The following is a brief description of acts that were passed during the 2024 Session of the Connecticut General Assembly that may be of interest to Connecticut school leaders. ...more
8/22/2024
/ Connecticut ,
Education Reform ,
Educational Institutions ,
Employee Benefits ,
General Assembly ,
New Amendments ,
New Regulations ,
Public Employees ,
Public Schools ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Special Education ,
Students ,
Teachers ,
Wage and Hour
The General Assembly significantly expanded Connecticut’s paid sick leave law this term, but the changes do not take effect until January 1, 2025, and then become fully implemented as of January 1, 2027. ...more
On the same day Taylor Swift dropped her new album at midnight, the US Department of Education quickly followed and released the long-anticipated new Title IX final regulations. ...more
Educational institutions are anxiously awaiting the U.S. Department of Education’s issuance of the amended final Title IX regulations. The deadline for releasing the new regulations has been pushed back several times...more
4/10/2024
/ Biden Administration ,
Colleges ,
Department of Education ,
Disciplinary Proceedings ,
Educational Institutions ,
Gender-Based Violence ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Sexual Violence Policies ,
Students ,
Title IX ,
Universities
The 2023 Regular Session of the Connecticut General Assembly concluded on June 7, 2023. The following is a brief description of acts that were passed by the General Assembly that may be of interest to Connecticut’s K-12...more
Employers in Connecticut need to be aware that Connecticut law makes the free speech provisions of both the First Amendment to the United States Constitution and those of the Connecticut Constitution applicable to...more
2/2/2023
/ Adverse Employment Action ,
Connecticut ,
Disciplinary Proceedings ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
First Amendment ,
Free Speech ,
Protected Concerted Activity ,
Social Media Policy ,
State Constitutions
On January 9, 2023, at 9:00 a.m. we presented our first in a monthly series of “Title IX on the Nines” webinars. We were joined by over 100 people from the K-12 and college/university levels. We discussed the top five...more
In neighboring states last week, the federal courts issued two decisions affirming the rights of transgender students and athletes. In Connecticut, the Second Circuit of the U.S. Court of Appeals affirmed the dismissal of a...more
12/21/2022
/ Civil Rights Act ,
Due Process ,
Educational Institutions ,
Fourteenth Amendment ,
LGBTQ ,
OCR ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Orientation ,
Sports ,
Student Athletes ,
Students ,
Title IX ,
Transgender
The 2022 Regular Session of the Connecticut General Assembly concluded on May 4, 2022. The following is a brief description of acts that were passed by the General Assembly that may be of interest to Connecticut’s K-12...more
8/18/2022
/ Connecticut ,
Education Reform ,
FOIA ,
General Assembly ,
Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) ,
Mental Health ,
Omnibus Guidance ,
Public Acts ,
Public Schools ,
School Lunch Programs ,
Special Education ,
Students
The 2022 Regular Session of the Connecticut General Assembly concluded on May 4, 2022. The following is a brief description of acts that were passed by the General Assembly that may be of interest to Connecticut’s K-12...more
8/15/2022
/ Community Development ,
Connecticut ,
Economic Development ,
Education Reform ,
General Assembly ,
Mental Health ,
New Legislation ,
Public Employees ,
Public Employers ,
Public Schools ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
School Transportation ,
Students
On July 12, 2022, the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) quietly updated its Q&A instructing employers as to when they may require an employee to undergo COVID-19 viral testing (i.e., a test, such as an...more
On the 50th anniversary of Title IX, the U.S. Department of Education released draft revisions to Title IX’s regulations. The draft regulations and supporting commentary are approximately 700 pages long and will take some...more
6/27/2022
/ Biden Administration ,
Department of Education ,
Educational Institutions ,
Gender Identity ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Sexual Violence Policies ,
Students ,
Title IX
During the last legislative session, several new laws were passed that affect employers. A few of them go into effect on Friday, October 1, 2021. If you have not started preparing for them, now is the time....more
9/29/2021
/ Age Discrimination ,
Breastfeeding ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Labor Reform ,
Labor Regulations ,
Marijuana ,
Public Sector Unions ,
Recreational Use ,
Salaried Employees ,
Wage and Hour
As we have discussed previously, Governor Lamont’s original Executive Order 13D mandating COVID-19 vaccination for most school employees raised numerous questions. In what appears to be an attempt to address the many...more
9/14/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Employment Policies ,
Essential Workers ,
Federal Contractors ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Public Health Emergency ,
Teachers ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
On Friday, August 27, 2021, approximately 200 people joined us for a webinar on issues faced by Connecticut schools as they reopen this fall during the current COVID-19 pandemic. We covered topics such as mask mandates,...more
9/1/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Educational Institutions ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Essential Workers ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Masks ,
Public Health Emergency ,
Re-Opening Guidelines ,
School Policies ,
Students ,
Teachers ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
In the next installment of what appears to be the ever-moving target of mandatory vaccinations for Connecticut school employees, the Governor issued Executive Order 13D (the “Order”) delineating the state’s requirements for...more
8/25/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Essential Workers ,
Executive Orders ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Private Schools ,
Public Health Emergency ,
Public Schools ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
State Contractors ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
The 2021 Regular Session of the Connecticut General Assembly concluded on June 9, 2021, but the primary source of action on education law issues was a special session of the General Assembly and ensuing “budget implementer”...more
8/10/2021
/ Charter Schools ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Educational Institutions ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
General Assembly ,
Hairstyle Discrimination ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Native American Issues ,
Public Sector Unions ,
School Districts ,
Special Education ,
State and Local Government ,
State Budgets ,
Team Mascots ,
Vaccinations ,
Wage and Hour
As COVID-19 continues to spread throughout the United States, many colleges have turned to mandatory student vaccination requirements in an attempt to return to in-person learning. Predictably, following directly behind...more
On June 22, 2021, the United States Department of Education, Office of Civil Rights (“OCR”) and the U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division (“DOJ) issued a joint Fact Sheet addressed to elementary and secondary...more
6/29/2021
/ Denial of Certiorari ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Educational Institutions ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Gender Identity ,
LGBTQ ,
New Guidance ,
OCR ,
Regulatory Standards ,
School Restrooms ,
School Sports ,
SCOTUS ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Student Athletes ,
Students ,
Title IX ,
Transgender
In what is believed to be the first court decision on the issue of mandatory COVID-19 vaccinations, the U.S. District Court for Southern Texas upheld a hospital’s policy requiring that all of its employees must be vaccinated...more
Friday (May 28, 2021), the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) issued its long-awaited Guidance on mandatory vaccinations in the workplace. In the new Guidance, the EEOC answers many questions about when...more
6/1/2021
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
GINA ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Religious Accommodation ,
Title VII ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
It is not uncommon for school districts and parents to disagree over what is to be included in a child’s individualized education program (“IEP”). The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (“IDEA”) provides a process...more
As discussed in a prior post, OCR under the former President went to great lengths to interpret Bostock v. Clayton (which established that discrimination against someone for being transgender or homosexual was sex...more
2/2/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Bostock v Clayton County Georgia ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Executive Orders ,
Gender Identity ,
LGBTQ ,
OCR ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Orientation ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Title VII ,
Transgender
On January 8, 2021, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights issued a memorandum containing its interpretation of Bostock v. Clayton and its lack of effect on OCR’s interpretation of Title IX. The U.S....more
1/15/2021
/ Bostock v Clayton County Georgia ,
Department of Education ,
Educational Institutions ,
Gender Identity ,
LGBTQ ,
OCR ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
Student Athletes ,
Title IX ,
Transgender
Despite the US Department of Education’s direction that the new Title IX regulations on sexual harassment will not be enforced retroactively, at least one federal court has disagreed. In Doe v. Rensselaer Polytechnic...more
11/4/2020
/ Department of Education ,
Disciplinary Proceedings ,
Educational Institutions ,
Gender-Based Violence ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Retroactive Application ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Sexual Violence Policies ,
Students ,
Title IX