Sexual behaviors in young children can range from exploratory and normal to abusive and violent. Under federal law, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, schools have an obligation to protect children from sexually inappropriate behavior, examples include inappropriate touching and peer sexual abuse. Schools’ obligation can be complicated when...
Educating students is not the only responsibility of school districts. Federal and state laws require schools to be proactive about protecting student civil rights and to foster a positive learning environment free from discriminatory harassment and abuse. Several federal laws, including Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Section...
School negligence cases involving teachers, coaches, camp counselors, bus drivers, and other personnel resulting in injury to a child are ever-present in the news. Negligence in schools that results in sexual abuse, death, and sports injury all present opportunities for costly negligence claims that may entail large settlements or grave...
Key Takeaways: Schools and child-and youth-oriented agencies must uphold a higher standard of care tailored to a child’s unique needs when supervising children with behavioural and physical disabilities. They should ensure safety through adequate supervision of children with disabilities, specialized programs and services for qualifying students, and addressing issues that...
Part 1 of this series provided a general overview of the Title IX Amendments of 2020 (the new Title IX rule or the Final Rule), how they differ from previous amendments, a definition of sexual harassment, the role of the Title IX coordinator, and who should report allegations of sexual...
Removing police from schools has been part of the Black Lives Matter movement for years. Research shows that schools with a police presence are more likely to refer children to law enforcement, even for non-serious behaviors. According to the Education Week Research Center, black students in most states are more...