Legal Questions

Legal Questions

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A New Law Addresses Behavioral Health Interventions

A bill banning seclusion and limiting when restraints may be used in public schools became law this year. This law prohibits the use of seclusion as a behavioral health intervention in public schools and limits the use of physical restraint except in certain circumstances. The definitions in the law are riddled with exceptions, making application […]
Education Support Professionals|Educator Voice|Legal Questions

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Education Support Professionals and Workload

As with many professions, the ever-changing protocols ensuring a safe and healthy environment for staff and students is overwhelming for school employees. This is particularly true with education support professionals (ESPs), especially cafeteria, custodial employees, bus drivers, and other jobs. This excess workload is seen in how the work is scheduled, the increase in the […]
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School Employees and Mask Mandates

As the coronavirus pandemic continues, school systems are struggling to keep their doors open for in-person instruction. Critical for doing so is the mask mandate, which was approved by the Administrative, Executive, and Legislative Review (AELR) Committee on January 5, 2022. The regulations included “off ramps” to at some point potentially remove the requirement if […]
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Personal Legal Troubles: Do I Report to My Employer?

Educators are human and just like other humans, they make mistakes. So, after the shock of being arrested and charged with any misdemeanor or felony, the next question usually is: do I have to report this to my employer? The simple answer is YES! Educators are held to a much higher standard than other workers […]
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Vaccines and the Law

While everyone had hoped for a return to business as normal with the availability of vaccines, those wishes have been derailed by the fast-spreading Delta variant. Boards of education have once again been forced to ponder how to keep returning employees and students safe while conducting in-person instruction. Many private employers with at-will employees have […]
Coronavirus and Schools|Legal Questions

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A Word from Legal

Is There a Telework Option for the 2021-2022 School Year? This past school year, many employees were granted telework as an accommodation for medical conditions that the CDC identified as placing them at risk of serious illness if exposed to the coronavirus. Based upon current conditions, such an accommodation will end when educators return to […]
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A Word from Legal: Is It Safe?

As we reopen school buildings, there is seemingly ever-changing guid­ance on process and safety protocols. This makes it sometimes chal­lenging to answer the question that we all want to know: “Is it safe?” Many of the schools in our state have safely re-opened buildings in a hybrid model and intend to expand that re-opening before […]
Coronavirus and Schools|Educator Voice|Legal Questions|Opportunity Gaps

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Summer School Programs: Educators and Collective Bargaining

The American Rescue Plan (ARP), enacted on March 11, is a desperately needed boon of $122 billion to states and school dis­tricts to help safely and sustainably reopen school buildings and bridge the learning gaps stemming from the pandemic. The total allocation for Maryland schools is $1.9 billion. Two-thirds of this money should have been […]
Coronavirus and Schools|Legal Questions

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A Word from Legal: School Employees and Coronavirus

We all know a coronavirus vaccine is now available and while citizens across the country are experiencing unduly inconsistent access, it provides hope and promise for better days ahead. Widespread vaccination is key for public health efforts to control coronavirus and to eventually safely and sustainably re-open schools for in-person instruction. Find MSEA’s library of […]
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