Legislative Updates and Education Insights at SAI Annual Conference 2011

1. SAI Annual Conference 2011 Matt Carver, J.D., Legal Services Director tel - 515.267.1115 fax - 515.267.1066

2. Legislative Update • Standing Appropriations - SF 533 • Sets allowable and categorical allowable growth rates at zero percent for FY 2012 and at two percent for FY 2013. • Cuts $20 million from the AEAs in FY 2012 and $10 million in FY 2013. • AEA cuts will be prorated, based on the reduction each agency received in the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2003.

3. Legislative Update • Education Appropriations – HF 645 • Home School Assistance Program (HSAP) – • Allows school districts to count students in HSAP if they are “school age” and NOT JUST “compulsory age,” as the language formerly required. • The bill also clarifies that HSAP may be used for the following purposes: • Instruction of students and assistance to parents for instruction of students; • Student support services for students and teaching parents; • Staff support services.

4. Legislative Update • Education Appropriations – HF 645 (cont.) • HSAP MAY NOT be used for: • Operational or maintenance costs other than those necessary to operate and maintain the program; • Capital expenditures OTHER THAN equipment or facility acquisition, including the lease or rental of space to supplement existing schoolhouse facilities; • Administrative costs OTHER THAN those costs necessary to administer the program; • Concurrent and dual enrollment costs and postsecondary enrollment options program costs.

5. Legislative Update • Education Appropriations – HF 645 (cont.) • Regional Academies - • Expands regional academies to grades 7-12, was 9-12. • A Regional Academy may include virtual or internet-based coursework in its curriculum. • A Regional Academy SHALL include advanced level courses in its curriculum.

6. Legislative Update • Education Appropriations – HF 645 (cont.) • PPEL Flexibility – Iowa Code §298.3, subsection 1, paragraph c is amended now allow: • The purchase, lease, or lease-purchase of equipment or technology exceeding five hundred dollars ($500)in value per purchase, lease, or lease-purchase transaction. Each transaction may include multiple equipment or technology units.

7. Legislative Update • Education Appropriations – HF 645 (cont.) • Eliminated Administrator Mentoring and Induction Funding. • Mentoring and Induction is still required under Iowa law for beginning administrators. • SAI is still providing a Mentoring and Induction Program. • Mentors are now serving on a volunteer basis.

8. Legislative Update • Education Appropriations – HF 645 (cont.) • School Employee Misconduct – Allows the BOEE to discipline an administrator for failure to file a complaint against an employee who is terminated or resigns due to an incident of alleged or actual misconduct. • The discipline may include the BoEE’s revocation of the administrator’s license. • Superintendents and AEA Chief Administrators - the obligation to make the report of misconduct to the BoEE is placed upon you and your board of directors. • Remember, the definition of MISCONDUCT is very specific.

9. Legislative Update • Education Appropriations – HF 645 (cont.) • School Employee Misconduct – • The bill requires a school board to put an employee on administrative leave if s/he is the subject of an investigation of alleged abuse of a student under Chapter 102. Ensure Level 1 investigator acts quickly. • If the result of the Chapter 102 investigation is that the actions of the employee constituted a crime under any other statute, the board of directors or authorities shall report the results of the investigation to the BoEE. • The BoEE will develop a curriculum that addresses the code of professional conduct, as well as provide regional training opportunities, annually.

10. Legislative Update • Employee Repayment of Compensation - HF 493 • This bill requires all public employees to pay back the salary received while on administrative leave if the employee was on leave due to an alleged crime and is eventually convicted of at least a class “D” felony.

11. REALLY, REALLY, REALLY IMPORTANT POINT #1 • Work on adopting policy regarding staff interaction with students (texting, social networking, phone calls, etc.). • Have parents or staff copied on text messages sent to a single student. • Include parents and administrators as friends on class networking pages. • If you are getting a bad gut feeling about staff and student interaction, look into it. • Still give employees due process.

12. Inappropriate Staff & Student Relationships • 282 IAC 25.3(1) Standard I—conviction of crimes, sexual or other immoral conduct with or toward a student, and child and dependent adult abuse. • e. Student abuse. Licensees shall maintain professional relationships with all students, both inside and outside the classroom. The following acts or behavior constitutes unethical conduct without regard to the existence of a criminal charge or conviction: • . . . • (3) Committing or soliciting any sexual or otherwise indecent act with a student or any minor; • (4) Soliciting, encouraging, or consummating a romantic or otherwise inappropriate relationship • with a student;

13. Inappropriate Staff & Student Relationships • 282 IAC 25.3(6) Standard VI—unethical practice toward other members of the profession, parents, students, and the community. Violation of this standard includes: • C. Failing to make reasonable effort to protect the health and safety of the student or creating conditions harmful to student learning. • D. Conducting professional business in such a way that the practitioner repeatedly exposes students or other practitioners to unnecessary embarrassment or disparagement. • 282 IAC 26.3 – Responsibilities • 4. The educator shall protect students from conditions harmful to learning or to health or safety. • . . . • 6. The educator shall not use professional relationships with students for personal advantage.

14. Legislative Update • Bus Mechanics Licenses to Drive - SF 205 • Provides clarification that bus mechanics, delivery drivers, and others who drive school busses WITHOUT PASSENGERS do NOT need a school bus endorsement. • They still need a Commercial Driver’s License.

15. Legislative Update • Open Meetings and Public Records- SF 289 • Clarifies that settlement agreements ARE public records. • Settlement is defined as “a final, binding, written settlement agreement that resolves a legal dispute claiming monetary damages, equitable relief, or a violation of a rule or statute.” • Your district may either provide the entire agreement or a summary. • The summary must include: (1) the parties, (2) the nature of the dispute, and (3) the terms of the settlement (to include payments and actions that the school district agrees to take).

16. Legislative Update • Open Meetings and Public Records- SF 289 (cont.) • Allows closed sessions for the sale or purchase of property, if premature disclosure could be reasonably expected to negatively affect the price the government would receive or pay for the property. • The school district must make an audio recording and take minutes, and make both available to the public after the transaction is complete. • Increases the fine for knowingly violating open meetings and public records law to at least $1,000 per violation, and as much as $2,500 per violation.

17. Legislative Update • Open Meetings and Public Records- SF 289 (cont.) • Clarifies what is included in a public employee record: • The name and compensation of the employee, including written agreements establishing compensation. • The bill gives a length definition of “compensation” which includes such things as insurance, vacation, sick leave, severance payments, retirement benefits, and deferred compensation. (PRETTY MUCH ASSUME THAT ANYTHING OF VALUE IS COMPENSATION AND MUST BE INCLUDED.) • Dates of employment • Position held with the school. • Educational institutions attended, including diplomas and degrees earned. • Past employers, dates of employment, and positions held with those employers. • Whether the individual was discharged as the result of a final disciplinary action upon the exhaustion of all applicable contractual, legal and statutory remedies.

18. Legislative Update • Athlete Brain Injuries - SF 367 • “Extracurricular interscholastic activity” includes contests and practices for sports, dance, or cheerleading. • Requires parents/guardians and students to sign and return a notice developed by the Association and Union about the signs, symptoms and risks of brain injury PRIOR to the student’s participation in athletics for grades 7-12.

19. Legislative Update • Athlete Brain Injuries - SF 367 (cont.) • Requires coaches and officials to remove an athlete from participation if the coach or official observes signs or symptoms of a concussion or brain injury. • Athletes must be released by a “licensed health care provider”before participating again. • “Licensed health care provider”means a physician, physician assistant, chiropractor, advanced registered nurse practitioner, nurse, physical therapist, or athletic trainer licensed by a state approved board.

20. Legislative Update • Athlete Brain Injuries - SF 367 (cont.) • Requires the Boys Association and Girls Union to develop guidelines and forms to educate and inform parents, athletes and coaches about the signs, symptoms and risk consistent with a sports-related concussion or brain injury, including the danger of continued competition after injury. • The Association and Union guidance for schools, may be found at: • http://www.iahsaa.org/Sports_Medicine_Wellness/Concussions/concussions.html. • IF YOU ARE NOT DOING THIS, START TODAY! (Call back to the district, if you have to.)

21. Legislative Update • Graduation Requirements - SF 453 • This bill allows a non-high school age student who completes high school level work taught by a certified high school teacher to be eligible for one unit of credit for the high school level course in the core course. • Math, English, Social Studies, Science, or Language Arts. • For example, some middle school students may complete two to three years of high school level math before entering the 9th grade. • The school board still has local control on determining whether younger students receive high school credit.

22. REALLY, REALLY, REALLY IMPORTANT POINT #2 • Figure out where money is in your building/district and ensure there are redundancies in place. • I don’t care how long the employee has worked in the district, how sweet s/he is, or whether s/he seems like the most trustworthy employee in the district. • About 80% of recent embezzlement cases have related to gambling debt. • Have someone check to see if your district has enough fidelity insurance coverage and errors and omissions coverage.

23. Iowa Cases • Jesup Community School District v. Wall, (Iowa Ct. of App. 2011). • Facts: • The school district terminated the football head coaching contract of Walls, who also taught in Jesup. The notice of termination cited the following reasons: • (1) Ineffective Program Leadership • (2) Failure to Maintain Student Interest and Participation in the Program • (3) Ineffective Team Discipline • (4) Lack of Effective Communication with Assistant Coaches • (5) Failure to Maintain an Effective Relationship with Students and Parents. • Walls appealed.

24. Iowa Cases • Jesup Community School District v. Wall, (Iowa Ct. of App. 2011). • The Iowa Court of Appeals held: • That a preponderance of evidence did not support the Board’s decision to terminate Walls. • Key considerations: • (1) Evaluations did not support termination. • (2) Student numbers did not show a greater decline in football player participation as compared to other sports. • (3) Walls made efforts to implement an offseason weight program. (ENSURE STUDENTS ARE NOT REQUIRED TO PARTICIPATE IN OFFSEASON PROGRAMS). • (4) Program expectations were not clear from the start. • THIS CASE DOES NOT MEAN THAT COACHES MAY NOT BE TERMINATED FOR A PROGRAM’S POOR PERFORMANCE.

25. Iowa Cases • Brokaw v. Winfield-Mt. Union, 788 N.W.2d 386 (Iowa 2010). • Facts: • Brokaw, a high school basketball player, was struck in the head by a player’s elbow. The District Court entered judgment against the basketball player, but dismissed the claim against the school. The parents appealed. The Court of Appeals affirmed, and the parents sought further review.

26. Iowa Cases • Brokaw v. Winfield-Mt. Union, 788 N.W.2d 386 (Iowa 2010). • The Iowa Supreme Court held: • (1) The amount of damages was adequate. $23,000 total. • (2) The battery by the player was not reasonably foreseeable, so the coach and Winfield-Mt. Union did not breach any duty.

27. Iowa Cases • Brokaw v. Winfield-Mt. Union, 788 N.W.2d 386 (Iowa 2010). • Key Points: • Although opposing player had a reputation for having a short fuse, he had: • (1) Never previously fouled out of any basketball games; • (2) Only once previously received a technical foul, and that was for cursing; • (3) Never previously gotten into a fight, and; • Finally, videotape of the game did not show that player had taken a swing at another player earlier in the game.

28. Iowa Cases • Galloway v. State of Iowa, 790 N.W.2d 252 (Iowa 2010). • Facts: • In July of 2005, fourteen-year-old Galloway attended a field trip to Milwaukee with Upward Bound, a youth outreach program organized by the University of Northern Iowa and the State of Iowa. On the field trip, Galloway was injured when she was struck by a car as she attempted to cross the street. • Before Galloway went on the field trip, her mother signed two documents entitled “Field Trip Permission Form” and “Release and Medical Authorization.” Galloway’s family sued the state.

29. Iowa Cases • Galloway v. State of Iowa, 790 N.W.2d 252 (Iowa 2010). • The Iowa Supreme Court held: • (1) public policy precludes enforcement of a parent's pre-injury waiver of her child's cause of action for injuries caused by negligence; and • (2) pre-injury release form, which was signed by student's mother, waiving student's personal injury claims as a condition of student's participation in an educational field trip was not enforceable. • Rationale: The strong policy in favor of protecting children must trump any competing interest of parents and third parties in their freedom to contractually nullify a child's personal injury claim before an injury occurs.

30. Federal Cases (8th Circuit Ct. of Appeals) • Doe v. Todd County School District, 625 F.3d 459 (8th Cir. 2010). • Facts: • Student brought suit against the Todd County School District, alleging they violated his federal procedural due process rights when he was placed in an alternative high school setting, without the school board allowing a hearing, following his suspension for fighting and bringing a pocket knife to school.

31. Federal Cases (8th Circuit Ct. of Appeals) • Doe v. Todd County School District, 625 F.3d 459 (8th Cir. 2010). • The Court of Appeals held: • (1) The school district's refusal to convene a school board hearing regarding student's changed placement DID NOT violate due process.

32. Federal Cases (8th Circuit Ct. of Appeals) • Doe v. Todd County School District, 625 F.3d 459 (8th Cir. 2010). • The Court of Appeals key points: • (1) The school board lacked authority to overrule educational decisions of disabled student's Individualized Education Plan (IEP) team. • (2) The IEP team, with consent of student's guardian, changed student's placement to an alternative high school setting following his four-day suspension for fighting and bringing a pocket knife to school. • (3) The IEP team first determined that the misconduct was not a manifestation of Doe’s disability. • (4) The student's guardians were fully aware of safeguards afforded student under IDEA but declined to invoke them.

33. Federal Cases (8th Circuit Ct. of Appeals) • Doe v. Todd County School District, 625 F.3d 459 (8th Cir. 2010). • Things to consider: • (1) The reduced quality and quantity of classroom instruction a student receives at an alternative setting may result in a “constructive” suspension that may require a school board hearing for general education students.

34. Federal Cases (U.S. Supreme Court) • J.D.B. v. North Carolina, 131 S.Ct. 2394 (2011). • Facts: • Police stopped and questioned petitioner J.D.B., a 13–year–old, seventh-grade student, upon seeing him near the site of two home break-ins. Five days later, after a digital camera matching one of the stolen items was found at J.D.B.'s school and seen in his possession, Investigator DiCostanzo went to the school. The uniformed officer interrupted J.D.B.'s afternoon social studies class, removed J.D.B. from the classroom, and escorted him to a school conference room.There, J.D.B. was met by DiCostanzo, the assistant principal, and the administrative intern. The door to the conference room was closed. With the two police officers and the two administrators present, J.D.B. was questioned for the next 30 to 45 minutes. Prior to the commencement of questioning, J.D.B. was given neither Miranda warnings nor the opportunity to speak to his grandmother. Nor was he informed that he was free to leave the room. He first denied his involvement, but later confessed after officials urged him to tell the truth and told him about the prospect of juvenile detention.

35. Federal Cases (U.S. Supreme Court) • J.D.B. v. North Carolina, 131 S.Ct. 2394 (2011). • Miranda rights apply when an individual is in custody and is then interrogated. • The United States Supreme Court held: • (1) That a child's age is relevant when considering Miranda custody analysis, so long as the child's age was known to the officer at the time of police questioning, or would have been objectively apparent to a reasonable officer. • Don’t forget Iowa Code § 232.19. . . • 2. When a child is taken into custody . . . the person taking the child into custody shall notify the child's parent, guardian, or custodian as soon as possible.

36. REALLY, REALLY, REALLY IMPORTANT POINT #3 • Remember not to lose your cool at the end of the day and/or the school year. • Remind staff members as well. • Almost every case of alleged student abuse that comes to my attention occurred at the end of the day.