This report discusses the 2023-24 Accomplishments and 2024-2025 Priorities and Ongoing Responsibilities for the departments of the New York State Education Department: (1) Office of Counsel; (2) Government Relations; (3) Finance; (4) Public Affairs; (5) P12 Instructional Support; (6) P12 Operational Support; (7) Higher Education; (8) Adult Career…

Since 1980, Michigan retirees have been afforded health care benefits for which they were required to pay 10 percent of the premium upon retirement--the remainder was paid for by the state. Recently, the Michigan Legislature reduced the financial obligation of the State for retiree health care benefits, placing it on the individual member. In…

This timely special report from ALA Editions provides a succinct but comprehensive overview of the "privatization" of public libraries. It provides a history of the trend of local and state governments privatizing public services and assets, and then examines the history of public library privatization right up to the California…

Recent efforts to change the teaching profession and teacher preparation include a number of innovations to use portfolio assessment, value added measures (VAM), accountability metrics and other corporate education reform ideas. These approaches may provoke considerable potential legal consequences. Traditional constitutional and civil rights…

Legal and risk management issues substantially impact the operations of colleges and universities, which face escalating compliance requirements in an increasingly litigious environment. Failing to assess legal liability issues and to constructively address them with risk management processes create vulnerability to claims and litigation,…

Intended for the professional workers with the deaf as well as for members of the legal profession, the text considers problems, including interpretation, that the deaf may have in coopeating with the legal system. Specific areas of legal concern covered include the following: contracts and relationships, injuries and accidents, criminal offenses,…

A summary is presented of some of the ways that judicial decisions and laws have an impact on higher education and on public education. The sources of legal obligation that impose duties and responsibilities on teachers are discussed. These are: common law, contractual obligations, state laws, and federal laws. The legal definitions are given of…

A brief historical review of the student disciplinary process in private colleges and universities, as well as a discussion of current practices and principles of student discipline, provide background for discussion of future possibilities. The analysis of current practices and principles includes a brief theoretical discussion about the legal…

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…

Five sections make up the contents of this newsletter. A section on the aftermath of the Yeshiva College decision looks at later court decisions, injunctions and "unprotected" unions, administration unfair practices, the possibility of an administration revoking recognition in mid-contract, and administration tactics in circumventing the…

The Vocational Education Act of 1963 allows public agencies to purchase the services of private vocational schools on a contractual basis where such schools can make a significant contribution to attaining the objectives of the state plan for vocational education and provide substantially equivalent training at a lower cost or can provide…

To determine the historical-legal development and current legal status of pupil transportation as practiced in U.S. public schools, State constitutional provisions, State legislation, and court decisions related to pupil transportation are analyzed. Legal constraints affecting the following areas of pupil transportation programs are reviewed: (1)…

This curriculum guide consists of materials for high school vocational agriculture instructors to use in teaching a course in the law and agriculture. Addressed in the individual units of the guide are the following topics: the purpose of the law in our society, the judicial system, contract law, torts, ownership of land, and water rights. Each…

More than ever, schools must develop procedures to increase cost effectiveness and control in the purchasing, storage, delivery of, and accounting for educational equipment and supplies. This document is intended to provide beginning purchasing officials, as well as other administrators and staff, with a basic understanding of the purchasing…

This paper reviews the basic legal relationships and duties that affect higher education facility management with special emphasis on the relationships with students, faculty, and staff in both public and private colleges and universities. An introduction briefly reviews the development of higher education law beginning with a landmark case in…