The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) recently announced a resolution agreement with the Los Angeles Unified School District largely addressing issues related to OCR’s finding that the District failed to provide services identified in students’ IEPs […]
Category: Coronavirus
COVID-19 Paid Leave Law: FAQ
April 12, 2022
The COVID-19 paid leave law has raised both legal and practical questions for school administrators. The most pressing questions about the implications of the law and implementation are addressed below. To further assist with following the mandates of the law, […]
Yesterday, Governor J.B. Pritzker signed into law a revised version of HB 1167, which provides paid administrative leave, with no deduction of sick leave days, to fully vaccinated teachers for absences related to COVID-19. Governor Pritzker had earlier vetoed a […]
On March 4, 2022, Governor Pritzker issued Executive Order 2022-07 which has implications for Illinois schools as they continue to grapple with this phase of the COVID-19 pandemic. Most notably, the latest Executive Order reissues and extends Executive Order 2021-22 […]
Masking Mandates Lifted
February 28, 2022
Schools and districts throughout the State – and country – are beginning this school week on the heels of a flurry of announcements made last Friday by the CDC, the Illinois Supreme Court, Governor Pritzker and ISBE, culminating in a […]
State Defendants Appeal COVID-19 TRO to the Illinois Supreme Court
February 24, 2022
In the wake of last week’s Appellate Court ruling, Governor Pritzker and the other state defendants have taken their appeal of the February 4, 2022 TRO regarding school COVID-19 mitigation measures to the Illinois Supreme Court. On February 22, 2022, […]
OCR Issues Fact Sheet on Providing FAPE During the COVID-19 Pandemic and Addressing the Need for Compensatory Services Under Section 504
February 24, 2022
Originally posted to our Special Education Insights Blog. The Office for Civil Rights in the Department of Education recently issued a new Fact Sheet. The Fact Sheet repeats prior guidance that “the responsibility for schools to comply with Section 504 continues regardless […]
Are Mask Mandates a Reasonable Accommodation?
February 22, 2022
Originally posted to our Special Education Insights Blog. In Illinois, as universal masking is fading, the next question looms: what will the end of universal masking mean for staff and students with disabilities who are at high risk? Across the […]