Jonathan F. (Jon) Duncan, Thursday, October 14, 2010 | Filed under: Title IX, Discipline, Non-discrimination
If your encounters with the Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights ("OCR") have been more frequent lately, you're not alone. After reviewing data obtained under FOIA, the Associated Press
reports that OCR received nearly 7,000 complaints this fiscal year, representing an 11% increase over last year. Common allegations include discipline disparities based on race (particularly in connection with zero-tolerance policies), discrimination against students with disabilities, concerns regarding food allergies and intolerances and mistreatment of English language learners.
In the article, OCR acknowledges that most school officials do not intentionally discriminate against students. Rather, problems arise when school officials misunderstand their responsibilities under the non-discrimination statutes enforced by OCR. This is a timely reminder that unintentional disparities are also unlawful and great care should be taken to assure complete compliance with all non-discrimination policies and statutes. Administrators and teachers alike should always be familiar with their obligations under these authorities and conscious of good faith behavior which may inadvertently lead to discriminatory results.