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The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted all aspects of school operations, including school services contracted out to independent contractors. As school officials renegotiate or execute new service agreements (e.g., with transportation, custodial, or other contractors), they should be mindful about establishing contract terms that offer flexibility and tolerance for changing circumstances that may be beyond their control.
Scope of Services and Payment Terms
...The Michigan Supreme Court recently held that under Michigan’s Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act (ELCRA), sexual orientation discrimination is discrimination “because of sex” and is therefore prohibited. Rouch World, LLC v Michigan Dep’t of Civil Rights, Docket No. 162482 (July 28, 2022).
The case arose from two separate allegations of discrimination. The first allegation was made by a same-sex couple against a company that denied the couple’s request to get married in one of...
As the school year kicks off, school officials must ensure that their teachers and administrators are properly certificated. After a lull during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Michigan Department of Education (MDE) has resumed issuing state aid penalties to schools that employ uncertificated teachers and administrators. Executive orders and legislative amendments that relaxed teacher and administrator certification requirements during the pandemic have expired or been rescinded including the...
The rules for religion in public schools shifted recently when the U.S. Supreme Court decided in favor of the “praying coach,” permitting a public school employee to publicly pray during his work day. Kennedy v Bremerton Sch Dist, Docket No 21-418 (June 27, 2022). The Court found that the school violated the coach’s Free Speech and Free Exercise constitutional rights when it sanctioned him for kneeling and praying at the 50-yard line after high school football games.
...Governor Whitmer recently signed into law Public Act 184 of 2022 (PA 184) which amends the Michigan Public School Employees Retirement (MPSER) Act and alters requirements affecting retirees employed by a “reporting unit” (i.e., a public school district, intermediate school district, or PSA). PA 184 went into effect on July 25, 2022.
As used in the MPSER Act, “employed at a reporting unit” now means “employed directly by a reporting unit as an employee, indirectly by a reporting unit...
On July 19, 2022, the Michigan Court of Claims ruled unconstitutional the Legislature’s 2018 amendments to the voter-proposed Paid Medical Leave Act (PMLA) and Improved Workforce Opportunity Wage Act (IWOWA) legislation. The PMLA generally requires employers to provide paid medical leave to eligible hourly employees, while the IWOWA governs Michigan’s minimum...
It may feel like summer just began, but students will be returning to campus in a few short weeks. Prepare for the upcoming school year by proactively taking steps to avoid common legal problems.
Corral Your Coordinators!
Federal law requires every school to appoint a Title IX Coordinator. Many schools appoint two Title IX Coordinators to account for possible conflicts of interest. Before this school year begins, ensure that your school has...
In Sawicki v Bangor Twp Sch Dist (21-8), the State Tenure Commission (STC) upheld the school district’s discharge of an insubordinate teacher. Thrun Law Firm successfully represented the school district in bringing tenure charges.
During his 29-year employment with the District, Sawicki was placed on several different individual development plans (IDPs) for performance issues. During remote instruction in the 2020-2021 school year, Sawicki failed to create and follow...
Michigan schools have struggled to determine their obligations to students and staff under the 2020 Title IX regulations. The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, the federal appellate court whose decisions are binding in Michigan, recently issued an opinion that provides important Title IX guidance for school officials. Doe v Metro Gov’t of Nashville and Davidson Cty, Tennessee (CA 6, 2022).
The case encompasses lawsuits for Title IX violations brought by two female high school...
As school boards adopt their budgets for the 2022-23 school year, school officials should be mindful that State School Aid Act Section 18 mandates a deadline for posting the school’s annual budget and required financial information. Within 15 days after a school board adopts its annual operating budget for the upcoming fiscal year, the school must post or provide a link to the budget on its or its ISD’s website homepage.
Within the same timeframe, schools must also post a summary of...