Published by MARE, May 2012 The right of parents to review their children’s educational records is an important right protected by Missouri and federal law. However, sometimes disputes arise regarding who is considered a “parent” that holds this right. This article...
Paul D. Coverdell Teacher Protection Act: Federal Statute Provides Protections to School Personnel – By: Natalie Hoernschemeyer
Published by MoASBO, March 2012 Congress, as part of the No Child Left Behind Act, enacted the Paul D. Coverdell Teacher Protection Act of 2001 (“the Act”). Specifically, the Act’s purpose is to “provide teachers, principals and other school professionals the tools...
Responding to Subpoenas – By: Wendy Kasten
Published by MoASBO, February 2012 More and more these days, school districts and/or their employees are being served with subpoenas. More often than not, responding and complying with these subpoenas can be confusing, time consuming, and burdensome. While in some...
The Forgotten Hearing – By: Scott Kimble
Published by MARE, February 2012 As the superintendent for your school district you have many responsibilities. One such responsibility, and perhaps the most important, is to ensure that you employ competent professionals to help run the day to day operations at the...
Fact or Fiction? Uncovering the Truth Behind Missouri Sunshine Law’s 72 Hour Rule – By: Betsey Helfrich
Published by MoASBO, December 2011 Under Missouri’s Sunshine Law, a vote by a Board of Education to hire, fire, discipline, or promote an employee must be made available to the public within seventy-two hours after the closed meeting in which such action occurred. ...
Getting Too Friendly: The Amy Hestir Act – By: Christi Coleman-Flaherty
Published by MARE, October 2011 With the passage of the Amy Hestir Act Student Protection Act (“the Act”), teachers across the state wondered whether they needed to delete their Facebook “friends” while administrators wondered, “Who’s going to monitor this?” On...
EEOC Issues Regulations Implementing the ADAAA – By: Christi Flaherty
Published by MoASBO, September 2011 In 2009 employers across the country heaved a sigh of defeat as the Americans With Disabilities Act Amendment Act (ADAAA) went into effect, undoing nearly a decade of employer-friendly court decisions. With the ADAAA, Congress...
Missouri Court of Appeals Upholds School District’s Decision to Terminate a Tenured Teacher for her Involvement in the Solicitation of Adoption of a Minor Child – By: Betsey Helfrich
Published by MoASBO, September 2011 In May 2011, the Missouri Court of Appeals, Southern District upheld the Carthage R-IX Board of Education’s decision to terminate the District’s Director of its Parents as Teachers Program for immoral conduct. In the case of Homa...
Ask the Attorney – The Amy Hestir Act – By: Tom Mickes
Published by MoASBO, July 2011 Q: Our principals are frequently asked to provide job references for former employees. With the passage of the Amy Hestir law, do we need to make any changes? A. The new law requires all Missouri public school districts to adopt a...
Don’t Get Caught In the Web: Drafting Effective Acceptable Use Policies – By: Christi Flaherty
Published by MARE, May 2011 Unless you live under a rock, you’re keenly aware of some of the problems that technology is quickly causing in our nation’s schools. With cell phones, iPads, laptops, netbooks and smartphones, technology has gone completely portable – and...