On May 21, 2021, Jessica Richman Smith and Thomas Mooney spoke at the Annual Meeting of the Connecticut Association of School Personnel Administrators. During their
Continue Reading Jessica Richman Smith and Thomas Mooney Answer Eight Key Questions for CASPA on Personnel Issues as the Pandemic Ends
Introduction
On March 31, 2020, Governor Lamont issued Executive Order No. 7R (“Order 7R”) to address, among other issues, continued funding for boards of education,
Continue Reading Executive Order Extends Funding, Employment And Preservation of Services for Schools
The Department of Children and Families (DCF) adopted new procedures last month that will make life easier for some mandated reporters. DCF Policy 22-1-3, Mandated
Continue Reading New DCF Policy Facilitates Online Reporting and Creates New Unit for School Districts!
Originally appeared in the CAS Weekly Newsletter.
Written by attorney Thomas B. Mooney.
Dear Legal Mailbag:
As an assistant principal at a large
Continue Reading CAS Legal Mailbag Question of the Week – 2/20/2019
The U.S. Department of Education recently released its anticipated proposed regulations regarding sexual harassment under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972. If adopted,
Continue Reading Proposed Title IX Sexual Harassment Regulations Would Have Significant Impact on Public Schools and Colleges and Universities
Earlier this month, Massachusetts’ highest court ruled favorably for Massachusetts Institute of Technology (“MIT”) and three school officials in a wrongful death lawsuit closely watched
Continue Reading Massachusetts’ Supreme Court Finds Colleges May Face Liability for Student Suicide Under Certain Circumstances
Less than one week after the Second Circuit Court of Appeals held that Title VII’s prohibition on sex discrimination bars discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals issued its own landmark Title VII decision finding that the antidiscrimination statute prohibits discrimination against transgender or transitioning individuals even where an employer’s religious exercise may be substantially burdened.
Continue Reading Sixth Circuit: Title VII Prohibits Discrimination Based on Transgender and/or Transitioning Status
On September 28, 2017, Connecticut Governor Dannel P. Malloy and Commissioner of Education Dr. Dianna R. Wentzell issued a joint memorandum to Connecticut superintendents of public schools outlining local educational agency (“LEA”) obligations to homeless youth displaced by natural disasters. It is anticipated that many school-age students will seek refuge in Connecticut in light of the devastation rendered in Puerto Rico by Hurricane Maria. Public school districts are uniquely poised to supply a degree of normalcy to such students through educational opportunities and referrals to other services.
Under Subtitle VII-B of the federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, 42 U.S.C. §§ 11431-11435, (the “Act”), children and youth in homeless situations are afforded certain educational protections. Under the Act, “homeless children and youth” include individuals who “lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence” and often includes those students displaced by disasters, including those students staying in accommodations set up by relief and community agencies. Such students displaced by disasters generally meet the Act’s definition and, as noted in the joint memorandum, such students will also qualify for free school meals, as well as health and other related services.
On Thursday, in a speech by U.S. Department of Education Secretary Betsy Devos, the Department announced that it would undertake a review of its current
Continue Reading U.S. Department of Education Announces Intention to Review and Replace Title IX Regulations Concerning Sexual Harassment and Violence
On Friday, the Connecticut Supreme Court issued its long-awaited ruling in Munn v. Hotchkiss School, the case involving a private school student who contracted tick-borne encephalitis on a school-sponsored trip to China. In its ruling, the Supreme Court found unanimously that 1) the state’s public policy supports imposing an affirmative duty on schools to warn about and protect against the risk of insect-borne diseases and 2) an award of $41.5 million for the breach of that duty fell within the limits of just compensation.
Cara Munn was a 15-year-old student who participated in a school-sponsored trip to China in 2007. The itinerary for this trip included a visit to Mount Pan, located in a forested region of northeast China. Upon descending the mountain on foot, the student suffered several insect bites, and ten days later, began to experience symptoms of tick-borne encephalitis. Though her condition subsequently stabilized, the student suffered permanent brain damage and has lost the ability to speak and has limited control of her facial muscles. The student and her family sued the school for negligence. Following a 2013 jury trial, a federal district court in Bridgeport found the school negligent for failing to warn the student and her parents about the remote possibility of insect-borne diseases and ordered the school to pay $41.5 million in damages—$31.5 million of which was for non-economic damages such as pain and suffering. The school appealed. In August 2015, the Second Circuit found that the student’s injuries were foreseeable; however, the court requested guidance from the Connecticut Supreme Court on two specific issues: 1) whether state public policy imposed a legal duty on schools “to warn or protect against the foreseeable risk of a serious insect-borne disease when organizing a trip abroad and, if so, 2) whether the jury’s damages award, particularly the noneconomic portion, warranted [vacation of or reduction in the jury’s damages award].”
Continue Reading Connecticut Supreme Court Issues Decision in Munn v. Hotchkiss