Can Districts of Innovation opt out of Senate Bill 12’s grievance requirements?

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Senate Bill 12 Grievances: The DOI Option

Senate Bill 12 (“SB 12”) requires Texas public school boards to adopt a grievance procedure that complies with the new grievance requirements of Texas Education Code Chapter 26A, including, but not limited to, allowing a grievant to supplement the record with additional documents or add additional claims, requiring a decision on the merits of a grievance regardless of procedural errors, extending the deadline to file grievances and appeals, and requiring a person to recuse themselves if they are the subject of a grievance regardless of the issue being grieved. In addition, current law allows a board to decline to address a grievance about participation in extracurricular activities.

Now, SB 12 requires the board to consider whether an extracurricular grievance involves a violation of local policy, which will require the Board to consider extracurricular grievances. In addition, despite legislative history that strongly suggests the grievance requirements of SB 12 were intended to apply only to parent-student grievances (FNG grievances), TASB-issued model policies are anticipated to extend SB 12 requirements to employee (DGBA) and public (GF) grievances. Implementing these new grievance procedures can significantly increase the time it will take for districts to process grievances and increase the number of Level III grievances that must be heard by the board. Districts of Innovation (“DOI”), however, can choose to opt out of some or all Chapter 26 grievance requirements (including exempting employee and community grievances from the new procedures) by amending their Innovation Plans.

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For Districts of Innovation, the question is not simply how to comply with the new framework, but which requirements make sense to keep.

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In this presentation, attorney Victoria Olivarez provides a practical overview of the Chapter 26A grievance requirements and explores how Districts of Innovation can use their Innovation Plans to address provisions that may create additional administrative burdens or challenges for their districts.

The presentation covers:

·     What Chapter 26A changes

·     How the grievance process works now

·     What boards and administrators must do differently

·     District of Innovation strategy options

Watch the presentation below for a practical look at the new requirements and the options Districts of Innovation have for determining which provisions work for their local grievance process.