The rise of social media use among school youth has compelled school districts to implement social media monitoring to prevent active shootings, bullying, harassment, victimization, and suicide in the community. This presents an ethical and legal dilemma, with issues surrounding students' rights to safety, privacy, and free speech in cyberspace.…

This case provides a summary of a situation in which a newly appointed superintendent and his new chief financial officer of a midsized urban school district uncover a massive set of fiscal problems which had been previously hidden from the Board and most other stakeholders. How do the district's top leaders make decisions about how to address the…

Responding to the forces of internationalization and globalization, universities are partnering across national borders to expand their outreach, increase capacity, expand research possibilities, and for a list of other reasons. This study looks at one international university partnership between an institution in the United States and one in the…

Some student affairs professionals who are employed at public colleges and universities feel conflicted about the degree to which they should or should not discuss their religious and/or spiritual beliefs at work. The purpose of this article is to present an overview of legal, developmental, and ethical considerations that should be factored into…

This article discusses concerns about how Neil M. Gorsuch, a U.S. Supreme Court nominee, might influence decisions regarding cases involving the appropriate scope of services guaranteed by federal special-education law, government aid to religious institutions providing educational services, and how intellectual property law applies to sports…

This article represents background material that can be used e along with the "United States v. Windsor" case to teach Constitutional Law (particularly federalism, due process, and equal protection) and the legal debate surrounding same-sex marriage in America. Professors may assign it as background reading before or after a…

Ethical issues arise more often for school counselors than for those who work in other settings (Remley, 2002). The challenge of working not only with minors but also with other stakeholders including parents, teachers, school administrators, and community members sets the stage for potential legal and ethical dilemmas. Awareness and adherence to…

School Boards desiring to avoid the requirements of the Equal Access Act (EAA) to prevent students from organizing Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA) clubs within their schools may have difficulty doing so. However, legal experts have recently purported ways to accomplish this task in order to avoid the problems that may arise when students attempt to…

The number of children taking psychotropic medications has dramatically increased in recent years. These children typically take medication during school hours, thereby making the school setting an optimal venue in which evaluate the effectiveness of medications. Given their training in data-based decision making, intervention, and assessment,…

Treatment Improvement Protocols (TIPs) are developed by the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT), part of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Each TIP involves the development of topic-specific best-practice guidelines for the prevention and…

There is a drug crisis in the United States that is growing at an alarming rate. Its participants work in our businesses, government agencies, and schools. California leads the nation in drug use and until recently, Fresno County was the leader in methamphetamine production. This drug crisis is having a paralyzing effect causing loss of income,…

Focuses on ethical and legal issues that arose in the evaluation of abortion services. Discusses the development of decision rules and tradeoffs in dealing with these issues to reach rational and objective decisions. Places the discussion in the context of balancing usefulness and propriety with respect to informed consent and privacy and makes…

Discusses the role of collegiality in college personnel tenure decisions. No court has held that the use of collegiality in tenure decisions is inappropriate, but judicial conflicts arise as to whether collegiality has been invoked in a manner that is discriminatory or that violates free speech. (Author/SLD)

Examines the interaction between the cultural definers of "brain death" and the policymakers who have formulated and enacted statutes in several states. Considers the medicolegal and philosophical-ethical approaches affecting the policy decisions. (JMF)

This symposium presents thoughts of OCLC's president and six reactions to news that OCLC has decided to register its database for copyright. Topics covered include copyright and access to information, legal and technical issues, reasoning behind the decision, a threat to sharing, improved communications, and copyright enforcement. References are…