Fuhr v. School District of Hazel Park

Topic: Did school district engage in gender-based discrimination in not hiring a woman as a boys' varsity basketball coach?

Ruling: Yes, there was evidence to show that they had discriminated against her due to her gender.  Appeals court agreed with district court on the damages, but struck down amount for future damages

Federal Court System

District Court (Court of Trial)

-party that loses can appeal

->Court of Appeals (CA is in the 9th district)

-party that loses can appeal

->US Supreme Court

federal courts only review federal issues (constitution)

State Court System

Superior Court (case is heard)

Court of Appeals

CA Supreme Court

state courts review state issues

Supremacy Clause

Found in Article 6, Section 2 of the Constitution

States that the Constitution is the supreme law of the land

General Welfare Clause

Found in Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution

States that part of the federal obligation is to provide for the general welfare of the people.  This is the clause that the federal government uses when it gets involved with Education.  Eduction itself, is NOT mentioned in the Constitution, so falls under State governance.

1st Amendment

Freedom of Speech, Freedom of expression, Freedom of Religion, Freedom of the Press, Freedom of Assembly, and Freedom of Petition

4th Amendment

Freedom from unreasonable search and seizures

5th Amendment

Due Process

8th Amendment

Cruel and Unusual Punishment

10th Amendment

Powers not delegated by the Constitution nor prohibited by it, are reserved for the States

14th Amendment

Due Process and Equal Protection Clause

Types of Primary Sources (Laws)

Statutes - come from the Legislature

(Congress/ CA Ed Code, etc.)

Case Law - comes from US Supreme Court/

State judicial system

Regulations - come from the executive branch

Private Schools in CA

Fall under either the Private Schools' exemption, or the Private Tutoring exemption.

must keep appropriate records regarding attendance, hours in the day, school days in the year, faculty qualifications, etc.

Religion Clause in the 1st Amendment

"Establishment Clause" - government can't establish or control a national religion

"Free Exercise Clause" - government can't prohibit people from going to or participating in the religion of their choice

Equal Access Act of 1984

It's unlawful for a public secondary school that receives federal financial assistance and created a limited open forum to deny recognition of student-initiated groups

Types of Forums

Public/Open: gov't properties open to speech, regulations can only be regarding time, place, and manner

Limited: gov't properties that could be closed to speech but chose to be open, as long as they are open, must follow Open Forum rules

Non-Public: gov't can and does close to speech, can regulate speech if there is a legit govt interest

Private Property: no right to use for speech purposes

Pledge of Allegiance in CA schools

CA Educ Code Section 52720

students are not required to participate

schools are supposed to do "patriotic exercises" daily

the pledge satisfies that requirement

Contratual Law v Law of Due Process

Contract Law, not the law of Due Process generally governs issues at a private school, including suspensions and expulsions

Family Education Rights and Privacy Act

"FERPA"

1974

gives parents and students rights regarding confidential student information (see CA Ed code Sec 49061)

-requires parental consent for sharing information

-pupil's cum file is not open to the public -> only to those whith a legitimate educational interest

Corporal punishment in CA

Banned in 1986

Federal law doesn't ban corporal punishment, allows it based on common law guidelines

Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act

(IDEIA)

2004

is the current law regarding students with disabilities in schools

-notes eligibility categories

-defines 2 prong IEP process

-Building Blocks

-Identification Process

IDEIA Eligibility Categories

1.Mental Retardation     2.Hearing Impairments (incl deaf)

3.Speech or language Impairments     4.Autism

5.Visual Impairments     6.Emotional Disturbance

7.Ortopedic Impairments     8.Traumatic Brain Injury

9.Other Health Impairments    10.Deaf-Blindness

11.Specific Learning Disability   12.Multiple Disabilities

2 Prong IEP Process

1 - IEP team must determine if the child has a disability

2 - Then they determine if they are eligible because of that disability

IDEIA Building Blocks

1. Child Find/Zero Reject

2. Nondiscriminatory Assessment

3. Individualized Education Program (IEP)

4. Least Restrictive Environment (LRE)

5. Procedural Due Process

6. Parent Participation

7. Right to Educational Achievement

IDEIA Identification Process

1.Pre-referral: intervention by gen. ed. teacher/SST

2.Referral: written request by parent/teacher

3.Evaluation: comprehensive, nondiscriminatory, multidisciplinary

4.Determine Eligibility

5.IEP Process: current levels of performance; develop goals and objectives; determine needed services;

other services(related/DIS); placement

Progressive Discipline for Teachers

1. Oral Warning/Conference (noted informally, not in file)

2. Written warning (delivered personally, not in file)

3. Letter of Reprimand (put in file, attach employee's response)

4. Unsatisfactory Evaluation (follow requirements in the Ed. code and collective bargaining agreements)

5. Suspension with pay (time for investigation)

6. Dismissal

Grounds for Dismissal of Cerificated Employees

1.immoral/unprofessional conduct

2.commision of acts of criminal syndication (mob crimes)

3.dishonesty

4.unsatisfactory performance (in competency)

5.evident unfitness for service

6.physical/mental condition unfitting them to work w/kids

7.persistent refusal to obey school/state laws

8.conviction of a felony/crime involving moral turpitude

9.advocacy/inculcation into communism

10.known membership in the communist party

11.alcoholism or other drug abuse

Employment Discrimination Rules

-Equal Protection Clause of the 14th amendment prohibits unreasonable classifications as pertains to race, gender, age, etc.

-Courts often employ several levels of scrutiny in determining whether the use of a classification in a statute violates the Equal Protection Clause

Levels of Scrutiny

Used in Discrimination Cases

Rational Basis: for age, disability, wealth, education, and all other issues; challenger has burden of proof

Intermediate Scrutiny: for gender, non-marital children, or children not born in U.S.; gov't has burden of proof

Strict Scrutiny: for race and fundamental rights; gov't has burden of proof

Rodda Act

-aka the Educational Employment Relations Act (EERA)

-enacted July 1, 1976

-established PERB

-requires employees who choose not to be a dues-paying union member to pay an agency fee

(see Lehnert v. Ferris Faculty Assoc.)

PERB

Public Employment Relations Board

unfair labor practice charges are brought before PERB

In CA, any impasse in teacher collective bargaining negotiations requires mediation

"De Jure" Segregation

"De Jure" means "by law"

so "De Jure" segregation is segregation that is not only allowed but required by it

ex. Plessy v. Ferguson -> Separate but Equal doctrine;

Jim Crow Laws

"De Facto" Segregation

"De Facto" means "as a matter of fact or in practice"

so "de facto" segregation is not caused by law, but by local custom, housing patterns, lack of white students in an area, etc.

was NOT addressed by Brown v. Board of Education

The Brown Act (in CA)

CA law that governs open meetings for local legislative bodies, including school board meetings

Williams v. State of California

-ACLU argued that schools with high percent of minority students weren't getting same quality of education

-State argued that the law didn't specify the standards

->came to an agreement: school districts req'd to hold annual hearing on sufficiency; and certify that each pupil has been provided with standards-aligned textbooks in reading/lang. arts, math, science, and history-social studies

School Choice

gives parents options in determining programs that better meet their children's needs

Types: public school open enrollment; specialized schools (ex. magnets, continuation); voucher plans; charter schools; privatized schools/education service providers; and tuition tax credits

Intentional Torts

Assault - willful attempt or threat to inflict injury

Battery - intentional wrongful physical contact with another person

Defamation - intentional FALSE communication, either PUBLISHED or PUBLICLY SPOKEN to a 3RD PARTY that HARMS reputation

Types of Compensation

Compensatory Damages - compensates an injured party for actual losses

Punitive Damages - on top of compensatory, to punish the defendant for negligence and prevent future bad behavior

Nominal Damages - awards court decision but no other award

Fair Use Guidelines of Copyright Law

can use copyrighted material if:

1.single copy, within classroom setting

2.multiple copies restricted, show brevity (small amount of material), show spontaneity (just decided to use the material), cumulative effect ->copied for 1 course/term

3.Prohibited Use: copies may not be substituted for buying books, same teacher can't copy for subsequent term, students can't be charged more than copying costs