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I. Wisconsin School District Settles Student Sexual Harassment Suit.
A former student who was sexually assaulted and allegedly harassed by other students when she reported the assault to school officials, has agreed to drop her sexual harassment suit against Oshkosh Area School District in return for $30,000. The suit alleged School District officials showed “deliberate indifference” toward verbal and physical harassment the student received from other students after she filed the sexual assault complaint against a male high school senior. The senior was sentenced to a year in jail on one count of repeated sexual assault of the student, who at the time was 15 years old. The student charged that school officials denied her the opportunity to speak directly with the Building Principal and failed to undertake an investigation of her harassment claims. She claimed to have made more than two dozen complaints to teachers, counselors and administrators, including the superintendent, before transferring to a different school district.
The School District denied having barred the student from speaking with school administrators. It also contended that it “promptly and reasonably” investigated the harassment complaints, leading to the discipline of students involved.
The terms of the settlement reached on March 23 include a $20,000 payment by the district to the student for emotional distress and another $10,000 payment for attorney fees.
II. Indiana Enacts Teacher Merit Pay Law.
The Indiana Governor has signed into law a provision that requires school districts to evaluate and pay teachers based mostly on student performance on standardized tests. Teachers with high performing students would earn more money, while less successful teachers would be denied salary increases and scheduled pay raises. The law de-emphasizes the previous teacher salary increase bases that relied on years of service or additional degrees attained. The Governor believes the new law is more fair, especially for high-quality younger teachers who currently receive lower salaries and face a greater possibility of layoff than teachers that have served for many years but are less effective in the classroom.
III. Teachers’ Union Mounts Challenges To Idaho School Reform Law.
The Idaho Education Association (IEA) has filed suit against the Idaho Governor and state Superintendent challenging the constitutionality of a new law that phases out teacher tenure and wipes out collective bargaining over salaries and benefits. A Idaho Department of Education spokesperson said, “[I]t is not surprising that union leaders are trying to overturn the one bill that phases out tenure, eliminates retirement bonuses, and returns decision-making back to locally elected school boards.” The law currently being challenged is just one of three separate school reform legislative initiatives spearheaded by the Governor. In addition to eliminating tenure and limiting collective bargaining, the Superintendent’s reform package shifted money from salaries to fund new classroom technology and a merit pay plan.
IEA claims the law violates the state constitutional requirement that legislation deal with a single subject and a common, unifying purpose. IEA’s chief lawyer charges that the law is illegal because its repeal of an early retirement incentive program conflicts with existing and vested contracts negotiated by teachers. In addition to mounting a legal challenge to the governor’s education reforms, IEA is supporting efforts to give voters a chance to repeal all the education reform laws.
IV. School District Adopts Policy Banning All Extra-Curricular Clubs.
The Clovis School Board, claiming coincidence, adopted a new policy prohibiting any extra-curricular club from meeting during school hours or using school resources to meet and gather after a gay-straight alliance group applied to become a club. The American Civil Liberties Union, however, expressed concern about the timing of the decision: “This sort of tactic has been used in the past by school districts to discourage gay-straight clubs from forming,” said a communications specialist. “A lot of alarm bells went off when we saw this.”
Clovis Superintendent provided assurance that the gay-straight alliance’s application did not trigger the policy review.
Please feel free to contact Jeff Jones, the author of this legal update, or any of the attorneys on the School Districts and Educational Institutions Focus Team of Ruder Ware: Dean Dietrich, Ron Rutlin, Mary Ellen Schill, Chris Toner, or Bryan Symes if you have questions in regard to this update
© 2011 Ruder Ware, L.L.S.C. Accurate reproduction with acknowledgment granted. All rights reserved.
This document provides information of a general nature regarding legislative or other legal developments. None of the information contained herein is intended as legal advice or opinion relative to specific matters, facts, situations, or issues, and additional facts and information or future developments may affect the subjects addressed. |
