ELC supports students and parents advocating at their local school boards. This fact sheet explains key legal duties that school boards must follow when adopting school rules, often called codes of conduct. These include the legal obligation to provide adequate notice of behaviors subject to discipline, upholding students’ due process rights when imposing punishments, and ensuring that school rules do not illegally discriminate. School boards play a critical role in shaping school climate and can and should create rules that are fair and supportive. This resource also provides best practices for creating welcoming and affirming school climates that benefit all members of the school community and uphold children’s rights.
Archives
McKinney-Vento and Act 1 Universal Screening Tools for LEAs
Students experiencing homelessness are entitled to additional educational protections under the federal McKinney-Vento Act and Pennsylvania’s Act 1. Local Education Agencies (LEA) have an affirmative legal duty to identify and recognize students who are experiencing homelessness as McKinney-Vento eligible. In addition, school entities have an additional legal obligation to also proactively identify McKinney-Vento eligible students who have changed school entities at least once in a school year as Act 1 eligible. This tool can be used to help determine whether a student is McKinney-Vento and Act 1 eligible and to flag key supports students are entitled to receive on the basis of their eligibility. Download here.
Educational Decision Maker (EDM)Toolkit
Court-appointed Educational Decision Makers (EDMs) can have an enormously positive impact on the educational outcomes of children and youth in dependency system. Together with school personnel, child welfare professionals, and others, they can work to ensure that students who are in dependent care have school stability, achieve academic success, and have access to needed services. This collection of “Tools” is intended to help Pennsylvania CASA programs train new EDM volunteers and to provide an ongoing resource for EDMs as questions and challenges arise in their work. The Toolkit provides checklists, suggestions, and resources to help EDMs address a range of education issues including enrollment, access to special education services, and school discipline.
Developing an IEP Transition Plan
This toolkit, released in October 2016, is designed to help Pennsylvania youth with disabilities who are in the foster care or juvenile justice system to prepare for Individualized Education Program (IEP) meetings. Although this toolkit is aimed at youth in foster care or the juvenile justice system, who often lack engaged adults to advocate for them at IEP meetings, it can be used by any teenager receiving special education. The toolkit was collaboratively produced by Education Law Center, Juvenile Law Center, and Disability Rights Pennsylvania.
ELC Toolkit: School Success for Students Without Homes
This collection of “tools” is intended to help parents and providers ensure school success for children and youth (ages 3-21) in Pennsylvania who are experiencing homelessness. The toolkit provides information about important laws and explains legal rights and how to use them.
ELC Guide to Inclusive Early Childhood Learning in Pennsylvania
The Education Law Center is pleased to announce the publication of the second edition of A Family Guide to Inclusive Early Childhood Learning in Pennsylvania. This project has been supported by a grant from the Pennsylvania Developmental Disabilities Council.
This guide is designed to be a quick and easy resource to inclusive early childhood learning programs in Pennsylvania for parents of children with developmental delays or disabilities.
ELC Fairness in School Discipline Guide
This 2009 ELC handbook for attorneys and advocates who represent students examines the law on school discipline in Pennsylvania, which derives from the United States and Pennsylvania Constitutions; federal and state statutes, regulations, and case law; and policies of the Pennsylvania Department of Education, school districts, and individual schools.
ELC Educational Toolkit for Juvenile Justice Professionals
Youth who are adjudicated delinquent frequently encounter problems in obtaining appropriate education services in placement, as well as when they are released and reintegrated into their communities. This 2009 Toolkit from the Education Law Center provides the basic information and resources needed to help juvenile probation officers and other juvenile justice professionals overcome these problems.