On May 23, 2024, Senate Bill 3606 (“SB 3606”) passed both houses. If signed into law by Governor Pritzker, SB 3606 will amend the Children with Disabilities Article of the Illinois School Code to provide for expanded state...more
The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) recently announced a resolution agreement with the Los Angeles Unified School District largely addressing issues related to OCR’s finding that the District...more
5/17/2022
/ California ,
City of Los Angeles ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Education ,
Educational Institutions ,
Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) ,
Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) ,
Infectious Diseases ,
OCR ,
Public Schools ,
Remote Learning ,
Section 504 ,
Special Education ,
Students
The U.S. Department of Education recently announced its intent to amend the regulations implementing Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 to “strengthen and protect rights for students with disabilities.” While the...more
5/17/2022
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Department of Education ,
Disabilities ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Educational Institutions ,
OCR ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Rehabilitation Act ,
Section 504 ,
Students
The COVID-19 paid leave law has raised both legal and practical questions for school administrators. To further assist with following the mandates of the law, we have prepared a model form that schools can use when receiving...more
Yesterday, Governor J.B. Pritzker signed into law a revised version of HB 1167, which provides paid administrative leave, with no deduction of sick leave days, to fully vaccinated teachers for absences related to COVID-19....more
4/6/2022
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Educational Institutions ,
Illinois ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Labor Reform ,
New Legislation ,
Paid Time Off (PTO) ,
School Districts ,
Sick Leave ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
Just before midnight yesterday, the Appellate Court issued its decision on the appeal of the February 4, 2022 TRO enjoining the Governor from enforcing certain COVID-19 mitigation measures including universal masking. With...more
2/18/2022
/ Appeals ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Educational Institutions ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Masks ,
Mootness ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Risk Mitigation ,
School Policies ,
Students ,
Teachers ,
TRO ,
Workplace Safety
Since yesterday, there have been many reports about the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules (JCAR) vote against extending IDPH Emergency Rules regarding masking, vaccine and testing requirements in schools. This has...more
2/16/2022
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Educational Institutions ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Masks ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Quarantine ,
School Policies ,
Students ,
Teachers ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
On Friday, a court ruling in Springfield resulted in a temporary restraining order enjoining the Governor from enforcing certain COVID-19 mitigation measures including universal masking. Approximately 150 of Illinois’ 840...more
2/7/2022
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Educational Institutions ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Masks ,
Motion To Enjoin ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
School Districts ,
Students ,
Teachers ,
TRO ,
Workplace Safety
Late Friday, Governor Pritzker issued Executive Order 2021-24 requiring schools to exclude students and school personnel for COVID-19 diagnosis, exposure, or symptoms. School districts, not the local health department, are...more
9/21/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Responsibilities ,
Executive Orders ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Public Health Emergency ,
Quarantine ,
Sick Employees ,
Students ,
Teachers ,
Workplace Safety
Earlier this summer, we let you know about two special education bills that had passed the Illinois legislature, which, if signed by the Governor, would provide additional services to some transition students. ...more
Just hours before the conclusion of the spring legislative session, the Illinois General Assembly passed two bills that will significantly impact students who receive services until age 22. The first, HB40, impacts students...more
6/3/2021
/ Disabled Children ,
Educational Institutions ,
Eligibility Determination ,
Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) ,
ISBE ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Public Schools ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Special Education ,
State and Local Government ,
Students ,
Transitional Arrangements
Prior to winter break, we wrote about proposed legislation that would further limit the use of physical restraint and time out in Illinois schools. While many expected the bill to pass during the lame duck session earlier...more
For school personnel administrators, it is a frustrating but typical experience to have a teachers’ union representative object to warnings and directives on the grounds that the warning is too broad, or not directly on point...more
Over the past year, the use of physical restraint and seclusion in schools has come under increased scrutiny. While ISBE issued emergency rules at the end of last November, followed by a series of updates and then final...more
12/2/2020
/ Child Abuse ,
Disciplinary Proceedings ,
Education Reform ,
Educational Institutions ,
Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) ,
ISBE ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Restraints ,
Rulemaking Process ,
State and Local Government ,
Students
A presidential election like no other in history, a global pandemic causing an unprecedented economic and emotional toll on our communities, and a remote learning environment where virtual communication reigns, whether in the...more
In this episode, we discuss the most top-of-mind issues and lessons learned from the COVID-19 crisis....more
10/8/2020
/ Colleges ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Crisis Management ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Remote Learning ,
School Districts ,
School Policies ,
Students ,
Teachers ,
Universities
On August 12, 2020, the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) issued a “Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)” for Schools.” In a statement by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) to stakeholders that same day, ISBE...more
8/14/2020
/ Contact Tracing ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Educational Institutions ,
Health and Safety ,
IDEA ,
Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) ,
Infectious Diseases ,
ISBE ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Public Health ,
Re-Opening Guidelines ,
Section 504 ,
Special Education ,
State Health Departments ,
Students
While only a handful of cases have been reported related to districts’ provision of special education services remotely, we are watching carefully for lessons learned. So far, courts have not required in-person instruction as...more
ISBE released a comprehensive guidance document today with learning recommendations for the return to school this fall. In a letter introducing this document...more
ISBE and IDPH recently released their guidance related to Starting the 2020-21 School Year. The guidance addresses a broad range of topics, including some suggestions related to special education. The following week ISBE...more
On June 30, 2020, ISBE issued an FAQ document with the purpose of assisting school districts in the transition to in-person instruction. This document, which supplements ISBE’s general guidance on return to in-person...more
We recently let you know about a pending bill that would make changes to several special education procedures. Senate Bill 1569 has now been signed by Governor Pritzker as PA 101-0643....more
Less than a year ago, Public Act 101-0515 sent Illinois special educators scrambling to comply with an array of new procedural requirements. Now, as if you aren’t dealing with enough challenges related to remote learning and...more
And so it begins. While we have encouraged schools to focus on meeting student needs during the school closure and planning to meet student needs when we return to school buildings, we knew the temptation to jump ahead to...more
After three weeks of being out of school buildings and one week of remote learning, we can all see that the IDEA was not written for pandemics and widespread school closures. While requests for IDEA flexibility have been...more