Welcome to the March 2010 issue of our monthly newsletter dedicated to keeping you current on Education Law and related issues. |
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FEATURED CLIENT TESTIMONIAL
"I am writing to advise that we recently settled the case and to thank you for your assistance in achieving this result. Excellent job."
David W. Hume, Esq.
Law Offices of David W. Hume
Phoenix, Arizona |
| Guillory v. Thomas, (C.A.5 (Tex.)) |
March 1, 2010: Civil Rights - Material fact issues barred summary judgment for school district superintendent based on qualified immunity in 1983 action. Material issues of fact existed as to whether a school district superintendent had knowledge of a pattern of inappropriate sexual conduct by a high school band director pointing plainly toward a conclusion that the band director was sexually abusing students, whether the superintendent was deliberately indifferent to such a pattern of conduct, and whether such deliberate indifference caused the band director's violation of a student's due process right to bodily integrity through his sexual abuse of the student. These factual issues precluded summary judgment for the superintendent on the student's 1983 claim that the superintendent violated her due process right based on the defense of qualified immunity.
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| Mardis v. Hannibal Public School Dist., (E.D.Mo.) |
February 28, 2010: Civil Rights - Instant messages that a high school student sent to a classmate from a home computer constituted student speech. Instant messages that a high school student sent to a classmate from a home computer during non-school hours, in which the student told his classmate that he was going to get a gun and kill certain classmates, constituted student speech, for purposes of rule that students' First Amendment free speech rights had to be applied in light of the special characteristics of the school environment. The student intentionally communicated his alleged threats to a third party outside his home, and the classmate who received the messages immediately forwarded the student's statements to school administrators within mere hours, and the student's communications disrupted the school community virtually instantaneously.
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| Giulini v. Union Free School Dist. No. 1, (N.Y.A.D. 2 Dept.) |
February 25, 2010: Torts - A school district did not create, or have notice of, an alleged defect purportedly causing a child's trip and fall. A school district did not create, or have notice of, an alleged defect purportedly causing the trip and fall of a four-year-old child as she ran from one area of a playground to another, thus precluding imposition of liability on the district in a personal injury suit. The district had received no prior complaints regarding an alleged hole under mulch wood chips in the playground, and the district's use and maintenance of the mulch was in accordance with good and accepted industry practice.
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| Hofmann v. Coxsackie-Athens Cent. School Dist., (N.Y.A.D. 3 Dept.) |
February 24, 2010: Student Discipline - Fact issue existed concerning district's knowledge of male assailant's violent past. Genuine issue of material fact existed as to a school district's knowledge of a male assailant's persistent refusal to conform his conduct to school rules and regulations during period of time prior to the assailant's attack on a middle school student, and whether the district had taken necessary preventive measures to safeguard students in its charge. Such issues of fact precluded summary judgment on a father's personal injury claim against the district on behalf of the student. Just prior to his assault, for example, the male assailant had been suspended from school on numerous occasions because of his conduct and asked, in that regard, to sign a contract with authorities agreeing not to engage in disruptive conduct while at school. One could conclude, based on that history, that the school district should have reasonably anticipated that the male assailant posed a danger. | |
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ANNOUNCEMENTS
House of Representatives passed H.R. 4247, the Keeping All Students Safe in School Act. This bill will implement minimum standards to protect all schoolchildren from the dangers of restraint, seclusion, and aversives. To read more about this please visit
Dr. Dragan was invited to speak at the Annual National Student Safety and Security Conference to be held in Orlando, FL on April 15-16, 2010. Dr. Dragan has presented as a key note speaker at the New York Student Safety and Security Conference and presented at the National Conference last year in Las Vegas. To find out more about the conference or to register please visit
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| Featured Articles |
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Liability of Schools for Student/Staff Injury
Blog Article by Dr. Dragan
February 3, 2010
Liability with respect to schools and school employees is generally based on the legal theory of negligence. Negligence has been defined as: the omission to do something which a reasonable person would do or the doing of something which a prudent and reasonable person would not do; the failure to exercise ordinary care under the circumstances; conduct that a reasonably prudent person should realize involves an unreasonable risk of causing invasion of another's interest; or, a failure to do an act that is necessary for the protection or assistance of another. Full Text Article
FOR OTHER EDUCATION RELATED ARTICLES VISIT OUR RE-DESIGNED WEBSITE AND BLOG
FOR OTHER EDUCATION RELATED ARTICLES VISIT OUR RE-DESIGNED WEBSITE AND BLOG
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I hope that our newsletter has provided you with valuable information. If there is anything else that you would like us to include please do not hesitate to give us your feedback.
As an education administration expert, I am committed to providing individualized service to our clients while dealing with large and complex consultations quickly and professionally. These include case review and analysis, expert testimony, school reviews in custody matters, presentations and working with parents or schools to ensure children receive an appropriate education.
I take pride in the fact that my firm responds to our clients' needs personally and promptly. We continue to strive to combine the resources of a large firm with the personal consultant-client rapport of a small practice.
Sincerely,
Edward F. Dragan, Ed.D.
Education Management Consulting, LLC | |
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