My Exploration of Legal and Ethical Issues for Educational Administrators by Elyssha Enriquez https://padlet.com/eenriquez11/ftiw7l6phcrd Elyssha Enriquez, EDG 6305 Legal and Ethical Principles en-us 2018-06-09 05:19:04 UTC 2018-06-11 01:35:35 UTC hello@padlet.com https://padlet-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/icons/Balance.png Future Educational Position eenriquez11 https://padlet.com/eenriquez11/ftiw7l6phcrd/wish/266415502 After completing my master’s degree in educational administration, my professional goal is to become principal for a Title I school at the secondary level. ]]> 2018-06-09 15:05:06 UTC https://padlet.com/eenriquez11/ftiw7l6phcrd/wish/266415502 Option 1 -Discussion on Legal and Ethical Issues in Education eenriquez11 https://padlet.com/eenriquez11/ftiw7l6phcrd/wish/266416507 Sylvia Padilla is the assistant principal at 3D Academy in Donna, Texas. She has held the position at the alternative high school for the past 10 years and primarily services the districts at-risk population. I chose to interview Ms. Padilla because she holds a great reputation for helping to graduate hundreds of students who were on the verge of dropping out of school. In my future role as an administrator, I hope to follow in her footsteps. 

Question 1: Can you tell me about any current legal issues that are impacting your work? 

Accoring to Ms. Paddila, the DACA program is affecting many families and hurting the school district. As the majority of attending students are undocumented immigrants, they feel their safety and future are in jeopardy. It is causing students stress, anxiety, and many absences due to family deportation.

Question 2: What student or employee rights do you find you have to keep in mind in relation to your work?

Ms. Padilla stated that administrators have to understand the rights regarding the special population. They must continuously monitor whether the campus is following the correct process in servicing and disciplining the special education and 504 students. As parents are aware of laws protecting their child's educational needs, it is important for the campus and district to ensure policies and procedures are followed to avoid legal action.

Question 3: Can you share a student or employment situation where you worried about the legal or ethical implications?

Ms. Padilla stated that she worried about both the legal and ethical implications involved when disciplining a special education student. According to Ms. Padilla, the situation occurred at the beginning of the school year. The student was making terroristic threats, hit a teacher, and made inappropriate comments about an employee. As Ms. Padilla had never dealt with this type of situation before, she was not sure how to intervene. She understood the students rights, but also felt the individual should be removed from campus. However, the special education director and school principal shared different views, as the students disability prevents the individual from acting appropriately.

Question 4: Are there any policies or rules you are currently or have recently revised or changed because of legal or ethical issues?

 Ms. Padilla stated that her campus services the at-risk population in the district. However, it was created to help students who want to graduate receive their high school diploma. Although, over the past few year the superintendent has allowed other campuses to send their most troubling students. Therefore, this year campus administrators have implemented a policy that place all students on a probationary period. If their behavior or grades do not improve, the school is allowed to send them back to their primary campus. 

Question 5: Have you provided or received any training recently on legal or ethical issues? How do you stay current on legal issues in your field?

According to Ms. Padilla, she has provided her staff with Title IX trainings and conducted reviews on the educators code of ethics. Ms. Padilla also stated that she stays current on legal issues by researching and attending workshops.

Reference

(S. Padilla, personal communication, June 8, 2018)]]> 2018-06-09 15:22:54 UTC https://padlet.com/eenriquez11/ftiw7l6phcrd/wish/266416507 Option 3 -Education Week eenriquez11 https://padlet.com/eenriquez11/ftiw7l6phcrd/wish/266416639 In the article Courts Take Expansive View in Transgender-Rights Cases, the author discusses two ruling decisions that helped to protect transgender students from antidiscrimination laws. The first court case was with the Boyertown school district in which the federal appeals court allowed transgender students to use any restroom or locker room of their choice. Although many students were in favor of the decision, others did not agree and claimed it was a violation of their privacy (Walsh, 2018). However, according to Walsh (2018), the U.S. Court of Appeals issued a statement declaring their support for the district’s transgender-inclusive policy. The second court case was with the Virginia school district. The federal district judge ruled to change the district’s policy to allow a female-born transgender to use a male’s restroom. The courts found that LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) students are legally protected under Title IX and the 14th Amendment. Therefore, district leaders should not discriminate or prevent students from receiving equal protection or opportunities (Walsh, 2018). 

Reference

Walsh, M. (2018). Courts take expansive view in transgender-rights cases. Education Week, 37(34), 1-26. Retrieved from https://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2018/06/06/courts-take-expansive-view-in-transgender-rights-cases.html

]]> 2018-06-09 15:25:38 UTC https://padlet.com/eenriquez11/ftiw7l6phcrd/wish/266416639 Option 3 -Education Dive eenriquez11 https://padlet.com/eenriquez11/ftiw7l6phcrd/wish/266417525 In the article Court Rules School Out of Line in Disciplining Social Media Post, the author describes the legal action taken against a Pennsylvania high school (Jacobson, 2017). According to Jacobson (2017), a principal for the Pennsylvania school district disciplined a student for swearing on a social media post made during her personal time. As punishment, the student was removed from the school’s junior varsity cheerleading team. However, a federal court issued a preliminary ruling stating that campus leaders do not have the right to discipline students for posts made off school premises (Jacobson, 2017). The author continues by stating, “as more student’s behavior occurs in a virtual space, school administrators don’t always have a clear direction over what they can and can’t police” (Jacobson, 2017, para. 4). In addition, it is often difficult for principals to not interfere as certain posts can ultimately affect a student's learning and well-being. Due to very little guidance and the division from federal and state courts, administrators are unsure whether they can discipline students for specific off campus behaviors. However, this issue will soon be addressed by the United States Supreme Court to determine if educational leaders can punish students for abusing their first amendment right (Jacobson, 2017). 
 
Reference

Jacobson, L. (2017). Court rules school out of line in disciplining social media post. Education Dive. Retrieved from https://www.educationdive.com/news/court-rules-school-out-of-line-in-disciplining-social-media-post/507054/
]]> 2018-06-09 15:41:49 UTC https://padlet.com/eenriquez11/ftiw7l6phcrd/wish/266417525 DACA Decision Could Impact 8,800 Educators eenriquez11 https://padlet.com/eenriquez11/ftiw7l6phcrd/wish/266427488 The article explains the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program and how the educational field could be affected if it were to end. As many school districts employ teachers protected by DACA, their deportation would significantly impact the availability of bilingual educators. I chose this article because I work with a large population of teachers and students who are a part of the DACA program. If DACA were to end, many of my students and colleagues could be deported. Not only do immigrants fear for their future, school employees fear for the future success of their campus and bilingual department (Riddell, 2018).  

Reference

Riddell, R. (2018). DACA decision could impact 8,800 educators. Education Dive. Retrieved from https://www.educationdive.com/news/daca-decision-could-impact-8800-educators/515804/

]]> 2018-06-09 19:23:11 UTC https://padlet.com/eenriquez11/ftiw7l6phcrd/wish/266427488 Angelo State University Library eenriquez11 https://padlet.com/eenriquez11/ftiw7l6phcrd/wish/266427656 Reference

Sulkowski, M. L. (2017). Unauthorized immigrant students in the United States: The current state of affairs and the role of public education. ScienceDirect, 77, 62-68.
Retrieved from http://resolver.ebscohost.com.easydb.angelo.edu/openurl?sid=EBSCO:a9h&genre=article&issn=01907409&ISBN=&volume=77&issue=&date=20170601&spage=62&pages=62-68&title=Children%20&%20Youth%20Services%20Review&atitle=Unauthorized%20immigrant%20students%20in%20the%20United%20States%3A%20The%20current%20state%20of%20affairs%20and%20the%20role%20of%20public%20education.&aulast=Sulkowski%2C%20Michael%20L.&id=DOI:10.1016/j.childyouth.2017.04.006]]> 2018-06-09 19:26:32 UTC https://padlet.com/eenriquez11/ftiw7l6phcrd/wish/266427656 Internet Research eenriquez11 https://padlet.com/eenriquez11/ftiw7l6phcrd/wish/266427659 Reference

Toppo, G. (2017). 20,000 DACA teachers at risk-and your kids could feel the fallout, too. USA Today. Retrieved from https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2017/10/11/thousands-daca-teachers-risk/752082001/

]]> 2018-06-09 19:26:37 UTC https://padlet.com/eenriquez11/ftiw7l6phcrd/wish/266427659 Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) eenriquez11 https://padlet.com/eenriquez11/ftiw7l6phcrd/wish/266438578 Over the past few years there has been an increase in the number of undocumented families entering the United States. The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program was created by the Obama administration which was designed to protect parents and their children from deportation. In addition, it allowed immigrants to obtain education and employment opportunities. However, the Trump administration is pressuring congress to end the DACA program, which is breaking families apart. The parent separation is affecting millions of students emotionally, financially, and academically. Therefore, educational leaders are exploring ways to assist and support their at-risk population during this current issue (Sulkoski, 2017). 

With the possible end of the DACA program, principals are not only concerned about the well-being of their students. School leaders across the nation have thousands of employees who are working under the protection of DACA. If teachers were to be deported once their work permits expire, principals would lose a high number of quality educators. Many teachers under the DACA program are bilingual certified and are in high demand. Countless positions would remain vacant affecting the ELL population. In addition, teacher to student ratio would increase, while student achievement declines (Toppo, 2017). 

The topic of DACA is important to educators because it pertains to a large number of students and teachers in America (Toppo, 2017). The legal issue addressed is whether congress will allow the trump administration to change the immigration law to prevent undocumented families from residing in this country. The ethical issue is the way educational leaders respond to their at-risk population. While some principals believe it is important to assist students in this situation, others are ignoring the topic completely (Sulkoski, 2017). In my future role as an administrator, it will be my responsibility to determine how I will protect and support my staff and students in the DACA program. As principal, I will communicate and collaborate with stakeholders to educate members on their rights. Additional action will include providing programs and support services to families in need.

Reference

Sulkowski, M. L. (2017). Unauthorized immigrant students in the United States: The current state of affairs and the role of public education. ScienceDirect, 77, 62-68.
Retrieved from http://resolver.ebscohost.com.easydb.angelo.edu/openurl?sid=EBSCO:a9h&genre=article&issn=01907409&ISBN=&volume=77&issue=&date=20170601&spage=62&pages=62-68&title=Children%20&%20Youth%20Services%20Review&atitle=Unauthorized%20immigrant%20students%20in%20the%20United%20States%3A%20The%20current%20state%20of%20affairs%20and%20the%20role%20of%20public%20education.&aulast=Sulkowski%2C%20Michael%20L.&id=DOI:10.1016/j.childyouth.2017.04.006

Toppo, G. (2017). 20,000 DACA teachers at risk-and your kids could feel the fallout, too. USA Today. Retrieved from https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2017/10/11/thousands-daca-teachers-risk/752082001/
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