K-12 Legal Insights

Harvard Race-Conscious Admissions Process is Lawful

By John W. Borkowski, Aleks Ostojic Rushing & Mary Kate Mullen

October 18, 2019

A few weeks ago, the United States District Court of Massachusetts issued its long-awaited decision in the lawsuit brought by Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. (“SFFA”) against Harvard University (“Harvard”). In a 130-page decision, the court found in favor of Harvard, holding that Harvard’s race-conscious admissions process was lawful.…

K-12 Legal Insights

Trump Administration Releases School Safety District Guide

By Theresa Mullineaux & Demetrius Peterson

October 15, 2019

On September 25, 2019, the U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services released The Role of Districts in Developing High-Quality School Emergency Operations Plans, which is a guide to emergency operations plans (“EOPs”). The guide addresses a variety of topics, including the roles and responsibilities of schools, school districts, and community partners regarding school safety, along with prevention…

K-12 Legal Insights

Affirmative Action Again Under Fire in Admissions

By Aleks Ostojic Rushing & Mary Kate Mullen

September 18, 2019

On May 16, 2019, Students for Fair Admissions (SFFA), an anti-affirmative action group, filed yet another lawsuit against the University of Texas at Austin (the University). This is the third such suit SFFA has filed against the University. The new lawsuit alleges the University violates the Equal Rights Amendment of the Texas Constitution by considering race in the admissions process. A similar lawsuit between the parties was dismissed in April due to a lack of…

K-12 Legal Insights

They’re Back! Addressing Student Health and Safety

By Aleks Ostojic Rushing & Theresa Mullineaux

August 22, 2019

With the 2019-2020 school year beginning, school personnel must be mindful of changes in the law and best practices related to student health and safety. Interested in learning more? Join us next Tuesday, August 27, 2019, at 12:00pm central time for a complimentary continuing legal education webinar. Register here. Vaccinations One of the issues we will discuss is vaccinations. Every state has law mandating vaccines for students, but every state also has at least one exemption to…

K-12 Legal Insights

A Look Ahead: Supreme Court to Review Prohibition of Discrimination Based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity

By Joseph Diedrich

July 25, 2019

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to decide whether a federal law prohibiting employers from discriminating because of sex also protects LGBTQ individuals. Background of Pending Cases Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits employers from discriminating against an individual “because of” that individual’s “race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.” In two consolidated cases—Bostock v. Clayton County and Zarda v. Altitude Express—the Court will decide whether Title VII’s ban…

K-12 Legal Insights

New Developments in Supreme Court 2020 Census Case

By Theresa Mullineaux & Aleks Ostojic Rushing

June 4, 2019

On April 23, 2019, the Supreme Court of the United States heard oral argument in Department of Commerce v. New York, No. 18-966. The argument focused on three main issues: (1) whether the District Court erred in enjoining the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Commerce from reinstating a question about citizenship to the 2020 decennial census on the ground that the secretary’s decision violated the Administrative Procedure Act, 5 U.S.C. 701 et seq; (2)…

K-12 Legal Insights

New Alabama School Program Could Reduce Opioid-Related Deaths

By Theresa Mullineaux & Aleks Ostojic Rushing

April 23, 2019

girl-finds-prescription-drugs-in-bathroom-picture-id696830780

The United States Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) has made opioid overdoses a priority. HHS initiatives include educating doctors about being more careful in prescribing painkillers. The Alabama Department of Education and Department of Public Health took that one step further and recently announced a new educational program designed to reduce deaths caused by opioids. The new, statewide program will provide Alabama high schools with access to Naloxone, the opioid-overdose reversal drug. This…

K-12 Legal Insights

New FERPA Guidance from the U.S. Department of Education Relating to School Safety

By Theresa Mullineaux

March 13, 2019

In February 2019, the U.S. Department of Education released new Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (“FERPA”) guidance about schools’ and school districts’ responsibilities under FERPA relating to disclosures of student information to school resource officers, law enforcement units, and other stakeholders to explain and clarify how FERPA protects student privacy while ensuring the health and safety of all in the school community. See: https://studentprivacy.ed.gov/sites/default/files/resource_document/file/SRO_FAQs_2-5-19_0.pdf. FERPA permits schools and districts to disclose education records…

K-12 Legal Insights

Supreme Court of Missouri Opines on Sex Discrimination under the Missouri Human Rights Act

By Theresa Mullineaux

March 4, 2019

On February 26, 2019, the Supreme Court of Missouri issued an en banc opinion in R.M.A. v. Blue Springs Sch. Dist., No. SC96683. The court held that a transgender student who was barred from using the boys’ locker room had stated a valid cause of action for sex discrimination in violation of the Missouri Human Rights Act (“MHRA”). R.M.A., a female to male transgender student, attended school in Blue Springs R-IV School District (“BSSD”). R.M.A.…

K-12 Legal Insights

An Overview of the Key Findings from the Federal School Safety Commission Report

By Paige C. Duggins-Clay

February 22, 2019

Following the school shootings at Marjory Stoneman and Santa Fe High Schools, President Trump established an executive Commission on School Safety. The Commission’s members were Betsy DeVos, U.S. Secretary of Education, Kirstjen Nelson, Secretary of Homeland Security, Alex Azar II, Secretary of Health and Human Services, and Matthew Whitaker, Acting Attorney General. The Commission was charged with producing policy recommendations in an effort to help prevent future tragedies. After conducting field visits, listening sessions, and…

K-12 Legal Insights

Blog Authors

Harvard Race-Conscious Admissions Process is Lawful

Trump Administration Releases School Safety District Guide

Affirmative Action Again Under Fire in Admissions

They’re Back! Addressing Student Health and Safety

A Look Ahead: Supreme Court to Review Prohibition of Discrimination Based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity

New Developments in Supreme Court 2020 Census Case

New Alabama School Program Could Reduce Opioid-Related Deaths

New FERPA Guidance from the U.S. Department of Education Relating to School Safety

Supreme Court of Missouri Opines on Sex Discrimination under the Missouri Human Rights Act

An Overview of the Key Findings from the Federal School Safety Commission Report

Stay Connected

Company

Support

New to the Network

Blog Authors

Latest from K-12 Legal Insights