Boards are generally permitted to adopt a resolution to grant board members free admission to school-sponsored events, but should be cognizant of the relevant ethics laws and the potential for appearances of impropriety. The Ohio Revised Code prohibits public officials, including school board members, from using their office to solicit or accept things of value from those parties they regulate or with whom they do business.

Before beginning the duties of the office, each new board member is required to take an oath of office. Board inquiries concerning the administration of the oath prove to be some of the most frequently asked questions we respond to in early January. Below, I have provided answers to some of the recent questions we have received.

Effective January 1, 2009, the School Employee Health Care Board (SEHCB) outlined four best practice standards, which are codified in Section 3306-2-03 of the Administrative Code. The fourth of these standards addresses dependent eligibility audits and requires all health plan sponsors offering health care plans to employees of a public school district to conduct periodic dependent eligibility audits and send the aggregate results of the audit to the SEHCB.

Advisory Opinion No. 2009-06, Ohio Ethics Law and Stimulus Funds

Ohio Supreme Court expounds on statutory damages, attorneys fees and costs in post-HB 9 public records mandamus case. The Ohio Supreme Court ruled on a recent public records case against a police department, and the ruling has implications for all public entities. The case, State ex rel. Doe v. Smith, 123 Ohio St.3d 44, concerned the availability of a sealed juvenile record. A citizen had made a public records request in late November 2007 for records to the Pierce Township Police Dept.

State ex rel. Perrea v. Cincinnati Pub. Sch., Ohio St.3d , 2009-Ohio-4762 Perrea, a teacher at Hughes High School in the Cincinnati Public School District (CPS), filed repeated public records requests seeking copies of the standardized tests that are administered to all of the districts ninth grade students at the end of each semester. Perrea stated that he was concerned about the design, implementation and scoring of the examinations, which were developed by WestEd at a cost of $270,000, and claimed that he did not intend to use the copies for any commercial purpose.

In June 2008, the Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) Board of Directors approved a recommendation that coaches in Ohio be required to take the National Federation of State High School Associations Fundamentals of Coaching course. All interscholastic coaches in grades 7-12, whether certified to teach or not, paid or volunteer, are required to take the course as a one-time fulfillment. All coaches without a current pupil activity permit are required to complete the course by January 1, 2010.

Ohio Revised Code Section (RC) 3319.15 sets out the procedure a teacher seeking to cancel his or her contract with the board must follow. The statute states that teachers, as well as superintendents and other administrators, may terminate their contracts by providing five days written notice to the employing board. However, the law prohibits teachers from terminating contracts after July 10 of any school year without the consent of the board.

The Supreme Court held today that a strip search of a teenager violated the 4th Amendment. See coverage from the New York Times for details on Safford v. Redding. The Court also issued an opinion in the legal battle that started in 1988 over Arizona's funding of English language education.