INTRODUCTION
Welcome to this year’s edition of Policy Pipeline!
Policy Pipeline highlights the wide-ranging issues facing school systems and administrators daily. As usual, legislative developments are the catalyst for many of this year’s updates. Besides an update to the longstanding state sick leave law, school systems face new responsibilities including teaching students about financial literacy and navigating new requirements related to protecting our athletes from sudden cardiac arrest. Other areas – like Title IX and accommodating pregnant and breastfeeding employees – are evolving due to new federal laws and forthcoming federal regulations. Beyond those matters, we have also included topics that have come up repeatedly over the past year in our conversations with all of you.
Also, a reminder for our charter school members. For any topic that may affect charter schools as well as our traditional public K-12 boards, we have added an icon so you can easily find the topics that may be relevant to you.
Our goal is to provide you with sound guidance by carefully considering whether adopting a policy on a certain topic is advisable and making sure adopted policies give the board the flexibility and discretion it may need to deal with wide-ranging circumstances. Our longtime subscribers know that good governance sometimes includes deciding that no policy is required, and we have made that suggestion in this year’s Pipeline as needed.
The Pipeline examines the policy implications of legislation and related legal developments. Readers are encouraged to take advantage of AASB’s other information services (for example, the Advocate for Schools and Court Report) to gain a broader perspective on legislation and other legal developments of interest to school leaders.
To make updating your policy manuals easier, a Microsoft Word version of each suggested policy is included on the thumbdrive provided to you as part of your Policy Pipeline subscription. Each policy is provided in the format used by the boards that revised their policy manual through AASB’s Policy Review & Analysis (“AASB Policy Project”). Also, a PDF version of the Pipeline is included on your thumbdrive. That version has hyperlinks that will take you to the Alabama Acts passed by the Legislature and other pertinent documents. We hope the Pipeline serves as a useful guide as you prepare to update your school board’s policies for the upcoming school year, but as always, work closely with your local counsel for legal advice.
ALABAMA LITERACY ACT
Ala. Code §16-6G-1, et. seq.
In 2019, the Alabama Legislature passed the Alabama Literacy Act, which provided that beginning with the 2021/2022 school year, 3rd grade students who did not demonstrate sufficient reading skills could not be promoted to the 4th grade unless the student qualified for a good cause exemption. Last year in the wake of the pandemic, Act No. 2022-391 delayed the Act’s 3rd grade retention provision for two years. So the upcoming 2023/2024 school year will be the first year that 3rd grade students must demonstrate sufficient reading skills to be eligible for promotion.
As a reminder, AASB does not recommend adopting a policy that details the promotion requirements or that tries to restate the particulars of the Literacy Act. Rather, a general policy stating that a student must meet applicable legal requirements to be promoted is recommended. Any specific guidelines for promotions should be outlined in another document such as the student handbook or an academic or curriculum guide.
Promotion
Students are promoted from grade to grade based on academic credit earned during the school year, in summer school programs, or in such other academic programs as may be approved or recognized by the Board and in accordance with applicable law. Students who are eligible for promotion from grade to grade may nevertheless be retained by agreement of the parents and appropriate school officials.
[Reference : Ala. Code § 16-6G-1, et. seq.]
Boards that previously participated in the AASB Policy Project should already have a “Promotion” policy in Section VII (Instructional Program) of their policy manuals. A version of this policy can be found in Microsoft Word format on the thumbdrive provided as part of your Policy Pipeline subscription.
NOTE: Some boards personalized the suggested policy and may want to retain those differences going forward.
OFF-CAMPUS EVENTS
Transporting Students in Private Vehicles
Ala. Code §16-27-7
Transporting students to afterschool extracurricular activities, practices, and games poses unique challenges for schools. While large teams or clubs can pay for and utilize a school bus, other groups are so small that the option of taking a bus is too expensive or otherwise impractical. That may result in students being transported in an employee’s private vehicle.
Nevertheless, boards should note that if the employee is required to transport the students, then Ala. Code §16-27-7 applies and requires that the board:
•Either buy a liability insurance policy naming the employee driver as an insured; or
•Reimburse the employee for amounts necessary to add “drive other car broad form liability” riders to their individual vehicle liability insurance policies, to the limits specified by the employing board or agency.
On the other hand, if the employee is not required to transport the students, but does so anyway, the school system should closely review the arrangement to make sure it does not run afoul of its existing policies and procedures in a way that could deprive the employee of important legal protections and liability coverage if an accident occurs.
In situations where no board-owned or operated transportation is being provided, the school system should not police or take responsibility for situations where students are being transported to offcampus activities via private automobiles driven by a parent or another student. If a policy or procedure is put into place requiring school employees to monitor such arrangements, their failure to do so could lead to liability or a denial of coverage. In addition, there is no foolproof way for an employee to attest that those drivers are properly licensed and have adequate insurance. Therefore, we recommend a check of your “Off-Campus Events” policy to ensure it reflects these realities:
Off-Campus Events
Student participation in and travel to off-campus events, concerts, functions, field trips and activities, and the use of school buses or other Board provided transportation for such purposes may be authorized under and subject to the following terms and conditions:
a. The destination is an activity, event, or function that services a bona fide educational or related extracurricular purpose, or is an athletic event or function sponsored or sanctioned by the school or the school system and the state athletic association;
b Adequate information regarding the trip (e.g., destination, duration, educational purpose, mode of transportation, nature, and extent of student participation) has been provided;
c. Adequate arrangements are made for supervision and other risk management considerations (e.g., parental permission, medical treatment authorization, special insurance requirements);
d Approval of the trip is obtained from the Board.
The Board does not assume responsibility for ensuring the safe operation of vehicles that are not owned or operated by the Board.
The Superintendent is authorized to develop additional specific requirements for participation in and travel to and from official events and activities that are consistent with the terms of this policy.
[Ala. Code §16-27-7]
Boards that previously participated in the AASB Policy Project should already have a “Off-Campus Events” policy in Section VI (Students) of their policy manuals. A version of this policy can be found in Microsoft Word format on the thumbdrive provided as part of your Policy Pipeline subscription.
Field Trip Approval
Educators Liability Trust Fund Program Guidelines
Boards that have participated in the AASB Policy Project do not have a separate “field trip” policy as the above “Off-Campus Events” policy is intended to apply to those outings. Those boards (and boards with a separate “field trip” policy) should carefully review their process for approval of field trips and their current policy. While there is no set law governing who must approve a field trip and there are various approaches to that issue throughout Alabama, whether a field trip was approved in accordance with board policy can affect whether its employees are afforded coverage by the Educators Liability Trust Fund, which protects education employees “against damages for claims arising out of the performance of their duties.” The ELTF guidelines state that field trips will be covered if they are “related to an Educational Activity and are in accordance with the rules of, and approved by the board of education.” (Emphasis added). To ensure coverage under those guidelines, AASB recommends that boards update their policy to reflect that board approval is required and make sure any future trips are approved accordingly. To streamline the process, boards should consider approving field trips as part of the board’s consent agenda.
NOTE: The ELTF Guidelines are clear that “Non-Educational” field trips, including cruises, theme or water parks, lake outings and other trips primarily to recreational activities are not considered “Educational activities” and are thus not covered by the Fund. School boards who allow those types of trips may want to consider obtaining or requiring separate insurance coverage for those outings.
CRIMINAL CHARGES
Due to social media and the ease of finding information online, it is becoming more common for parents, students, community members, and school employees and administrators to learn that a student or employee has been arrested for committing a crime off-campus. Many school systems contact AASB for guidance in these situations, because they either want to exclude the student from school while the charges are pending or terminate or otherwise discipline an employee charged with a crime. AASB believes that schools should not have a “one size fits all” policy regarding how to address