News - Special Education Action

Fairfax County Public Schools, Sands Anderson, and Blankingship & Keith Breach Privacy During Due Process

Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) and two law firms with which it worksâ€”Sands Anderson and Blankingship & Keithâ€”failed to secure personally identifiable information on seven occasions in just a four-month period, between June and October of 2020.

During this period, four due process complaints were filed on behalf of four children. Their parents requested that their children’s full records be provided. They didn’t request unredacted information about other children (or adults). However, that’s what they received.

Why did HO Morgan Brooke-Devlin Work Out of the Office of Blankingship & Keith During a Due Process Hearing?

Due Process Hearings are supposed to be impartial—at least that’s what federal regulations state (See §300.511).

Does the Following Smell Neutral?

Virginia Hearing Officer Morgan Brooke-Devlin worked in a Blankingship & Keith office during a due process hearing for which she was assigned to be the hearing officer.

In addition to its lawyers being bcc’d on e-mails from teachers to students, Blankingship & Keith lawyers, among other things, represent school divisions during due process hearings.

Feel the Need to Include Judgement of an Advocate’s Skin Color in Your Legal Decision? You Might Be A Virginia Hearing Officer

Virginia Hearing Officer Frank Aschmann thought it appropriate to judge the skin color of a parent’s advocate, and include his judgement of his interpretation of her appearance in his due process decision.

Why?

Save the Date: JLARC Live Presentation of Report on Special Education in Virginia

December 14, 2020, the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission (JLARC)—the oversight agency of the Virginia General Assembly—will present its report on Special Education in Virginia.

The report will be presented live. A dedicated YouTube link will be made available for public viewing of the live event. (link to come)

FCPS Lawyer bcc’d on Student’s Emails; Claims He is a School Official; Says it’s “Appropriate” for Him to Have Access

Earlier this month, Special Education Action reported that Blankingship & Keith lawyer Wesley Allen and/or both Allen and his colleague John Cafferky were bcc’d on about three dozen emails between a teacher and student, as well as on emails between Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) staff and the students’ parents, spanning a period of over a year.

In a recent meeting, the parents and their advocate brought the bccing practice to the attention of a due process hearing officer.

The hearing officer, in turn, asked Allen, who was attending the meeting, too:

“What’s your authority Mr. Allen?”

FCPS Special Education Instruction Overview: Reopening Plans

This post features videos, video chats, and slide shows related to Fairfax County Public Schools elementary schools and middle and high schools special education instruction.

Robinson Secondary School Privacy Breach: FCPS Released Names, ID Numbers of Students Receiving Special Education

Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) breached the privacy of dozens of students receiving special education.

This time, the breach is related to class of 2023 at Robinson Secondary School.

The list provides full names, student identification numbers, classes, interventions, recommendations, and class teachers and periods for the students.

Fairfax County Public School Lawyer bcc’d on Email between Teacher and Student; Why?

Dear Taxpayers:

Does anyone think it a good use of taxpayer money to bcc Fairfax County Public School (FCPS) lawyers on emails as benign as:

1) an email from a teacher to her student, about an assignment; and

2) an email from an IEP case manager introducing herself to the student’s family?

About three dozen emails, spanning this past year, have been uncovered, with bcc’s to Blankingship & Keith attorneys Wesley Allen and/or John Cafferky.

As of 2018, John Cafferky’s billing rate was $295/hour and Wesley Allen’s was $245/hour.

Do we really need to pay $4-to-$5 a minute for lawyers to read emails, when there are greater needs within the school system?

Category: News (page 21)