In 2022, Khalil Larkin worked for a staffing agency, U.S. Medical, which contracted with Upper Darby School District to provide temporary staffing to the school district. U.S. Medical placed Larkin at Beverly Hills Middle...more
Pennsylvania’s Educator Discipline Act governs educator misconduct complaints filed with the Department of Education for investigation and, if warranted, discipline. 24 Pa. Stat. Ann. § 2070.9. Once a misconduct complaint is...more
1/30/2024
/ Administrative Hearings ,
Confidential Information ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Education ,
Disciplinary Proceedings ,
Educational Institutions ,
Employee Misconduct ,
First Amendment ,
Misdemeanors ,
Professional Disciplinary Actions ,
Public Schools ,
School Districts ,
Settlement Agreements ,
Strict Scrutiny Standard ,
Teachers ,
Unconstitutional Condition
Dale McClendon v. The School District of Philadelphia, 2023 WL 4237080 (E.D. Pa 2023). (Federal court held that a school district was subject to due process and breach of contract claims for the manner in which it completed a...more
11/10/2023
/ Breach of Contract ,
Child Abuse ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Defamation ,
Due Process ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Internal Investigations ,
Non-Disparagement Provisions ,
Resignation ,
School Districts ,
Special Education
In the Matter of Arbitration Between Milton Area Education Association and Milton Area School District (Talarico 2022) (Arbitrator sustains discharge of teacher for inappropriate social media posts)....more
Save Our Saltsburg Schools v. River Valley School District, No. 1140 C.D. 2021 (Pa.Cmwlth. November 7, 2022) (Commonwealth Court rejects community group’s efforts to invalidate school district’s decision to close a school...more
Rebecca Cartee-Haring v. Central Bucks School District, Civil Action No. 20-1995 (E.D. Pa. 8/24/22) (A federal court grants certification of a collective action by female teachers pursuing an Equal Pay Act claim for...more
12/8/2022
/ Class Certification ,
Collective Actions ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Equal Pay ,
Equal Pay Act ,
Equal Protection ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Gender-Based Pay Discrimination ,
Public Schools ,
School Districts ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Teachers ,
Unfair Labor Practices ,
Wage and Hour
Kennedy v. Bremerton School District, 597 U.S. __ (2022) (The United States Supreme Court concludes that a coach praying at mid-field following a high school football game was engaged in private religious expression...more
9/26/2022
/ Adverse Employment Action ,
Coaches ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Educational Institutions ,
First Amendment ,
Free Exercise Clause ,
Free Speech ,
Kennedy v. Bremerton School District ,
Prayer ,
Public Employees ,
Religious Expression ,
School Districts ,
SCOTUS
Marshall v. Amuso, No. 21-CV-4336 (E.D.Pa. November 17, 2021). (Federal court concludes that school board policy governing public participation at school board meetings was unconstitutionally vague and an infringement on free...more
Oberheim v. Bason, No. 4:21-CV-01566 (M.D.Pa.). (Federal court rejects parents’ request for an injunction to stop school district’s compliance with Pennsylvania Department of Health mask mandate).
Background -
As in...more
On June 30, 2021, Governor Tom Wolf signed into law Act 65 of 2021, amending the Pennsylvania Sunshine Act to establish new public notice requirements applicable to meetings of school districts’ boards of school directors....more
Kathleen Wright Croft v. Donegal Township, 2021 WL 1110567 (W.D. Pa. 2021) (A township supervisor’s motion for a preliminary injunction against her fellow supervisors was denied upon finding that she was not deprived of...more
Morgan v. Mifflin County School District, Case No. 1:2–CV-01930 (M.D. Pa. 2020). The United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania issued a restraining order enjoining a school district policy...more
Under Pennsylvania’s Medical Marijuana Act (“MMA”), 35 Pa. C.S.A. §10231.101, et seq., individuals with certain serious medical conditions can apply for a medical marijuana card from the Pennsylvania Department of Health....more
10/10/2019
/ Commercial Driving Licenses ,
Controlled Substances Act ,
Department of Transportation (DOT) ,
Discipline ,
Drug Testing ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Job Applicants ,
Job Offers ,
Medical Marijuana ,
School Districts ,
State Health Departments ,
Students
Press and Journal, Inc. v. Borough of Middletown, Civil Action No. 1:18-CV-2064 (M.D. Pa. 2018) (Borough faces a civil rights claim for retaliation against newspaper for unfavorable press coverage).
BACKGROUND -
The...more
6/12/2019
/ Advertising ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
First Amendment ,
Free Speech ,
Government Entities ,
Independent Contractors ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Municipalities ,
Newspapers ,
Public Employees ,
Retaliation ,
Service Contracts
D.C. ex rel. C.C. and M.C. vs. Wallingford-Swarthmore School District, 2018 WL 3968866 (E.D. Pa. August 18, 2018) (Federal district court concludes that children did not qualify for continued enrollment as “homeless” children...more
The General Assembly and Governor Wolfe recently enacted various legislation affecting school entities. The following is a brief summary of those developments....more
Erie County Technical School v. Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board, 1818 C.D. 2016 (2017) (Commonwealth Court concluded that an employer’s direct communication with its employees concerning the status of ongoing negotiations...more
Barna v. Board of School Directors of the Panther Valley School District, Case No. 15-3904 (3d Cir. 2017). The United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a citizen’s suit against individual...more
Doe v. Boyertown Area School District, 2017 WL 3675418 (E.D. Pa. 2017) (A Pennsylvania federal court denied a motion for a preliminary injunction in a case brought by four students (plaintiffs) in opposition to school policy...more
Russell Bittendender, et ux. v. Bangor Area School District, Case No. 15-6465 (E.D. Pa. 2017). The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania refused to dismiss a complaint alleging that a school...more
The legal landscape regarding transgender student rights in public schools continues to evolve. Within the last week, several developments have occurred:
..On February 22, 2017, the U.S. Departments of Education and...more
Scott Enterprises, Inc. v. City of Allentown, 142 A.3d 779 (Pa. 2016) — Pennsylvania Supreme Court held that a jury finding of bad faith does not mandate a trial court to award penalties and attorney fees under the...more
In the latest development of transgender student issues, the United States Supreme Court agreed to review the ruling of the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals in the matter of Gloucester County School Board v. G.G., 822 F.3d 709...more
In the Matter of Rules and Regulations Implementing the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991 (Petition of Blackboard, Inc.), CG Docket No. 02-278 (August 2016). The FCC confirms that schools may send informational...more
Watts v. Manheim Central School District, 112 MAP 2014 (Pa. 2015). The Pennsylvania Supreme Court affirmed an earlier ruling of the Commonwealth Court that, when a school district provides transportation, it must transport a...more