Facebook Phobia! the Misguided Proliferation of Restrictive Social Networking Policies for School Employees

Employers have dismissed and disciplined teachers and other school employees for posting controversial material and engaging in inappropriate employee-student relationships over social networking. In response, schools have enacted policies that greatly restrict educators’ social networking. This Article examines whether restrictive social networking policies are necessary. After analyzing the relevant state legislation, statewide guidance, district policies, and case law, this Article argues that restrictive policies are unwarranted and misguided. School districts have prevailed in the vast majority of the cases because they already have the legal authority to discipline employees under existing law. This Article also recommends how policymakers and school leaders could respond to school employees’ social networking more effectively

Facebook Phobia! the Misguided Proliferation of Restrictive Social Networking Policies for School Employees

Employers have dismissed and disciplined teachers and other school employees for posting controversial material and engaging in inappropriate employee-student relationships over social networking. In response, schools have enacted policies that greatly restrict educators’ social networking. This Article examines whether restrictive social networking policies are necessary. After analyzing the relevant state legislation, statewide guidance, district policies, and case law, this Article argues that restrictive policies are unwarranted and misguided. School districts have prevailed in the vast majority of the cases because they already have the legal authority to discipline employees under existing law. This Article also recommends how policymakers and school leaders could respond to school employees’ social networking more effectively

Reducing ABA Litigation Through Autism-Centric Charter Schools: Legally Viable Or Vulnerable?

Thesis (Ph.D.) - Indiana University, School of Education, 2010A recent study discovered that charter schools designed for children with autism or "autism-centric charter schools" comprise half of the total number of charter schools designed for children with disabilities. However, these unique charter schools may be vulnerable to legal challenges because they may be violating the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act's Least Restrictive Environment and Individual Education Program team decision-making requirements, as well as equal protection constitutional principles. At the same time, autism-centric charter schools may be one solution to reduce Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) litigation which is an increasing and divisive subset of autism-related lawsuits. Thus, this study examines whether federal and state law may need to evolve in order to meet the current policy needs of the increasing number of students with autism while also decreasing expensive litigation. First, the researcher provides an overview of the current literature examining the law and litigation relevant to autism-centric charter schools. Next, the study provides a summary of the findings gleaned from a uniquely comprehensive mixed-methods review of all the published, substantive ABA judicial decisions in order to analyze whether autism-centric charter schools are a legally viable way to reduce ABA lawsuits. The researcher offers a thorough analysis of the litigation trends and concludes that autism-centric charter schools - despite their legal vulnerabilities - may be a legally feasible solution to decrease ABA litigation. The study also provides recommendations about how to amend policy and practice to so that the educational needs of students with autism are better addressed

Examining Digital Inequities in Ohio’s K-12 Virtual Schools: Implications for Educational Leaders and Policymakers

One touted purpose of virtual schools is to expand learning opportunities for students, but in reality, virtual schooling may not be readily available to all students. This study analyzes inequitable access to Ohio’s virtual schooling by examining disaggregated student enrollment data. Similar to past research, we found racial minorities and students with limited English proficiency were under-represented in Ohio’s virtual schools in comparison to traditional schools. However, unlike past studies, we found economically-disadvantaged students and students with disabilities were over-represented in Ohio’s virtual schools. The findings are explained through policy and legal lenses, and potential legal issues are discussed

Can Virtual Schools Thrive in the Real World?

Despite the relatively large number of students enrolled in Ohio’s virtual schools, it is unclear how virtual schools compare to their traditional school counterparts on measures of student achievement. To provide some insight, we compared the school performance from 2007-2011 at Ohio’s virtual and traditional schools. The results suggest that Ohio’s virtual schools have grown rapidly, but have also experienced much lower levels of school performance than traditional schools. In light of these findings, we discuss factors that may be contributing to the large number of low-performing virtual schools in Ohio. Considering the lack of sufficient evidence that Ohio’s virtual schools are effective, we conclude that the relentless pursuit to expand virtual schools is problematic

Church-State Entanglement at Religiously Affiliated Charter Schools

Several urban archdioceses across the U.S. have closed their Catholic schools and subsequently permitted charter schools to open in their places. This Article describes the possible church-state entanglement issues that arise at schools like these. We reviewed eighty-five relevant cases and found only seven cases involving existing or proposed religiously affiliated charter schools. While generalizations are difficult to draw from this small sample, trends and inferences inform the emerging research. Five of the cases arose when schools were connected with a particular religious organization, such as a church. The lawsuits alleged both explicit and implicit religious entanglement. Our analysis also found that the charter schools affiliated with Christianity typically prevailed; whereas, those affiliated with non-Christian religions were less successful. Additionally, we identified eleven cases that did not involve specific schools, but involved allegations about funding allocated to school choice programs such as charter schools and voucher programs. In each of these cases, courts held that funding did not offend the Establishment Clause. Based on our analysis, we speculate why more cases against religiously affiliated charter schools did not exist, predict that more lawsuits are probable, and provide recommendations to prevent future litigation involving religiously affiliated charter schools

Church-State Entanglement at Religiously Affiliated Charter Schools

Several urban archdioceses across the U.S. have closed their Catholic schools and subsequently permitted charter schools to open in their places. This Article describes the possible church-state entanglement issues that arise at schools like these. We reviewed eighty-five relevant cases and found only seven cases involving existing or proposed religiously affiliated charter schools. While generalizations are difficult to draw from this small sample, trends and inferences inform the emerging research. Five of the cases arose when schools were connected with a particular religious organization, such as a church. The lawsuits alleged both explicit and implicit religious entanglement. Our analysis also found that the charter schools affiliated with Christianity typically prevailed; whereas, those affiliated with non-Christian religions were less successful. Additionally, we identified eleven cases that did not involve specific schools, but involved allegations about funding allocated to school choice programs such as charter schools and voucher programs. In each of these cases, courts held that funding did not offend the Establishment Clause. Based on our analysis, we speculate why more cases against religiously affiliated charter schools did not exist, predict that more lawsuits are probable, and provide recommendations to prevent future litigation involving religiously affiliated charter schools

Autism Charter Schools: Legally Vulnerable or Viable?

Perhaps due to the dramatic increase in children diagnosed with autism, a new type of charter school has emerged that is designed to specifically serve students with autism. If these autism charter schools illegally segregate students with autism from typically developing peers, they are vulnerable to legal challenges. In this Article, we identified many constitutional and statutory violations that could exist at autism charter schools; however, our review of the litigation found that autism charter schools have not been challenged for these legal violations. Instead, we found only one charter school case alleging segregation based on ability level and eight cases alleging racial segregation. Based on our findings, we speculate why more cases involving autism charter schools did not arise, predict that more lawsuits are probable, and provide recommendations to prevent future litigation alleging equal protection violations at these charter schools