Disability Rights, Education Groups Speak Against ‘Teacher Rights’ Bill

Disability rights advocates and school administrators spoke out against a bill in the state Legislature on Thursday that would require law enforcement to share information about students’ criminal records with schools.

Under the proposal, law enforcement would be required to notify schools within 24 hours when a student is taken into custody in connection with a felony or violent misdemeanor. It would also require administrators to notify teachers who have contact with that student of the report.

“We question what value that gives to teachers,” said Tami Jackson, public policy and legislative liaison for the Wisconsin Board for People with Developmental Disabilities. “What happens in people’s private lives doesn’t necessarily need to be reported to other sectors where it is unrelated.”

Jackson argued the proposal violates students’ privacy and doesn’t provide sufficient protections for students who may act out in classroom because of their disability or mental illness.

She said students with disabilities are already taken out of classrooms at a disproportionate rate to their peers.

A number of disability rights and mental health groups oppose the bill.

The sponsor of the plan, Rep. Jeremy Thiesfeldt, R-Fond du Lac, said he is open to adding additional language to the bill to change requirements for incidents involving students with disabilities.

The bill would also require schools to notify law enforcement if a student physically assaults someone or commits a violent crime at school or at a school-sponsored activity, under some circumstances.

Supporters of the measure, which they are calling the “Teacher Protection Act,” say it will help teachers feel safer in the classroom.

“I believe the other students and the teachers deserve to know that information,” said Mark Buetow, vice president of the Milwaukee Police Association.

Buetow said he believed if teachers had information about criminal records, they could make better informed decisions about doing things like meeting with students alone.

“They can take preventative measures to ensure their own safety and the safety of other students within that classroom,” he said.

The bill would also empower teachers to remove students from their classroom for up to two days without permission from their school’s administration, and to appeal for a student’s suspension directly to their school board if their school’s administration denies it.

School administrators have also expressed concern with the bill, saying it would harm the relationship between teachers and administrators.

The Association of Wisconsin School Administrators, Wisconsin Association of School Boards, and the Wisconsin Association of School District Administrators oppose the bill.

The Wisconsin Education Association Council, a statewide organization that represents teachers and administrators, has also voiced concerns with the plan and has argued the bill would disproportionately affect students of color.

The proposal would also require schools to inform teachers annually about their rights, including a right to break their employment contract without penalty if they are assaulted in the classroom.

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, told reporters Thursday he isn’t sure about the bill’s future in the Assembly.

The bill has yet to be voted on in committee.