On the Call Podcast: Assistive Technology
Runs, Hits, and Errors with Assistive Technology: Jeremy and Erin discuss if - and how - you provide assistive technology as part of the IEP. They cover the "what ifs': What if the technology doesn't work? What if it isn't used properly while at home? And while there...
New! On the Call Podcast: MDR Basics
The Special Education Team of Ennis Britton is pleased to announce the rollout of our new podcast “On the Call". Each episode focuses on a real-life special education scenario you may have encountered or might bump into very soon. Ennis Britton attorneys Jeremy Neff...
New! EB’s Career Tech Corner: CTCs Begin Welcoming New Members Statewide
As we head into a new year, many joint vocational school districts are welcoming new members to their governing boards. This can be an exciting time, with opportunities to meet and work with fresh faces and new ideas. This might also present some unanticipated...
Ennis Britton is Pleased to Announce Pete Japikse has Joined the Ennis Britton Consulting Group
Ennis Britton is pleased to announce Pete Japikse has joined The Ennis Britton Consulting Group, offering transportation consulting services to the Firm’s clients. Pete is available for transportation consulting assistance including but not limited to T-1 and T-2...
Open Meetings and Public Records Law: Three Recent Sunshine Cases in Ohio
Sunshine law litigation is constantly ongoing in Ohio’s courts. Recently, three new cases expand our understanding of how open meetings and public records law is applied to public bodies. Must a public entity teach citizens requesting records how to use its software?...
Supreme Court Clarifies that Plaintiff Has Burden of Proving Violations of the Ohio Open Meetings Act
On December 1, 2022, the Supreme Court of Ohio released a decision clarifying the burden of proof remains with a plaintiff in actions to enforce the Ohio Open Meetings Act (OMA). In State ex rel. Hicks v. Clermont Cty. Bd. of Commrs., Slip Opinion No. 2022-Ohio-4237,...
Appeals Court Rejects Hyper-Technical Procedural Defenses in Upholding the Termination of a Principal
DeVito v. Clear Fork Valley Local Schools Bd. of Edn., 2022-Ohio-3894 The Fifth Appellate District upheld the termination of a principal accused of, among other things, misconduct related to her evaluation duties. The principal allegedly asked a teacher to sign a...
Two Recent COVID-19 Court Cases Related to Schools
Another facet of the ongoing fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic is the litigation that has ensued, particularly in employment law. Last month, there was progress in two cases stemming from the pandemic. The first involves the non-teaching employee employment statute, RC...
OSEP Advises State Directors Regarding Serving Highly Mobile Students
Last month the Office of Special Education Programs and the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services issued a letter to state directors of special education regarding the critical nature of ensuring prompt services for highly mobile students with...
Feds Stress Compliance with Special Education Requirements for Preschool-aged Children
Perhaps revealing enforcement priorities, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Head Start (OHS) recently issued a joint letter reminding state educational...
Revised IDEA Regulations Finally Coming?
On Friday, October 14, the Ohio Department of Education filed proposed revisions to the IDEA operating standards (Ohio Administrative Code 3301-51). On Tuesday, November 15, the State Board of Education will hold a hearing on these proposed revisions. This is all part...
Court Determines Dress Code May be Covered Under Title IX
The board of trustees of a North Carolina charter school discovered that designing a dress code based on the view that girls are “fragile vessels” could violate both the Equal Protection Clause and Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972. Parents of several...
SCOTUS to Consider Exhaustion of Remedies Case
The Supreme Court of the United States has agreed to hear a special education case concerning a family's obligation to exhaust administrative remedies before filing a claim under the Americans with Disabilities Act. The case of Perez v. Sturgis Public Schools involves...
OCR Provides Guidance for Pregnant and Parenting Students
U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) recently released guidance linking the protections of Title IX of the Education Amendments Act to students and employees based on pregnancy and related conditions. The October 4, 2022 guidance reiterated...
Ohio Supreme Court Asked to Review Guidance Counselor’s Right to Retain Outside Attorney During Arbitration
On January 1, 2022,An Ohio guidance counselor who opted out of the union has asked the Ohio Supreme Court to overturn a decision of the 11th District Court of Appeals which found she did not have a right to use her own attorney during an arbitration hearing. Revised...
Decision on State Board of Education Resolution on Transgender Protections Delayed
A “Resolution to Support Parents, Schools, and Districts in Rejecting Harmful, Coercive, and Burdensome Gender Identity Policies” was proposed at the September meeting of the State Board of Education. It was placed on the State Board agenda for its Oct. 11th and 12th...
The New Payment in Lieu of Transportation Process
There were a number of key changes to transportation laws enacted in the biennium budget, including changes to the payment in lieu (PIL) of transportation process. The changes became effective on September 30, 2021.
Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals Refuses to Enjoin a Mask Mandate Lacking a Religious Exemption
On August 23, the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit weighed in on the constitutionality of mask mandates lacking a religious exemption. A Michigan school challenged the mandate in place by the state’s Department of Health and Human Services, stating...
Are Teachers Breaking the Rules Recording Students on Their Personal Cell Phones in Class?
A complaint was recently filed with the Student Privacy Policy Office (SPPO) alleging a Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) violation when two teachers recorded students in the classroom on their personal cell phones. Students’ education records are...
Anonymous Reporting Systems Required for 2021-22 School Year in All Ohio Districts
Starting this year, school districts must either register with the Department of Public Safety’s free Safer Ohio School Tip Line or enter into an agreement with another anonymous reporting program selected by the district that allows individuals to report threats to...
School Mask Mandate Updates
U.S. DOE’s Office for Civil Rights Enters the Fray by Initiating Discrimination Investigations Against States with Mask Prohibitions On Monday, August 30, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) opened investigations into five states that...