Last week, the Ohio House of Representative and Ohio Senate took action to develop a plan that will provide four additional calamity days to school districts. Here’s a summary of some of the key provisions of the bill, as well as the answers to a few of the more frequently asked questions we’ve received:
‘Tis the season for board transition! But what happens if your board returns from the holidays in January at less than full capacity? A vacancy may occur on the board for many reasons, but vacancies typically occur in January as a result of one of two things. Either a board member has resigned from the board during the middle of his/her term with an effective date of December 31 or the board had more open seats than interested candidates at the most recent election. In either case, a vacancy will occur on the board as of January 1 and the vacancy should be filled usi
As of October 11, 2013, HB 14 has limited the circumstances in which a board of education may withhold the grades and credits of students who have failed to pay fees and charges. Under the newly amended provisions of RC 3313.642, boards of education are prohibited from withholding the grades, credits, official transcripts, diplomas, IEPs, or 504 plans of a student for the nonpayment of fees for materials used during the course of instruction if:
-a complaint has been filed in juvenile court alleging that a student is an abused, neglected, or dependent child; or
On June 30, 2013, House Bill (HB) 59, also known as the budget bill, was signed by Governor Kasich. Effective September 29, 2013, the bill added a new topic to the topics that may be discussed during an executive session of a public body.
Under current law, RC 121.22 (G) provides seven topics, six of which are applicable to school boards, which allow public bodies to remove themselves from public view to engage in discussion regarding certain matters.
The OSBA Legal Assistance Fund (LAF) recently assisted the Strongsville City School District Board of Education by submitting a amicus curiae brief supporting the district's position in a public records case.
On March 4, the Strongsville Education Association (SEA) began a labor strike of the district's facilities. The school board hired temporary replacement teachers and continued operating the schools. The strike continued until April 28, when the parties approved a successor collective bargaining agreement.
During 2009, the Martins Ferry City School District experienced financial difficulties. As a result, contract negotiations between the board of education and the Ohio Association of Public School Employees, Local 4 AFSCME and its Local 546 (OAPSE) resulted in a collective bargaining agreement (CBA) that did not provide a wage increase in 2009, but included wage reopener provisions for 2010 and 2011.
On January 25, 2013, the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) issued a Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) notifying schools that students with disabilities must be afforded equal access to extracurricular athletics. The DCL comes after the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) published a report noting the positive impact that extracurricular athletics has on students, especially those with disabilities.
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has recently revised its Employment Eligibility Verification form, Form I-9. Employers are required to use this form to verify the identity of each new employee hired and to verify that they are authorized to work in the United States. However, employers are not required to complete the revised version of Form I-9 for current employees that already have a properly completed form on file, unless re-verification is required.
