By November 1, 2020, public school districts must report information to the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI) regarding the period of school closure (March 18 – June 30, 2020). The report must include information about the delivery of virtual instruction to students during the period of school closure, the meals served to students during…
The federal District Court for the Northern District of California has issued a preliminary injunction temporarily prohibiting enforcement of the Department of Education’s (DOE) rules for how public-school districts are to distribute Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) funds to private schools. State of Michigan v. Betsy Devos, No. 20-4478, 2020 WL 5074397…
Continuing concerns regarding COVID-19 have led Wisconsin’s public and private schools to implement a variety of different plans for the beginning of the new school year. These plans include in-person schooling five days per week to a fully virtual (remote) learning plan, or a hybrid approach combining in-person and remote learning approaches. Parents and their…
In a decision dated August 3, 2020, the federal court for the Southern District of New York held that the Department of Labor (DOL) exceeded its authority in aspects of its regulations implementing the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA). The Court’s decision in State of New York v. United States Department of Labor, 2020…
You realize that a neighboring property owner is encroaching upon District property. Your first instinct is to confront the neighboring property owner with a claim of trespass. However, there are necessary procedures to protect the District’s legal interest to the land in dispute before pursuing litigation on this matter. According to Wisconsin Statute 943.13[1], trespass…
Governor Tony Evers issued an Emergency Order yesterday, July 30, 2020, requiring that every individual five years of age and older wear a face covering if they are indoors or in an enclosed space, and “[a]nother person or persons who are not members of individual’s household or living unit are present in the same room…
School districts across Wisconsin are contemplating how to begin school for the 2020-2021 school year with the current public health emergency caused by COVID-19. There are essential questions that school districts must answer concerning special education once the district determines whether to start school entirely virtual, entirely in-person, or with a hybrid model that blends…
Federal immigration law requires that all employers in the United States verify both the identity and the employment authorization status of all employees hired after November 1986. This requirement applies to all new hires and, where necessary, requires re-verification of employment authorization in the case of expiring temporary employment authorization (in the case of individuals…
The United States Supreme Court on July 9, 2020 granted review in a case that raises a procedural question with significant practical implications for the types of constitutional lawsuits often brought against public school districts. The grant of certiorari in Uzuegbunam v. Preczewski (Case No. 19-968) came on the last day of the Court’s term and will…
At a time when technology and social media use among students is pervasive, school districts are often faced with issues regarding the contours of regulating off-campus student speech. To date, the United States Supreme Court has not directly ruled on the limits of school districts’ authority to impose discipline for student speech that occurs outside…