Course Syllabus
School/Department Name: Education
Program: School Administration
Course Number and Title: EAD 688 LA01 - Legal Aspects of School
Administration; ECA 701 LA01- School Management & the Law
Instructor: Douglas Dias, Ed.D.
Course Dates: Sept 20, 2010- Jan. 10, 2011
Course Time: 6:00 -9:30 pm
PURPOSE:
This course is designed to promote an exchange of ideas and information in an active
learning setting. The instructional format will include and focus on a combination of
discussion, readings, and legal analysis. Case studies and student assignments will be
used to provide an opportunity for the practical application of the course content.
COURSE RATIONALE:
School administrators are expected to have a fundamental working knowledge of school
law. Students will examine their local school policy and procedure manual to gain
knowledge and get an understanding of how policy and procedures are developed and
handed down from Federal, State and Local Governments to school systems for
implementation. The students will examine all aspects of school sites as it relates to
policy and practice.
EAD 688 & ECA 701 Course Syllabus Page 1 of 8
School administrators are involved in creating and carrying out school and school
system policies. Individuals in that role need to be aware of best practices and of the
theory supporting policies. Because schools are complex and exist in even more
complex system, leaders need to understand how to deal with competing interests and
scarce resources while ensuring the quality of teaching and learning.
COURSE CONTENT AND DESIGN:
The course is based on the organizational skills that enhance the successful
administration and management for a comprehensive public school. Particular
emphasis is given to Mass. Laws relevant to education.
Topics to be covered include:
 History of educational law
 How to find and analyze case law
 Student rights and Discipline
 Educational liability
 Special education
 Harassment, Bullying, and Discrimination
 Contract Law
COURSE OBJECTIVES:
 To build an awareness of school law, policies, procedures and practices and their
impact on school operation and decision making.
 To develop a fundamental knowledge of existing State and Federal legislation
that has an impact on the operation of schools and school systems.
 To develop a fundamental knowledge of court cases related to the topics
described above.
 To provide educators with the knowledge and skills to promote the success of
their school
COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
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This course is based on case study analysis exploring the legal and leadership dilemma’s
involved in school administration. Each case study should be double spaced and 3-4
pages in length (not including bibliography). I expect it to be broken down into sections
as follows:
 The Problem (Keep it brief. Don’t restate the case, but list what you think is the
real problem.)
 Assumptions (To help keep the case grounded and focused. All case studies have
some vagueness to them, so set your assumptions to help you stay focused)
 Legal Analysis (The heart of the paper. Properly cite the legal implications. Use
the Dunklee & Sheep book as a resource. You can also use other sources as you
see fit.)
 Solution (This should spring from the legal analyses. What would you do to
address the problem?)
 Bibliography
TEXTBOOKS REQUIRED
Dunklee, D. R., & Shoop, R. J. (2006). The principal's quick-reference guide to school law:
Reducing liability, litigation, and other potential legal tangles (2 ed.): Corwin Press.
http://books.google.com/books?id=YsE3FxYldwC&dq=principal%27s+guide+to+school+law&source=gbs_navlinks_s
Additional Resource (no need to purchase): American public school law:
http://books.google.com/books?id=BkZfdC-wvMC&dq=principal%27s%20guide%20to%20school%20law&source=gbs_slider_thumb
OUTCOMES OF THE COURSE:
 Students will have a basic knowledge on the role and responsibility of the school board
and state board of education.
 Students will be able to incorporate their understanding of policies, procedures and
practices process in their school and school system.
 Students will gain an awareness of the importance of policies and procedures and the
need to establish practices that focus on ways to best implement and carry school
policies in a now-threatening manner.
KNOWLEDGE OUTCOMES:
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 Student will demonstrate the ability to apply proper laws, legislation, policy and
practices in an equitable and responsible manner.
 Students will demonstrate the ability to develop a school based policy within the legal
guidelines.
 Students will demonstrate the ability to understand how to ensure that the
management of the total school operations are done with a check and balance system.
Inspections of what is expected.
SKILLS OUTCOMES:
 Students will demonstrate the ability find, read, and understand legal briefs, legislation
and law
 Students will be provided with skills to demonstrate their knowledge through writing in
a manner that incorporates proper legal meaning to their work.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES:
Instructional strategies include conversations and lecture of the readings and case
studies as well as writing and use of the internet.
Throughout the course, participants are expected to take an active role in necessary
discussions and activities, lead parts of the session, and exchange ideas and information.
In addition attendance and daily readings are required. If you are late for class you will
be expected to make the time up and complete additional course assignments.
Strategies for Integrating English Language Learners in the
Classroom
All English Language Learners will be provided additional supports in the classroom to
help them understand the materials presented.
Strategies for Integrating Students with Disabilities in the
Classroom
Any students with a learning or physical disability will be provided with additional
modifications and accommodations necessary for them to access the material.
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Instructional Technology Knowledge Outcomes
Proper usage of the internet to find and understand legal briefs, case law, and
legislation will be embedded into the course curriculum.
COURSE EVALUATION:
Students’ performance will be assessed in the following manner:
Reading all assigned material
Actively engaged in class discussion
Written assignments
10%
20%
70%
Grading Scale:
A = 90% or higher
B = 80% to 89%
C = 70% to 79%
F = student does unsatisfactory work
Academic Integrity
Students are expected to maintain integrity in all academic work. They will not attempt
to get grades by any means other than honest academic effort. All work must be
completed by individual students except for group projects. It is not permissible to
hand in the same work for different courses.
Plagiarism is the use of another’s work, thoughts, or language without giving credit.
Cambridge College students will not summarize, copy, or use the work of another
person or source without proper acknowledgement. Plagiarism is dishonest and a
serious academic offense.
Any breach of academic integrity is grounds for a grade of “No Credit” in academic
courses and/or dismissal from the College.
Students with Disabilities:
Any student who feels s/he may need an accommodation based on the impact of
educational, psychological, and/or physical disabilities may be eligible for
accommodations that provide equal access to educational programs at Cambridge
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College. Students should notify the instructor immediately, and should contact Ms.
Diane Paxton in Disability Support Services as soon as possible at (617) 873-0470 or
diane.paxton@cambridgecollege.edu. In compliance with Cambridge College policies
and equal access laws, Ms. Paxton coordinates reasonable accommodations for students
with documented disabilities. Requests for accommodations must be made within the
first week of the term (except in unusual circumstances) so that timely and appropriate
arrangements can be made. All students are expected to fulfill essential course
requirements in order to receive a passing grade in a class, with or without reasonable
accommodations. Accommodations cannot be granted retroactively.
Students attending classes outside of Massachusetts should contact the Regional Center
Director for information on accommodations.
Online Library Services:
Cambridge College Online Library (CCOL) provides an extensive collection of
full-text articles from thousands of scholarly journals and 36,000+ full-text books,
live reference librarian support 24 hours every day, and instruction and resources
for doing research in all of our subject areas. It’s free, it’s always available, and for
information and instructions about Cambridge College library services and
resources, go to http://www.cambridgecollege.edu/library/research.cfm
and click the link How to Use CCOL Handbook.
To enter the CCOL, you must have MyCC access (or contact
maida.tilchen@cambridgecollege.edu for temporary access.)
 Log into your MyCC portal homepage
 Click the third tab, Academics
 In the right column, click Online Library link
 This should take you directly to the CCOL Home Page
If you cannot get to the “CCOL Home Page, you may have a firewall or browser
technical problem: contact Cambridge College Technical Support at 1-800-8774723 x1159 or (617) 873-0159. Further info is at
http://www.cambridgecollege.edu/it/
For information about traditional library arrangements for your campus site,
see the “Traditional Library Skills” section of
http://www.cambridgecollege.edu/library/research.cfm
Faculty Contact Information:
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Cellular:
E-mail:
781-603-6022
dr.d.dias@gmail.com
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School Management and Law Fall 2010 Handouts and Readings:
History and Foundations
Anderson
Chapter 2- Historical perspectives of Public Schools. pp21-40
Special Education
Email
Access by students with disabilities to accelerated programs
MA DESE Memorandum on Special Education Surrogate Program
MA BSEA Scope of Rules
MA BSEA Re: Zale and the Springfield Schools
MA BSEA
Re. Natick Public Schools
MA DESE Advisory on Schaffer v. Weast
Principal’s Quick Reference Guide Chapter 8 Principal’s Responsibilities in Special Education
Issues
Liability
Anderson
Chapter 11- Tort Liability
Anderson
Section 1983, pp 654-662
Yell on Teacher Liability
The Freedom Dictionary- In loco parentis
Bomb Threat Checklist
M.G.L. Chapter 258
Student Rights and Discipline
Principal’s Quick Reference Guide Chapter 6 Student Rights
Bill or Rights- Amendments most pertinent to educational administrators
First Amendment
Hazelwood
Tinker
Bethel
JS. V. Bethlehem
Principal’s Quick Reference Guide Chapter 7 Student Discipline
Nabozny v. Podlesny 39 F. 3d. 446; 1996
Yeo v. Lexington 131 F. 3d. 121; 1997
Student Records
Principal’s Quick Reference Guide Chapter 9
Academic Issues and Student Records
FERPA 20 U.S.C. 1232g.
Human Resources and Contracts
Principal’s Quick Reference Guide Chapter 4 Staff Selection and Eval.
Case Studies
Case Study 10 Music Lesson Dilemma
Case Study 23 The Six Pack
Case Study 19 Raising Test Scores
Case Study 16 Is this Child Right for Inclusion?
Case Study 10 The Bomb Scare
Case Study 27 Promotion from Within
Case Study 31 We Will Not Have Our Child…
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