Amid cases rising to record levels in Pennsylvania, on Monday, November 23, 2020, Governor Wolf and Pennsylvania Health Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine issued orders to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. School districts in counties of substantial transmission rates must agree and sign a state certification that they are following the orders of Governor Wolf and Dr. Levine if they wish to continue to … [Read more...] about Governor’s Attestation Order Raises Questions for School Districts in “Substantial” Counties
School Law Bullet
PA Supreme Court Overturns Case of PennDOT Employee Who Made Threatening Facebook Post
In Rachel L. Carr v. PennDOT and Pa. State Civil Commission, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court recently overturned a Commonwealth Court’s decision that held a probationary PennDOT employee’s First Amendment rights to free speech were violated when PennDOT fired her for a post on Facebook about school bus drivers. In cases surrounding the termination or discipline of a public employee for their … [Read more...] about PA Supreme Court Overturns Case of PennDOT Employee Who Made Threatening Facebook Post
Public School Code Revision Requires Separation of Perpetrators and Victims of Sexual Assaults
Signed on November 3, 2020, Act 110 (24 P.S. § 1318.1) requires schools to separate perpetrators and victims of rape and sexual assault. Senator Martin, the law’s sponsor, stated the goal of the law is to ensure that victims of sexual assault do not have to uproot their own education and social networks to avoid contact with an abuser. In the past, schools have often taken steps to assign … [Read more...] about Public School Code Revision Requires Separation of Perpetrators and Victims of Sexual Assaults
School Board Member Email Addresses to be Public
Act 84 of 2020 requires all public school entities to publish email addresses for their Boards of Directors. Signed on October 30, 2020, the Act adds a section to the Public School Code. Within 180 days, school districts must establish e-mail addresses for each member of their boards of school directors. The email addresses must then be published on the school district website in a location and … [Read more...] about School Board Member Email Addresses to be Public
Is It Constitutional for a School to Discipline Student Athletes Who Take a Knee in Protest?
Kneeling during the national anthem in protest of racial injustice in America started in professional sports in 2016, when San Francisco 49ers former quarterback Colin Kaepernick began to kneel during the national anthem in protest of police treatment of black Americans. The protests were met with virulent criticism; calling his actions unpatriotic and disrespectful to the military and veterans. … [Read more...] about Is It Constitutional for a School to Discipline Student Athletes Who Take a Knee in Protest?
New Case Brings Into Question Whether “State Created Danger” Liability Affects Districts
As a general rule, school actors are immune from tort claims under theories of sovereign immunity. However, in a recent case coming out of the Third Circuit, there seems to be a slight shift towards textualism when applying the doctrine. How does this “state-created danger” theory of liability affect school districts? Generally speaking, school districts are immune from lawsuits for injuries to … [Read more...] about New Case Brings Into Question Whether “State Created Danger” Liability Affects Districts
