The U.S. Supreme Court issued a long-awaited ruling regarding prayer by school employees today. In Kennedy v. Bremerton School District, the Court was asked to decide whether a high school football coach had a constitutionally protected right to pray on the football field following a game. The Court sided 6-3 with the coach. The decision […]
Read moreOn Friday, February 18, 2022, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton issued Opinion No. KP-0401, in which the Attorney General opined that a court could find that certain enumerated “sex-change procedures”, when performed on minors, constitute child abuse under several provisions of Chapter 261 of the Texas Family Code. The specific procedures addressed in the Opinion […]
Read moreAs mask and vaccine mandates gain more traction throughout the nation as a means of preventing and hopefully eradicating COVID-19, many people who vehemently oppose these measures are attempting to use religious exemptions as a last-ditch effort to avoid compliance. Religious exemptions to vaccinations have been asserted in the past, but perhaps never in such […]
Read moreBelieve it or not, contract season is right around the corner. And, as you are no doubt aware, Texas Governor Abbott recently issued Executive Order GA-34. The Order, which goes into effect on March 10, 2021, removes the state-wide operating limits and mask mandate that have been (depending on your perspective) keeping the spread of […]
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Below are today’s updates regarding COVID-19 and its impact on Texas public schools. For additional resources, please visit our COVID-19 page. Title IX: Questions and Answers Regarding the Final Rule Dean Micknal, Partner and Victoria Elliott, Associate On May 6, 2020, the US Department of Education issued an extensive update to the Title IX regulations […]
Read moreOn May 6, 2020, the US Department of Education issued an extensive update to the Title IX regulations (the “Final Rule”). As the new regulations take effect on August 14, 2020, districts do not have much time to digest the information and prepare for implementation. In an effort to assist our districts in learning the […]
Read moreOn April 17, 2020, Governor Abbott ordered all schools to remain closed “to in-person classroom attendance by students” for the remainder of the 2019-2020 school year. Teachers and staff are encouraged to continue to work remotely from home if possible, but are now permitted to “return to schools to conduct remote video instruction, as well […]
Read moreWe know that two new Family Medical Leave Act laws related to the COVID-19 pandemic went into effect on April 1, 2020, as follows: Emergency Family and Medical Leave Expansion Act (EFMLEA) which extends Family and Medical Leave; and Emergency Paid Sick Leave Act (EPSLA) which provides for emergency paid sick leave for absences. These […]
Read moreBelow are today’s updates regarding COVID-19 and its impact on Texas public schools. For additional resources, please visit our COVID-19 page. TEA Special Education and Special Populations Updates for the Week of April 13, 2020 Dean Micknal, Partner The Texas Education Agency has continued to post and revise guidance regarding Special Education and Special Populations […]
Read moreBelow are today’s updates regarding COVID-19 and its impact on Texas public schools. For additional resources, please visit our COVID-19 page. Documenting Temporary SPED Services Dean Micknal, Partner; Victoria Elliott, Associate During the current pandemic, public school districts have an ongoing obligation to provide FAPE to students with disabilities. Therefore, district personnel need to attempt […]
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