Legal Assistance Fund

In a victory for Ohio schools, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously overturned the Ohio Supreme Court in Ohio v. Clark, finding that the admission of a teacher’s testimony regarding a pre-school student’s answers to her inquiries about suspicious injuries is not a violation of the Sixth Amendment’s Confrontation Clause. OSBA’s Legal Assistance Fund joined the National Education Association, the American Federation of Teachers, and the National School Boards Association, and submitted an amicus brief arguing that the Ohio Supreme Court’s decision needed to be overturned.

The OSBA Legal Assistance Fund (LAF) recently assisted the Strongsville City School District Board of Education by submitting a amicus curiae brief supporting the district's position in a public records case.

On March 4, the Strongsville Education Association (SEA) began a labor strike of the district's facilities. The school board hired temporary replacement teachers and continued operating the schools. The strike continued until April 28, when the parties approved a successor collective bargaining agreement.

During 2009, the Martins Ferry City School District experienced financial difficulties. As a result, contract negotiations between the board of education and the Ohio Association of Public School Employees, Local 4 AFSCME and its Local 546 (OAPSE) resulted in a collective bargaining agreement (CBA) that did not provide a wage increase in 2009, but included wage reopener provisions for 2010 and 2011.

The OSBA Legal Assistance Fund (LAF) recently provided support to the Chardon Local School District Board of Education by providing financial assistance in a teacher termination case.

The OSBA Legal Assistance Fund (LAF) recently participated in an Ohio Supreme Court case between The Ohio State University (Ohio State) and ESPN. The LAF joined the Ohio Legal Rights Service, Community Legal Aid Services, and Northeast Ohio Legal Services, and submitted an amici curiae brief arguing that Ohio State was prohibited from disclosing the records requested by ESPN pursuant to Ohio's Public Records Act and the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).

The Ohio Supreme Court released an important decision in favor of Ohio school districts yesterday._ The case, Doe v. Marlington (2009), 2009-Ohio-1360, arose out of a tragic incident in which a young girl with special needs was sexually assaulted on the school bus by another student.