\/a>, running for California schools superintendent in the country's most high-profile education election contest, has pulled in every single major newspaper endorsement in California – despite the fact that California and national teachers unions are throwing everything they have against Tuck<\/a>.<\/p>\n The contrast could not be starker. Every week it’s another Tuck endorsement by celebrities, editorial boards, and parent groups. California’s largest teachers union responded to one humorous and celebrity studded Tuck video<\/a> (that went viral, of course) by posting a video monologue<\/a> featuring California Teachers Association’s chief supporting the union favorite: incumbent T<\/a>om Torlakson<\/a>. Losing the media is just a proxy for losing pretty much everyone without a vested interest.<\/p>\n","author":"","link":"http:\/\/www.realcleareducation.com\/articles\/2014\/11\/03\/teachers_unions_media_california_schools_superintendent_1128.html","image":"http:\/\/images.realclear.com\/267869_5_.jpg","postDate":"November 2, 2014"}]}}