2022 School Law eConference

Commissioner Decisions Update (Apr 2022)

Hear an update on Commissioner of Education decisions from the past year.

Originally presented: Feb 2022 School Law Conference

Mark P. Tilley, Texas Association of School Boards - Austin, TX

Special Education Update (Apr 2022)

Review a round-up of recent agency guidance—as well as administrative and judicial decisions—concerning special education with a focus on COVID-19 issues. Dive into topics including “long-COVID,” IEP implementation, and compensatory services.

Originally presented: Feb 2022 School Law Conference

Elvin Houston, Walsh Gallegos Treviño Russo & Kyle, P.C. - San Antonio, TX

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Originally presented: Feb 2022 School Law Conference

The FLSA and School Districts (Apr 2022)

Explore the application of the FLSA to school districts including misclassification of exempt employees, calculating overtime for dual employment, and compensatory time. 

Originally presented: Feb 2022 School Law Conference

Ann Manning, The Underwood Law Firm, P.C. - Lubbock, TX

The Changing Landscape of Contract Abandonment and Resignation from a Chapter 21 Contract (Apr 2022)

The passage of HB2519—as well as proposed amendments to the State Board for Educator Certification's disciplinary rules related to good cause or mitigating factors to resign from a teacher contract—have sparked a debate within the education community about when a teacher should be permitted to resign mid-year from a Chapter 21 employment contract. This presentation considers the background of that discussion and examines the new legislation and status of SBEC's rules related to enforcement of contract abandonment.

Originally presented: Feb 2022 School Law Conference

Julie Leahy, Texas Classroom Teachers Association - Austin, TX

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Originally presented: Feb 2022 School Law Conference

Senate Bill 3 and the Two CRTs (Apr 2022)

SB3, passed in the 87th Texas Legislature's second special session, has the stated intent of “updat[ing] civics and social studies curriculum and instruction and prohibit[ing] the teaching of critical race theory and its elements.” But does this law also impact the other CRT, culturally relevant teaching? Attorneys from both sides of the bar explore the new law in-depth and share practical strategies for implementation, while also highlighting the potential dangers of over compliance. 

Originally presented: Feb 2022 School Law Conference

Denise Nance Pierce, Schulman, Lopez Hoffer & Adelstein, LLP - Austin, TX
Jason L. Stuart, United Educators Association - Fort Worth, TX

Laws that May Negatively Impact Mental Health (Apr 2022)

Sometimes the most well-intentioned laws have negative impacts. This presentation explores the school laws that have the biggest risk of impacting the mental health and wellbeing of students. 

Originally presented: Feb 2022 School Law Conference

Amanda Marie Bigbee, Keller ISD - Keller, TX
Amy Grosso, Round Rock ISD - Round Rock, TX

School District Election Issues (Apr 2022)

In the aftermath of the U.S. Supreme Court's 2013 decision in Shelby Cnty., Ala. v. Holder invalidating Section 4 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, do school districts still need to consider potential liability for violating the voting rights of minority voters? Learn about this and other current election-related topics, from redistricting to recounts.

Originally presented: Feb 2022 School Law Conference

Debbie Moritz Esterak, Rogers, Morris & Grover, L.L.P. - Austin, TX
Leila Sarmecanic, Clear Creek ISD - League City, TX

Managing Generational Differences (Apr 2022)

The mentorship of young attorneys is an ethical obligation of the supervising attorneys and is critical for the retention of good attorneys. Communication, clarity, and leadership/culture sharing are all critical to bridging the generational divide. This is true for law firms that represent school districts, law firms that represent the employees of school districts, and general/in-house counsel for school districts.

Originally presented: Feb 2022 School Law Conference

Rebecca S. Bradley, Abernathy, Roeder, Boyd & Hullett, P.C. - McKinney, TX
Deron T. Robinson, Denton ISD - Denton, TX
Jim Whitton, Brackett & Ellis, P.C. - Fort Worth, TX

COVID Update: Litigation (Apr 2022)

A summary of the results, or at the least current posture, of the ongoing COVID litigation and its potential future implications for school districts, students, and employees. There will also be a focus on procedural lessons for the practitioner gleaned from this fast-paced, high-profile litigation.

Originally presented: Feb 2022 School Law Conference

Jonathan G. Brush, Rogers, Morris & Grover, L.L.P. - Houston, TX

COVID Update: Impact of Funding (Apr 2022)

Discuss the pandemic funding that has been made available to school districts and charter schools and the impact it can have on improving learning loss.

Originally presented: Feb 2022 School Law Conference

Cory Green, Texas Education Agency - Austin, TX

COVID Update: Employee Issues (Apr 2022)

What is happening in 2021-22 related to COVID? Hear an update on employment matters, including the intersection of the ADA and FMLA.

Originally presented: Feb 2022 School Law Conference

Giana Ortiz, The Ortiz Law Firm - Arlington, TX

COVID Update: Parents and Students (Apr 2022)

What’s COVID got to do with it? Explore and discuss parent/student grievances, student discipline, and board decisions in the time of COVID. 

Originally presented: Feb 2022 School Law Conference

Heather M. Castillo, Arlington, TX

Online Student Speech and the Impact of the Mahanoy Decision (Apr 2022)

A school district attorney explores the impact of the U.S. Supreme Court Mahanoy decision in relation to multiple district activities, including school discipline, extracurricular participation and discipline, and in relation to school safety matters. This presentation also reviews new court decisions applying Mahanoy.

Originally presented: Feb 2022 School Law Conference

Ellen H. Spalding, Karczewski Bradshaw Spalding - Houston, TX

Managing Board Meetings in Today’s Political Climate (Apr 2022)

Communities with divided political views are experiencing unusually high interest in board meeting public comments and other feedback from citizens near and far. School boards now need strategies to give each person a fair opportunity to speak while also dealing with unruly participants. Meanwhile, many school officials have been targeted by threats or verbal attacks—and when things get personal, we attorneys have to keep calm and remember our ethical obligations, too.

Originally presented: Feb 2022 School Law Conference

Joy S. Baskin, Texas Association of School Boards - Austin, TX
Mia M. Martin, Richardson, TX

Title IX: The First 50 Years (Apr 2022)

In 1972, Congress enacted Title IX, ushering in a new era of equity in education. Prior to Title IX, just 30,000 women participated in NCAA sports compared to 170,000 men, and women earned less than 10 percent of all law degrees. Two long-time practitioners survey the major events of the last 50 years and discuss anticipated developments, including proposed amendments to Title IX’s regulations.

Originally presented: Feb 2022 School Law Conference

Lisa A. Brown, Thompson & Horton LLP - Houston, TX
Jackie Gharapour Wernz, Thompson & Horton LLP - Dallas, TX

“Oh, What a Tangled Web We Weave”: Commissioner Jurisdiction after Davis, With a Little DOI and Charter Thrown In (Apr 2022)

Rarely does a school law case make it to the Texas Supreme Court and rarely is the topic so significant. This presentation analyzes Davis v. Morath & Dallas ISD, in which the Texas Supreme Court (perhaps) answered the question of what makes a grievance untimely and whether an untimely grievance deprives the Commissioner of appellate jurisdiction under Texas Education Code §7.057. As a bonus, this presentation also touches upon the Commissioner’s appellate jurisdiction related to districts of innovation and charter schools.

Originally presented: Feb 2022 School Law Conference

Paul Tapp, Association of Texas Professional Educators - Austin, TX

Practicing Law Remotely: We’re Not in Kansas Anymore (Apr 2022)

Drawing on two recent ABA ethics opinions, this presentation explains the ethical pitfalls of practicing law remotely as they apply to school law attorneys and discusses strategies for avoiding them.

Originally presented: Feb 2022 School Law Conference

John Husted, Fanning Harper Martinson Brandt & Kutchin, P.C. - Dallas, TX
Francisco J. Valenzuela, Fanning Harper Martinson Brandt & Kutchin, P.C. - Dallas, TX