Higher education administrators planning for retrenchment should follow these guidelines: document the financial circumstances justifying retrenchment; devise a long-range financial plan; identify how and by whom retrenchment decisions are made; and know both the interests of and procedural protections available to faculty, staff, and other…

Questions assumptions by Schoenfeld and Zirkel in a study reviewing gender discrimination cases against institutions of higher education. Critiques the methodology used in that study, cautions about the overall utility of "outcomes analysis," and reports more promising routes of empirical legal research. (15 references) (MLF)

In the spring 1995 "JLE" issue, Bruce Meredith and Julie Underwood posited that regular and special education have developed fundamentally different paradigms that hinder cooperation. James Tucker and Jeffrey Champagne responded that regular/special education's conflict over resources is decreasing. Thomas Kuhn would argue that…

New approaches need to be developed to constructively join law and education without resort to constant litigation and judicial intervention. The case for "preventive law" in public education is presented and a four-step implementation procedure recommended. (Author/MLF)

Explores the circumstances under which public employers may take action on employment-related matters without bargaining agent assent in those instances in which a contract has terminated or negotiations have reached an impasse. (Author/IRT)

Emphasizes four areas of employer activity--lockouts, blacklists, damage suits, and a miscellaneous group of employer strike sanctions. (Author/IRT)

Management attorneys, from different law firms, outline the potential constitutional pitfalls involved in drug testing public employees, and then set forth the factors that most likely will support the validity of testing programs and that are consistent both with employee dignity and the Constitution. (MLF)

Examines whether the college catalog and language therein constitute a legally binding contract between college and student. Categorizes catalog litigation by cases involving dismissal, granting of degrees, tuition, admission, and course offerings. The courts appear to agree that the student-college relationship is contractual in nature and that…

It should be deemed an unfair practice under applicable state and local laws for an employer to make a unilateral change in the terms and conditions of employment prior to the exhaustion of post-impasse procedures, whether or not the change is consistent with employer bargaining proposals. (Author/IRT)

Although the law pertaining to tenure denial based on scholarship and teaching is well settled, legal issues governing faculty dismissal due to declining college enrollments are unsettled. This paper reviews tenure cases and explores tenure denial based on institutional need, anticipating development of a separate body of law. (72 references) (MLH)

Although the Americans with Disabilities Act forbids discrimination on the basis of learning disability, institutions of higher learning must establish academic achievement standards. A recent case ("Guckenberger v. Boston University") involving course substitutions for a foreign-language requirement illustrates this point. Boston…

Dissatisfaction with the previous special-education appeals system led Britain to adopt the 1993 Education Act, which created the Special Needs Tribunal (SENT). The tribunal aims to provide consistency of treatment within and among local education authorities and to avoid the confusion caused by varying and inconsistent LEA policies and decisions.…

Ohio's experiences in the areas of "voluntary" certification, mandatory scope of bargaining, remedies for refusals to bargain, grandfathering, mixed-motive discharges, and clear-and-present-danger strikes have been troublesome. However, the state's experience with agency shop agreements and deferral to arbitration has been sound. (MLF)

Since public schools serve children of diverse religious backgrounds, an upstate New York district tried to construct a policy where all students felt comfortable. Proponents had an uphill struggle, since many constituents found nonreligious Christmas assemblies and displays acceptable. This article highlights Williamsville's Free Exercise and…

The Federal Government has pushed employers to establish programs to test applicants and employees for drug use. The accompanying articles discuss legal barriers to drug testing and test administration and practical problems that limit the feasibility of drug testing and carry with them potential legal problems. (MLF)