The Legal Ledger

ODE news:  Every Student Succeeds Act webinars and stakeholder meetings and comment period for revisions to learning standards ending

As part of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), the Ohio Department of Education (ODE) is required to create a Student Success Plan.  The plan will describe how local, state and federal programs are aligned.  ODE is inviting school board members, district employees, teachers, parents and any other interested parties to attend one of ten stakeholder meetings to share ideas for the development of the Student…

On Thursday, the Ohio Supreme Court issued a ruling in State ex rel. School Choice Ohio, Inc. v. Cincinnati Pub. School Dist. [Cincinnati Public School District was dismissed as a respondent in this case when it entered into a settlement agreement with SCO.]

In October 2013, School Choice Ohio (SCO) submitted a public records request to Springfield City School District, requesting:

1. Student’s and parent’s/guardian’s name,
2. Parent’s/guardian's complete address and email address…

The maintenance, destruction and preservation of public records is an important and technical process. Under Ohio law, public records must be kept and maintained so that the public may access those records. Records must be retained for certain periods of time, sometimes permanently, depending upon the type of record.

While most records today are born digital, many public sector agencies are still pressed with issues of storing, retrieving and managing the paper-based records in their possession. At OSBA, we are hearing from more school…

Are you taking advantage of the seminars and workshops offered by OSBA? The legal division is planning several workshops and seminars this fall, and we’d love to see you in attendance. Here are the upcoming workshops:

Attendance, Tuition and Custody Law – August 5, 2016

Attendance and tuition matters are complex, and the laws addressing them change frequently. How your district handles these matters affects your district’s bottom line. Learn the latest legal developments at this information-packed seminar. The seminar will take place at the Nationwide…

On June 10, 2016, the Ohio Ethics Commission (OEC) issued Advisory Opinion No. 2016-01, considering whether a city council member can be employed as director of a nonprofit corporation that receives financial support from the city.  While the opinion specifically discusses city officials, its conclusions also apply to elected and appointed school board and educational service center (ESC) governing board members.   

As applied to school board or ESC governing board members (school officials), the…

House Bill (HB) 64 created the OSCES, which required, among other things, that the State Board of Education (SBOE) develop a standards-based framework for the evaluation of school counselors by May 31. At its April meeting, the SBOE adopted the framework, which may be adjusted as needed. Not unlike the other evaluation systems, revisions will be necessary to provide additional…

On May 31, Governor Kasich signed HB 299, which makes revisions to the Autism Scholarship program.  The bill makes two changes to the program.

1. It expands the categories of individuals who can apply for the Autism Scholarship.
2. It revises testing and graduation requirements for students in nonpublic schools, including those using state scholarships. 

Autism scholarship

The Autism Scholarship program, administered by the…

State lawmakers have finalized an expedited process to hear complaints from citizens alleging they were wrongfully denied access to public records. The bill, Senate Bill (SB) 321, received unanimous votes in the Ohio House and Senate and is awaiting signature by the Governor.

Under current law, an individual may seek to compel the production of a public record by mandamus action, which is a lawsuit to compel a public official…

Last Friday, the U.S. Departments of Education and Justice released joint guidance on their interpretation of the rights of and protections for transgender students under Title IX.

The guidance document, which comes in the form of a Dear Colleague Letter, does not add requirements to existing law, but adds another voice to an ongoing conversation about whether Title IX’…

On Tuesday, the Ohio Supreme Court held in the case White v. King that Ohio’s Open Meetings Act prohibits any private prearranged discussion of public business by a majority of the members of a public body regardless of whether the discussion occurs face to face, telephonically, by video conference, or electronically by email, text, tweet or other form of communication.

In March 2012, Adam White, a school board member for the Olentangy…