2024 MCSA School Law Fall Conference
8:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. October 24, MASB ALC

The 2024-2025 school year guarantees to offer unique challenges for school board members and school administrators. Be prepared for your next legal challenge by attending the Michigan Council of School Attorneys’ Fall Conference, where leaders in education law will share valuable information on crucial issues important to school officials. The 2024 edition of the Fall Conference includes two three-hour preconference sessions for MASB’s Annual Leadership Conference that focus on the following school law topics:

• Title IX Compliance on October 24, 2024. Guidance on complying with the 2020 or 2024 Title IX Regulations seems to be evolving week-to-week based on court orders and updates from the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights. Hear the absolute latest information and guidance on Title IX issues confronting school districts.   
  

• Establishment Clause Update: Where’s the Line Separating Church and State? The Establishment Clause requires schools to remain neutral in matters of religion. But individual rights related to free speech and the free exercise of religion can sometimes blur the line separating neutrality and promoting religion. Learn about recent court cases interpreting the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment to have a better understanding about the boundaries of religious speech and prayer in public schools.     
  

• Lessons Learned from the 2024 Bargaining Season. The amendments to the Public Employment Relations Act that repealed multiple prohibited subjects of bargaining caused unprecedented negotiation issues encountered by school districts. Now that this year’s bargaining season is drawing to a close, it’s time to start preparing for the next round of bargaining. Refine your future negotiation objectives by learning what strategies worked (or didn’t work) last bargaining season.      
  

• School Officials and Social Media: Legal Pitfalls. What did the U.S. Supreme Court recently say about school board members’ social media pages? Is a board member’s social media message a “public record” under the Freedom of Information Act? Could social media communications violate the Open Meetings Act? Get the answers to these questions and hear about other social media legal issues.     
  

• School District Liability and Risk Management. This presentation will first focus on issues that produce the greatest amount of legal liability exposure for school districts. Then, guidance will be provided on reducing that liability exposure through best practices, policies, training and other risk management strategies.
  

• Primer on Superintendent Contracts. Recent changes to the law on educator evaluations required school boards to include new language in their superintendent contracts. So, now is a good time to learn about other legal requirements associated with superintendent contracts and issues related to key contract provisions.       
  

Who should attend?  This conference is designed for school board members, superintendents, administrators, attorneys, and others involved in the legal aspects of education. Registration is $198 for attending both the morning and afternoon sessions (includes lunch).  Register today!