In this episode, our regular panel of Franczek attorneys, including Nicki Bazer, Dana Fattore Crumley, Jennifer Smith, and special guest Michael Hernandez, dedicated this episode to our clients, friends, and peers' questions. We know that back to school plans are developing at a dizzying pace. Our attorneys spent the hour addressing your issues.

One of the requirements of the new Title IX regulations–the mandate to post all materials used to train Title IX personnel on a school’s website–has understandably raised questions for K-12 and higher education institutions regarding copyright compliance. In this episode, Jackie Wernz and Ashly Boesche discuss this issue.

In this episode, our regular panel of Franczek attorneys, including Shelli Anderson, Nicki Bazer, Dana Fattore Crumley, and Jennifer Smith, along with special guest Ares Dalianis, discussed back to school plans and spent the hour addressing questions. 

In this episode, Franczek attorneys Dana Fattore Crumley and Jennifer Smith welcome special guests Dr. Ruth Kraus, child psychologist, and Micki Moran, an attorney specializing in representing students in special education matters, to discuss student social and emotional needs as we return to fall instruction.

Administrators and educators are aware that social and emotional habits and skills are closely related to accomplishment and growth. COVID-19 has made social and emotional resilience more important than ever. Join us for a lively panel discussion on this critical issue.

In this episode, we discuss recent joint guidance from ISBE/IDPH on Phase 4 reopening. We know how hard school board members, superintendents, and other administrators and educators are working to make sense of the recommendations and mandates to prepare for a return to in-person instruction in the fall. 

Our panel of Franczek attorneys, including Shelli Anderson, Nicki Bazer, and Jackie Gharapour Wernz, are joined by special guests Dr. Ken Wallace, Superintendent of Maine Township 207, and Dr. Hank Thiele, Superintendent of Downers Grove 99.

Topics covered include:

• Confusion about social distancing vs. face coverings, especially in the classroom
• Challenges of reopening
• Self-certification processes and verification 
• Questions about self-quarantine, including when and for how long members of the school community must be excluded and sick leave questions for employees
• And many more!

In this episode, Franczek labor and employment attorneys welcome special guest Toya Campbell, Chief Human Resources Officer at Evanston Township High School. Franczek attorneys Shelli Anderson, Nicki Bazer, Dana Fattore Crumley, Jennifer Dunn, Sally Scott, and Jackie Gharapour Wernz are joined by Ms. Campbell to discuss the continued impacts of the COVID-19 crisis on labor and employment issues facing Illinois schools.

In this episode, Shelli Anderson, Dana Fattore Crumley, and Jennifer Smith are thrilled to be joined by Dr. Melissa Kaczkowski of Glen Ellyn School District 41, Dr. Joylynn Pruitt-Adams of Oak Park River Forest High School District, and Dr. Susan Zola of Champaign Community Unit School District 4 to provide the Superintendent perspective on COVID-19 related issues impacting schools in the fall. This panel covers a wide range of issues facing all Illinois schools, from elementary, high school, and unit districts to suburban and urban districts, and includes Chicagoland and downstate perspectives.

In this episode, Franczek attorneys Shelli Anderson, Nicki Bazer, Jennifer Dunn, Sally Scott, and Jackie Gharapour Wernz address the differences to the face of education that fall 2020 will bring as they relate to staff. Don’t wait for a genie in a bottle to wish away your fears about the labor and employment impacts of the changes the 2020-2021 school year will bring. Topics covered include impacts of continued remote learning and staggered schedules on staffing, including reductions in force; teacher evaluations; employee salaries and stipends; temperatures and testing; and many others.

The coronavirus (COVID-19) has taken a toll on the federal, state, and local economies and threatens to impair values in the real estate market. Local property taxes are the life blood of school district revenues. How property is assessed is crucial to the local tax base, and how taxes are collected is vital to the ability to fund educational services. In this episode, Ares Dalianis, Michael Hernandez, and Scott Metcalf discuss the property tax and school revenue issues facing Illinois school districts by addressing the following:

• State and Federal Funding
• Property Tax Collections
• Expectations for 2020 Assessments
• Assessment Trends
• Real Estate Market Overview
• Economic Development Incentives

In this episode, Franczek attorneys Shelli Anderson, Nicki Bazer, Dana Fattore Crumley, Jennifer Smith, and Jackie Gharapour Wernz with special guest Mina Griffith, Assistant Superintendent for Student Services at Plainfield School District 202, discuss the differences to the face of education that fall 2020 will bring. We have always had some “spaced out” students, but ongoing social distancing will give a new meaning to that phrase. We address numerous issues including staggered schedules, the continuation of remote learning, student data privacy and acceptable use of technology, discipline, student attendance monitoring, social-emotional learning (SEL) needs during the COVID-19 era, and many more.