Legal Issues in Higher Education
Significant learning points:
Hunter Stokes reviewed the primary responsibilities of the legal office which includes reviewing policies and procedures, handling employee and student matters, ensuring regulatory compliance, and overseeing contracts. In his words, their job “is to keep the College out of trouble.” The significant learning point from this portion of the talk was the need to provide their office with facts, candor, and patience when they are working on an issue.
Barbara Weatherly discussed laws that affect the college which include ADA requirements, Sexual Harassment in the workplace, and FERPA regulations. The significant learning point for me from this portion of the talk was the increasing number of employees requesting ADA accommodations and the need to document as much as possible.
Brian Shirey discussed constitutional issues in education. A significant learning point from Brian was that while the College is required to respect the first amendment rights of students and employees, they can still regulate the speech of staff in the employment context.
Barbara Weatherly discussed laws that affect the college which include ADA requirements, Sexual Harassment in the workplace, and FERPA regulations. The significant learning point for me from this portion of the talk was the increasing number of employees requesting ADA accommodations and the need to document as much as possible.
Brian Shirey discussed constitutional issues in education. A significant learning point from Brian was that while the College is required to respect the first amendment rights of students and employees, they can still regulate the speech of staff in the employment context.
Relevance to ideas about leadership:
It is imperative for college leaders to have an understanding of legal issues in higher education in order to support both students and staff. A key takeaway from each of the presenters was the importance of treating everyone with dignity, respect, and fairness in the eyes of the law, but as leaders this is something we should do regardless.
Ways to apply learning to current role:
Although
I was aware of many of the issues discussed in the seminar, I did learn how
much documentation is required in order for the legal team to effectively
support the College. Therefore, I will
make a concerted effort to document everything when it comes to student or
employee issues, including things that might seem minor at the time, in order
to have all the evidence necessary should the need arise.