With the cost of litigation skyrocketing for school districts, an innovative new program is now available that will help school districts enhance administrative decision-making and reduce the potential for unnecessary and costly litigation. This comprehensive training program, known as LEGAL ONE ( L aw, E thics and G overnance for A ll L eaders, including an O verview of N ew and E merging issues), is a collaborative effort of the Foundation for Educational Administration (FEA), the Rutgers-Newark Institute on Education Law and Policy (IELP) and the Monmouth-Ocean Educational Services Commission (MOESC).

LEGAL ONE has been designed to meet the professional development requirement set out in N.J.S.A. 18A:26-8.2 which became effective two years ago in March 2007, and the corresponding regulatory requirement contained within N.J.A.C.6A:9-16.7, which was adopted by the State Board of Education in November of 2008. Specifically, the requirement is that all school leaders receive no less than 12 hours of professional development in school law, ethics and governance over the course of four years. The training must cover:

1. school ethics, governance and the latest school law developments;
2. student rights and responsibilities;
3. staff rights and responsibilities; and
4. special education

School leaders must also successfully complete assessments tied to the required content areas. The training must be completed by June 30, 2013.

LEGAL ONE is currently being delivered to a consortium of school districts in Gloucester County, including Washington Twp., Monroe Twp., Deptford Twp., Glassboro Twp., and Logan Twp. With 115 school leaders receiving the training, feedback has been uniformly positive.

“LEGAL ONE is the best professional development program our administrators have ever received. It is practical, interactive and comprehensive. I have no doubt it will enhance the ability of our administrators to address difficult legal issues. As a superintendent of schools, I can think of no better way to invest our resources than LEGAL ONE,” stated Charles M. Earling, superintendent for Monroe Township school district in Gloucester County.

Cheryl Simone, superintendent for Washington Township schools goes on to say, “We thought we were communicating effectively when it came to our disciplinary issues, but the LEGAL ONE program gave us the ability to share our best practices, enabling us to find ‘one voice’ when responding or taking action.”

All school leaders including: superintendents, assistant superintendents, principals, assistant principals, supervisors, and directors will now be required to complete training on issues of school law, ethics and school governance. LEGAL ONE makes it easy to comply, and is directly aligned with the statutory and proposed regulatory standards.

Registering for the LEGAL ONE program offers considerable advantages over any alternative programs.

• The standards-based curriculum is offered by experienced education law attorneys, Rutgers, the leading state university, and the premier provider of online professional development in the state of New Jersey.
• Programs are offered both in-person and online, as well as in-district and regionally, providing flexibility for the participant.
• The partners in LEGAL ONE have the experience, track record, and capacity to ensure success by offering experienced instructors with varied viewpoints.
• Interactive instruction is offered through the use of professionally produced videos, small group discussions and real world scenarios.
• Assessments provide evidence of real learning.
• NJQSAC compliance is made easy.
• LEGAL ONE is a cost-effective program that has been proven to work.
• Rutgers University recognizes LEGAL ONE as meeting rigorous academic standards required for participants to be eligible to receive graduate credit upon successful completion.

Those who complete LEGAL ONE will receive a continuing education certificate. The certificate may be converted to Rutgers graduate credit when the holder enrolls in and satisfactorily completes a two-credit online Education Law and Policy course offered by the Rutgers School of Public Affairs and Administration (SPAA). At the completion of that two-credit course, the LEGAL ONE certificate will be accepted as a transfer credit, thereby providing a total of three graduate credits. The three graduate credits may be used toward the SPAA Certificate in Urban Education Leadership (for those already holding a qualifying master’s degree). The credits may also be applied toward the SPAA Master of Public Administration degree with specialization in Urban Education Administration and Leadership. Either of these credentials, together with passage of the Praxis 2 exam, will entitle the holder to a New Jersey Certificate of Eligibility with Principal Endorsement.

This unique partnership behind LEGAL ONE makes the program a wise investment by helping to prevent unnecessary and costly litigation, and by improving the knowledge and decision-making skills of all New Jersey school leaders. LEGAL ONE brings together the unique talents and experience of the FEA, IELP and MOESC. FEA is experienced in providing a wide array of innovative professional development programs, including NJ EXCEL, an alternative program for achieving principal certification. FEA utilizes the experienced attorneys from the New Jersey Principals and Supervisors Association to provide practical, scenario based professional development in the areas of school law, ethics and governance. IELP brings to bear the vast resources of Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey. Paul Tractenberg, the founder of IELP, is one of the nation’s preeminent education law attorneys. MOESC is the premier provider of online professional development in the State of New Jersey. To date, thousands of educators from more than 100 school districts have completed courses offered through MOESC’s Online Training In-service Seminar program (OTIS) in areas such as child abuse and neglect, illegal harassment and bullying, cyber bullying, gangs, suicide prevention and awareness, and college scholarships.