According to the Westport News, the board of Tarek ibn Ziyad Academy, a charter school that has fought claims that it improperly promoted religion, has voted to end its legal battle to overturn the decision by the Minnesota Department Education (MDE) to close the school.
Continue reading...According to Courthouse News Service, Quera Pruitt, an African-American student at Red Wing High School, has filed a class action lawsuit in federal court alleging Red Wing School ISD No. 256 allowed students at Red Wing High School to hold “Wigger Days” for homecoming , the word stands for “white nigger,” during which white students wore clothes and acted in what “from their perspective, mimicked black culture.”
Continue reading...The Minneapolis Star Tribune reports that the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) and the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR) have filed suit in federal court against Anoka-Hennepin School District (AHSD) on behalf of five current and former students, claiming the district failed to do enough for students bullied because of their perceived or actual sexual orientation. The suit seeks to end the district’s sexual orientation curriculum policy, which allows teachers to discuss sexual orientation issues but requires them to maintain neutrality.
Continue reading...A federal district court in Minnesota has denied a charter school’s motions for a temporary restraining order (TRO) and preliminary injunction (PI) to bar the state from enforcing a provision of its charter school law making non-profit corporations incorporated outside of Minnesota ineligible to authorize (sponsor) charter schools. It declined to ban enforcement of this so-called “Minnesota incorporation provision” on the ground that the charter school seeking the injunctive relief had failed to demonstrate a likelihood of success on the merits of its four federal constitutional claims.
Continue reading...The Pioneer Press reports that the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) and National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR) have sent a letter to Anoka-Hennepin School District (AHSD) asking it to repeal its “Sexual Orientation Curriculum Policy” or face legal action. SPLC and NCLR contend the policy, which instructs school staff, “in the course of their professional duties…to remain neutral on matters regarding sexual orientation,” perpetuates a hostile environment for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender students.
Continue reading...A six month investigation by Minnesota Public Radio News (MPR News) of bullying policies across the state found a patchwork of policies that don’t always incorporate the newest research on bullying. There is virtually no tracking of bullying incidents by Minnesota school districts. Critics say that makes it impossible to gauge how effective schools are at preventing bullying. In Minnesota, most school districts use a model policy created by the Minnesota School Boards Association (MSBA). The MSBA model policy fills in the void in several areas where the state’s law falls short.
Continue reading...An Associated Press (AP) report in Education Week says that a 2010 survey conducted by the Minnesota Departments of Education and Health concludes that there is more than a 50% chance a student in one of Minnesota’s schools has been bullied or has bullied someone else at least once in the past year. The analysis found that nearly 43% of students had not experienced or been involved in bullying. However, 13% were bullied once a week or more.
Continue reading...A U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit three-judge panel has ruled that parents of a student receiving special education services, who unilaterally placed that student in a private school, were entitled to tuition reimbursement under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), even though that placement was not in the “least restrictive environment.
Continue reading...Hometown Source reports that the Minnesota Senate Tax Committee is considering a proposed income tax tuition payment credit in the Senate’s tax bill. The credit would apply to tuition paid to send children to private schools. Education and American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota (ACLU-MN) officials expressed opposition to the provision during the committee hearing. Carolyn Jackson of ACLU-MN argued that the tax credit is unconstitutional, noting while that’s not true in all states it’s true in Minnesota. “Tuition tax credits would work the same way as vouchers,” she said.
Continue reading...Courthouse News Service reports that two lesbian students will drop their federal lawsuit after Champlin Park High School agreed to let the girls walk as a couple at a school assembly. Desiree Shelton and Sarah Lindstrom were elected by classmates to the Royalty Court, which involved walking in the Royalty Court procession for the school’s Snow Days celebration. Although students were traditionally paired as opposite sex couples, Shelton and Lindstrom planned to walk together as a couple.
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