Legal Influences on the State Board of Education

When it comes to schools the district does whatever it cam to keep the students safe. By setting rules the students are to follow. Rules such as, dress code, attendance, classroom procedures, and more. All indended for one reason and that is to protect the students.

Local school boards are shaped by the rules and policies that regulate their membership, compensation, the nature of meetings, and so forth. “Nationally, 62.3 percent of board members report that they receive no salary, while 14.3 percent receive an annual salary of $5,000 or more and 2 percent earn a salary of more than $15,000 per year” (Hess & Meeks, 2010,

The following cases are utilized: Pickering v. Board of Education, Mt. Healthy City School District v. Doyle, Connick v. Myers, Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeir, and Garcetti v. Ceballos. The case, Pickering v. Board of Education, the Supreme Court acknowledged teachers have the right to voice personal views as they relate to issues of public concern (Cambron-McCabe, McCathy & Eckes, 2014). More specifically, “The Pickering case is one of the most influential court cases concerned with the balancing of teacher’s First Amendment right to freedom of expression against the state’s interest in promoting efficient schools” (DeMitchell & DeMitchell, 1990, p 385). If a teachers voices personal views that are damaging to coworkers, school procedures, ones’ occupational performance, and does not directly relate to public concerns there will be grounds for disciplinary actions (Cambron-McCabe, McCathy & Eckes, 2014). This constitutional rights stands both inside and outside of the classroom, as educators can utilize various methods of communication, such as social media, written artifacts, visual relics, and expressive language. In the case, Hazelwood v Kuhlmeier, a teacher’s personal opinion can be expressed within the contours of a classroom when applicable to pedagogical reasons. More specifically, “Reasoning that the teachers was speaking for the school, the court concluded that teachers are not entitled to express views in the classroom that are counter to the adopted curriculum” (Cambron-McCabe, McCathy & Eckes, 2014, p. 242). If the topic discussed within the classroom is controversial in nature it must be censored, thus deeming appropriate to a youthful audience. In conclusion, it is imperative for educators to ‘think before they speak,’ as their actions can have detrimental impacts on key stakeholders as well as their

The state legislature has absolute power to make laws governing education, and pass laws on a variety of issues affecting public schools. State legislatures have the authority to raise revenue and distribute educational funds, control teacher licensure, prescribe curricular offerings, establish pupil performance standards, and regulate other aspects of public school operations. They also create, reorganize, consolidate, and abolish school districts.

Based on the presented facts, it is the opinion of this writer that the educator’s termination will be upheld and the defendant will win the case. Using Fowler v. Board of Education, 819 F. 2d 657 (1987), as precedent, the actions of the plaintiff caused a substantial disruption to the learning environment. While educators are afforded the right of academic freedom “to speak freely about their subjects, to experiment with new ideas, and to select appropriate teaching materials and methods” (Hillman & Trevaskis, 2014, p. 7-12), one should err on the side of caution, as “great deference is paid to the local board of education since they have the power to determine the curriculum and the materials used”

A more recent case which is similar to Everson v. Board of Education, is Arizona Christian School Tuition Organization v. Winn. The taxpayers of Arizona were challenging the fact that a state law was providing tax credits to those who were donating to school tuition organizations in order for the schools to provide scholarships to those attending private/religious schools. The claim was that this was a violation of the Establishment Clause (Arizona Christian School Tuition Organization v. Winn, 2016.), which is the first of several pronouncements within the First Amendment within the U.S. Constitution, or the first ten amendments within the Bill of Rights, which states “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof…” (Bill of Rights, 2016.). The Supreme Court had ruled 5-4 and argued that the plaintiff did not have enough information and standing to bring to the suit. Justice Kagen, in her dissent, stated that “cash grants and targeted tax breaks are means of accomplishing the same government object; to provide financial support to select individuals or organizations.” (Arizona Christian School Tuition Organization v. Winn, 2016.). Although the ruling was made on “narrow grounds”, according to Peter Wooley, a political science and direction of the PublicMind Poll, the plaintiff in one “guise or another will be back another day” (Arizona Christian School Tuition Organization v. Winn, 2016.).

The primary powers and duties of the Board are articulated in Arizona Revised Statutes, Title 15; Education; Section 203; Powers and Duties. For the purposes of federal law, the State Board of Education also serves as the State Board for Vocational and Technological Education. Some of their duties include setting statewide curriculum standards; establishing high school graduation requirements; determining qualifications for professional education personnel; establishing state accountability and assessment programs; establishing standards for accreditation of local school districts and preparation programs for teachers and administrators; implementing and administering federal assistance programs and developing rules and regulations for the administration of state

The Constitutional basis: The Fourth Amendment does not apply in a school setting. The need of a school to maintain order is more important than the individual rights of students.

What is the role of public schools? Who should be governing public schools? This paper will address each side of these educational issues as well as offer a position statement and an action plan.

Our ability to admit that the federal government played a role in this segregation, allowed us to treat the situation. Now that we face racism and segregation that is much more hidden and attributed to other factors and causes, it makes us more difficult to identify de jure segregation, but it is still ultimately essential for us to do so in order to see any form of advancement. The Supreme Court’s support in this case brought about nearly free reign in the District Court’s regulation and enforcement capabilities.

argued and the “separate but equal” had no place because it was not equal at all. Race discrimination

In the last decade students have lost much of their fourth amendment rights, students are losing their rights because the U.S. supreme court continues to give schools more and more leeway to ensure a “safer and more disciplined” (Ascd. “School right to search students) school. The fourth amendment states that in order for someone to be searched and arrested he would need to get

in this chapter, we examine the basic legal framework of school law in Texas. We begin by discussing the sources of school law and then describe the roles of the state and federal governments in the establishment and operation of the Texas school system. We examine the functioning of the State Board of Education, the Texas Education Agency, local school districts, private schools, and charter schools. And we discuss the responsibilities of school administrators and the functioning of site-based management. Later sections look at important federal laws affecting the operation of Texas schools and review the long-running controversy over the fi nancing of Texas schools.

Although the students on the board of ASB are given a say in school-wide decisions, the general population of students should be given more power, within reasonability, regarding choices that affect their high school experience. Many students have requested more classes involving language, technology, and Advanced Placement that are not currently provided. Even within the short duration of my attendance at PDHS, I have heard many of these complaints. If enough students support the addition of a particular course, said course would most likely benefit those students. Depriving them of such an opportunity cheapens the main purpose of high school: preparing students for higher education. Of course, the budget must be taken into account here,