Welcome to the August 2010 issue of our monthly newsletter dedicated to keeping you current on Education Law and related issues. |
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FEATURED CLIENT TESTIMONIAL:
"Thank you for providing me with your preliminary case review; it is above and beyond what I expected in terms of comprehensiveness and analysis of the fact pattern, so this will be more than ample to supplement Motion Response."
Ilana Lam, Esq
Harvey, Pennington Ltd.
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
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ANNOUNCEMENTS
Dr. Dragan was invited to present at the Education Law Association Annual Conference to be held this year in Vancouver November 10-13, 2010.
His presentation, Understanding Liability in School Cases, is timely and relevant for attorneys and school administrators and will provide participants with a framework for determining liability in school cases.
For more information about the conference go to www.educationlaw.org Dr. Dragan is workin full speed on his book The Bully Action Guide: How to Get Your School to Listen When Your Child Is Bullied. The book is expected to reach shelves in the parenting section in the Spring of 2011. |
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| Featured Articles | |
Pittsburgh School Board Approves a $55K Anorexia Bullying Settlement.
by
Edward F. Dragan
August 5, 2010 |
According to the National School Boards Association and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (August 4, 2010), the Pittsburgh Public Schools board approved the settlement of a suit brought by the parent of a student whom the parent clams was subjected to peer bullying and harassment about her weight.
The board has agreed to pay $55,000, plus the cost of mediation. The suit alleged that a hostile school environment existed at Frick Middle School because school officials failed to act to put an end to the teasing and abuse of the student by fellow students. The suit charged that school administrators knew the student was being harassed but failed to take action or inform the parent of what was happening. It added that as a result of the harassment, the student had to be hospitalized for anorexia.
The suit contended that a guidance counselor did nothing to stop the bullying by three boys in sixth grade, and instead made a comment "to the effect that boys will be boys and they must like (the girl) if they are teasing her."
The girl's mother said that two other boys joined in the daily harassment in seventh grade, and by February 2008, the girl entered an inpatient treatment program for anorexia nervosa because "her weight was dangerously low."
The boys eventually received a one-day suspension. This lawsuit is the first of its kind.
Lynn Grefe, chief executive officer of Seattle-based National Eating Disorders Association, said people who develop anorexia tend to already have issues with obsessive-compulsive or perfectionist behavior or anxiety. Bullying might trigger anorexia in those people but not others who are taunted about their weight, Greff said.
This lawsuit provides a hint about what's over the horizon regarding legal action in light of bullying. We will see many more lawsuits of this type in the coming years in light of the attention that has been drawn to suicides allegedly caused by bullying and cases like this.
Dr. Dragan's article published in American School, December 2009
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 a litigation consultant and 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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| Becker v. City University of Seattle, (E.D.Pa.) |
July 30, 2010: Student Discipline - Private university's discipline of student was not state action. Even though a private university in Oregon was open for public education within a public online forum, with enrollment predicated on the payment of tuition, it did not engage in actions that were traditionally under the exclusive control of the state. Therefore, the school's discipline of a student for posting allegedly negative comments about the university and a professor's class on an online discussion board, did not constitute "acting under color of state law" for purposes of liability for constitutional violations under 1983. |
| Murphy v. City of Aventura, (C.A.11 (Fla.)) |
July 30, 2010: Labor and Employment - Charter school principal was not subjected to hostile work environment based on sexual harassment in violation of Title VII. City manager's general vulgar remarks to employees of charter school that he supervised did not create a hostile work environment. Thus, the school principal's Title VII sexual harassment claim was precluded, on grounds that the remarks were gender-neutral and neither severe nor pervasive. Some remarks were directed at both male and female employees, and the other nine degrading and sex-based remarks were made over a three-year time period and did not unreasonably interfere with the principal's work performance. The principal's alleged nightmares, depression, and anxiety did not surface until one month after her termination. |
| Patterson v. Hudson Area Schools, (E.D.Mich.) |
July 29, 2010: Abuse and Harassment - School district was not deliberately indifferent to alleged sexual harassment of student by his peers. A school district was not deliberately indifferent to the alleged sexual harassment of a student by his peers, in violation of Title IX. Teachers and administrators responded to each incident of harassment of which they had notice. The district's responses were prompt and effective. The district had policies in place and promoted activities that addressed sexual harassment. The student's parents agreed with the arrangements made by the district to deal with the harassment. |
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