Last week, Governor Lamont signed into law Public Act 26-1, bringing about changes that will affect the age at which students may begin kindergarten in
Continue Reading New Law Phases Out Early Kindergarten Admission in Connecticut
Emerging School Law Issues
Dori Pagé Antonetti is a member of the School Law Practice Group where she represents a wide range of educational institutions, including both public and independent k-12 schools in a variety of education and employment law matters. In her day-to-day representation of clients, Dori draws on her unique experience as a former educator for Teach for America. This experience, coupled with her time as a hearing review officer for the New York City Office of Labor Relations, allows Dori to analyze issues from a practical perspective, which brings significant advantages to her clients.
Most recently, Dori’s practice has focused on assisting school districts and independent schools with various aspects of COVID-19 pandemic response and preparedness and return-to-school planning. Dori has provided guidance on the requirements and implementation of ever-evolving federal and state laws and guidelines in various areas, such as employee leave, vaccine mandates, mask rules, health and safety protocols, telehealth, and sports-related issues.
Dori is a thoughtful attorney who has astute peripheral vision which allows her to help school clients identify legal issues and develop creative solutions. She is attentive to detail, careful, and thorough. Dori has extensive experience in policy development and review, and enjoys helping clients ensure that their policies and regulations are legally compliant, clearly written, and accomplish their intended purpose. She also regularly advises schools on their obligations and responsibilities under the Family and Medical Leave Act and Americans with Disabilities Act. For independent school clients, Dori has extensive experience drafting and revising enrollment contracts, faculty/staff handbooks, employment contracts and advising on issues such as truth-in-lending obligations, federal funding, vaccine policies and exemption issues.
Last week, Governor Lamont signed into law Public Act 26-1, bringing about changes that will affect the age at which students may begin kindergarten in…
Continue Reading New Law Phases Out Early Kindergarten Admission in Connecticut
Last fall, school districts across Connecticut faced significant changes regarding employee leave rights when state law was revised to extend the Connecticut Family and Medical…
Continue Reading Connecticut FMLA and the Continuation of Medical Insurance: What are the Rules?
Originally appeared in the CAS Weekly Newsletter
Guest Columnists: Dori Pagé Antonetti and Jessica Richman Smith
Dear Legal Mailbag,
I am an assistant principal at…
Continue Reading CAS Legal Mailbag – 1/8/26
Connecticut school administrators often grapple with whether to discipline students for speech that occurs off school grounds and outside a school-sponsored activity (“off-campus speech”). Under…
Continue Reading Second Circuit Finds School District Was Not Justified in Disciplining Student for Off-Campus Social Media Post
In its 2025 regular session, the General Assembly made a number of changes to the statutes that affect public education in Connecticut. This summary provides…
Continue Reading 2025 Education Legislation Summary
New Requirements for Non-Certified School Employees Take Effect October 1, 2025
Starting October 1, 2025, Connecticut public schools will experience a significant shift in how…
Continue Reading Connecticut Public Schools Face Major Leave Law Changes This Fall – A Guide for Schools
As discussed in our prior blog post, the United States Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) recently issued a Dear Colleague letter…
Continue Reading OCR Issues Frequently Asked Questions and Connecticut State Board of Education Offers Guidance Regarding Dear Colleague Letter on Racial Discrimination and DEI
On February 14, 2025, the United States Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights (OCR) issued guidance clarifying how the Department will interpret federal laws…
Continue Reading OCR Issues “Dear Colleague” Letter on Racial Discrimination
On January 29, 2025, President Trump issued an executive order entitled “Ending Radical Indoctrination in K-12 Schooling.” Contending that students are being indoctrinated…
Continue Reading President Trump Issues Executive Order Entitled “Ending Radical Indoctrination in K-12 Schooling”
Originally appeared in the CAS Weekly Newsletter
Guest Columnist, Dori Pagé Antonetti
Dear Legal Mailbag:
One of our high school English teachers just went out…
Continue Reading CAS Legal Mailbag – 1/30/25