If you have a child attending school in the New York Metropolitan area, then you already know a lot about their day-to-day school experience. You know that when there are problems at school, those problems come home and can affect not only your child's education, but their mental health as well. That's why, when their school won't address the issues your child is facing, it can be helpful to be able to benefit from the assistance of an experienced education law attorney.
The Lento Law Firm's Student Defense Team is able to help in these kinds of situations. Our attorneys have a comprehensive understanding of student rights at all levels of education. We can help you when it comes time to meet with school officials to resolve your child's issues, and when necessary, can take matters to court to ask a judge to issue an order directing the school to fix the problem. Call the Lento Law Firm's Student Defense Team today at 888.535.3686, or fill out our online contact form, and we will schedule a confidential consultation to learn more about your child's case and tell you how we can help.
Student Issues in Schools in the New York Metropolitan Area
There are easily hundreds of laws, regulations, rules, policies, and procedures that school administrators and educators are expected to know and follow in the New York Metropolitan Area. The federal government, as well as state and local governments, expect a lot from our schools, and most schools work hard to meet their many legal obligations to students and parents.
That said, schools are made up of people, and people make mistakes. Not every requirement is met in every case. And there are some school personnel who will intentionally violate students' rights. No matter what the reason, if your student is encountering issues with learning because their school won't apply or enforce policies or procedures that are in place to help students, it may be time to take the matter directly to the school.
The problem is that with so many requirements that can apply in any given situation, it can be hard for parents to know that they have the right answer when they try to figure out what the school should be doing for their child. The New York State Education Department's website, for example, provides a lot of very useful information that parents can use when their child is facing problems at school. But it can be hard to know that you've got the answer you need when there is so much information available.
This is also true at the school district level. Whether your child attends school in New York City, or a suburban school district such as Roslyn, Jericho, or North Shore in Nassau County; West Islip, Deer Park, or Montauk in Suffolk County; Scarsdale, Bedford, or Chappaqua in Westchester; or New Brunswick, Rahway, or Elizabeth in New Jersey, there are district and school websites that can deliver even more information than the state education department website.
At the college and university level, there are similarly detailed websites. The New York Metropolitan area is home to more than a hundred colleges and universities, including some of the best in the country. No matter where your child is enrolled – whether it's one of the more than 20 colleges and universities operated as part of the City University of New York system, well known schools such as Columbia, NYU, or Fordham, or any other school in the area, the school will have policies and procedures that it expects students to follow – and that the school itself should follow.
When a school at any level fails to respect your child's rights or ignores the procedures the school has in place for resolving student issues, it's time to contact the Lento Law Firm's Student Defense Team. Our education law attorneys know what schools are expected to do in almost any given situation. We can help you and your child by reviewing the problems your child is having with their school and providing you with advice on what steps to take to fix the situation.
We can be with you when you meet with school administrators or teachers to discuss the problems your child is having and the school's response to those problems. In many cases, we can suggest ways that the school can resolve the problem. Other times, where appropriate, we may end up filing a lawsuit on behalf of your child to ask a judge to order the school to do the right thing. Our focus when we represent students and their families in these kinds of cases is on resolving the matter so that the student can go back to focusing on learning instead of the problems caused by the school.
While the Lento Law Firm's Student Defense Team is ready to advise you about almost any education-related issue you or your child may face, there are some types of issues that we regularly help parents and students with in the New York Metropolitan area.
Special Education and Disability Rights
Schools in the New York Metropolitan area understand that they have an obligation to provide certain services for students who have been evaluated and found to have special needs. The New York Education Department's website provides information about these services, as well as the federal and state laws that apply in special needs cases. New Jersey's Department of Education website has similar information that applies to special education students in that state's public schools.
Federal laws that apply to special education students across the New York Metropolitan area include the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA); Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Americans With Disabilities Act. Which law applies in any particular situation depends on the facts of your particular case; in many cases, more than one will apply.
There are many requirements that flow from these laws and others that schools are expected to meet. In many cases, school personnel do a good job of making sure the school meets its obligations to special needs students. But sometimes mistakes are made, and students who are entitled to special education benefits don't receive them, or only receive a portion of what they are entitled to. When that happens, the Lento Law Firm's Student Defense Team can review your child's situation with you and advise you on what steps we can take to remedy the situation.
In many cases, the solution comes from taking matters to the appropriate school officials. Our experienced education law attorneys can attend meetings with you and explain what the school's obligations are in your child's case. We can also help the school meet those obligations where it appears to have problems doing so. And while we prefer to resolve things quickly through discussions with school personnel, our attorneys are also able to file lawsuits on behalf of your child to ask a judge to order the school to take the appropriate steps required by law.
Individualized Education Programs and 504 Plans
Many students who are evaluated and found to have special education needs are entitled to an Individualized Education Program, or IEP. An IEP is created separately for each student, focusing on that student's particular needs and what steps the school will take to meet those needs over the course of the year. IEPs are meant to be updated each year to reflect the student's growth and any changes to their needs.
As a parent, you will work with school personnel to create your child's IEP. That sometimes causes conflict when there is disagreement about how the IEP addresses their educational needs. In other cases, you may be fine with your child's IEP, but one or more of their teachers may not follow it. When issues like these arise, the Lento Law Firm's Student Defense Team can step in to help. We can use our years of experience resolving these types of problems to work to resolve the issues that are affecting your child's education.
Students with disabilities may also be entitled to accommodations that address their particular needs. The goal is to provide each student with what is called a Free and Appropriate Public Education, or FAPE, under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Schools are required to make reasonable accommodations for students based on their disabilities, but there is not always an agreement on what accommodations are reasonable. When disputes arise, the Lento Law Firm's Student Defense Team can help you resolve the matter with your child's school so that your child receives the accommodations and the FAPE they are entitled to.
In most cases, we are able to resolve disputes through informed discussions with school administrators. That is typically the fastest way to get your child the special educational benefits they are entitled to. When schools fail to correct the problems, however, our education law attorneys are ready to take things to a judge, to ask for an order directing the school to take the appropriate steps on behalf of your child.
Student Discipline
All schools in the New York Metropolitan area have codes of conduct for students that explain what the school expects of the student and how the school will resolve misconduct issues. New York City Public Schools have a Discipline Code – one for grades K-5, and another for grades 6-12 – that are available in ten different languages, and run for more than 40 pages each. Each school district will have its own code of conduct, and in some cases, individual schools may have their own versions. The Roslyn Union Free School District in Nassau County, on Long Island, for example, has a Code of Conduct that is also more than 40 pages long.
When it comes to disciplinary matters, the Code of Conduct (or your child's school's equivalent) is the first thing to turn to when your child is accused of misconduct. This will help you understand that procedures apply depending on the case, and what the potential consequences might be. The problem is that school personnel don't always follow the school's own policies or procedures. Certain students may be targeted for punishment more than others, or the administrator responsible for the case may not follow the procedures that the Code of Conduct says should apply.
When these kinds of problems happen, the Lento Law Firm's Student Defense Team can help. Our attorneys can also help if your child is accused of serious misconduct that could result in suspension or expulsion. We regularly represent students at the college level down through high school, middle school, and grade school who face serious discipline from their schools.
Bullying and Harassment
Both New York and New Jersey have laws that prohibit bullying by students and school employees. Schools across the New York Metropolitan Area have incorporated anti-bullying provisions into their codes of conduct or student handbooks, and regularly take active steps to put a stop to student bullying when it is brought to the attention of school personnel.
But how well a school does to put a stop to bullying depends on the people at the school who are responsible for implementing the required anti-bullying measures. It is not unusual for school personnel to disregard bullying reports or to fail to take effective action to put a stop to bullying once it's reported.
When that happens, and your child must wake up each school day wondering if their day will include more bullying at school, the Lento Law Firm's Student Defense Team can help. We can meet with school officials to highlight their responsibility to put a stop to bullying at school. If they fail to take appropriate action, we can bring the matter to a judge, asking the court to issue an order directing the school to take certain steps and, in some cases, to award damages to the student who has suffered because of the school's failure to act.
Discrimination
Depending on the situation, there are a number of federal laws that can protect students against discrimination at school. These include:
- Title IV and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
- Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972
- Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973
- The Age Discrimination Act of 1975
- Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments of 2008
- The Genetic Information Non-Discrimination Act
- USDA Title VI
The education law attorneys at the Lento Law Firm's Student Defense Team work with these laws regularly and understand how they protect a student's rights in a particular situation. If your child is being discriminated against at school, and you need help understanding what the school's obligations are – and what your remedies might be – contact us. We can review the facts of your child's case and give you a good understanding of what your legal options are to correct the problem.
Student Rights and Free Speech
Students have free speech rights that schools are required to respect. At the same time, schools have an obligation to educate large numbers of students. Sometimes those two conflict. Students can be restricted from exercising their free speech rights in situations where doing so would interfere with the school's educational mission. But that doesn't mean schools can step on student rights entirely.
When students who exercise their free speech and other rights appropriately are unfairly disciplined by their schools for doing so, the Lento Law Firm's Student Defense Team can help. We will review your child's situation with you and advise you of the steps we can take on their behalf, both to require the school to allow your student to exercise their free speech rights and to stop the school from unfairly punishing them for doing so.
The Lento Law Firm Can Protect Your Student's Rights in the New York Metropolitan Area
If your child attends college, high school, middle school, or grade school in the New York Metropolitan Area and you have reason to think that their school is treating them unfairly, contact us. We can help in a wide range of situations, including when there are issues relating to special education, school discipline, bullying, discrimination, and student free speech.
Contact the Lento Law Firm's Student Defense Team today to learn more about how we can help. We can be reached at 888.535.3686 or by filling out our online contact form. Tell us about your child's situation, and let us tell you how we can help.
