The Iola-Scandinavia School Board will be updated with legal alerts pursuant to off-campus speech, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, and Title IX at its April 11 meeting.
The text of the legal alerts under Policy & Legislation Committee includes the following.
Legal Alerts
U.S. Supreme Court Addresses Student Off-Campus Speech
The Alert discusses the Mahanoy Area School District v. B.L. U.S. Supreme Court decision involving student free speech issues. Although the Supreme Court affirmed the Third Circuit in finding a violation of the cheerleader’s (student’s) free speech rights, it is important to recognize that the Court rejected the Third Circuit’s broader position that schools cannot regulate off[1]campus speech. The Supreme Court recognized that there can be circumstances where off-campus speech implicates the regulatory interests of schools. It concluded that the facts in Mahanoy did not rise to that level but going forward school districts are in a position to respond to such speech if they conclude it is creating a substantial disruption of learning or threatening the protection of the school population. The Court found that lacking in Mahanoy, but it could exist in future circumstances. It is clear from the decision that the characteristics of off-campus speech that differentiate it from speech at school or at a school function will make it more difficult to pass constitutional muster when dealing with off-campus speech. School administrators will have to analyze such issues carefully when contemplating responding to off-campus speech.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Public Schools
The Alert discusses the state of the Biden Administration’s efforts to place a focus on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the schools through deliberate consideration of different learning styles and needs of students from different backgrounds. The Administration has directed the Department of Education to develop plans to address these areas, to collect data to inform the development of programs, and to target specific areas of inequity at the local level. No concrete plan or requirements have yet been identified; however, the Administration’s orders focus on increasing minority participation in advance placement and other college readiness courses, enhancing dropout prevention and recovery programs for Black and Hispanic students, and improving hiring practices to improve diversity among the teaching staff. This Alert provides an update on these efforts and resources related to the initiatives discussed so far; however there is as of yet no actual requirements for school board action.
Update of Title IX Implementation and Enforcement under the Biden Administration
The Alert discusses the Biden Administration’s position on Title IX as it relates to gender identity as a protected classification. The Administration noted the U.S. Supreme Court in the Bostock decision had determined that gender identity was a protected classification with the definition of the term “sex” as used in Title VII and that there was no discernable distinction between the term in Title VII and Title IX. Accordingly, the Administration intends to enforce Title IX in the context of discrimination on the basis of gender identity and more broadly relative to the LGBTQ+ community. This analysis is consistent with the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals decision in the Whittaker v. Racine Unified School District case and therefore is not a significant change in Wisconsin. However, this does signify the federal government’s intent to use its resources to enforce these protections.