upon either to support or decry efforts to provide government funding to private education.


Footnotes 1


These budget proposals are far from guaranteed. The proposed budget will certainly go through multiple rounds and modifications, if it is not altogether scrapped as Congress interacts with it.


2 ACSI is not proposing what accountability standards should be instituted, nor what level of rights under federal protections should follow the special needs student to private


schools; philosophically, ACSI believes accountability both in work and faith are good things, and if anyone is called to educate and minister to students with special needs then it should be Christian schools. The concern is not the premise that accountability for schools and protections for students should apply in some form to private schools. The concern is in the implementation: what might be required of schools and what burdens might unduly be placed upon the movement. Unfunded obligations and regulations that co-opt private education into government schools are not viable. Consequently, Christian schools need to be present at these discussions and vocal as to the suggested frameworks that may be proposed.


Enhancements for ACSI’s Legal Defense Reimbursement


Program For years, the ACSI Legal Defense Reimbursement Program (LDRP) has been a valuable benefit to many ACSI member schools, covering mostly employment related lawsuits as well as some parent/student lawsuits. It also included pre-dismissal counseling to help schools handle dismissal or nonrenewal of contracts.


Beginning with the 2017–18 school year, the LDRP will expand to include belief-based legal challenges.


Belief-based challenges include: • Targeted Actions


A targeted action includes any governmental action, agency hearing, criminal proceeding, or other similar action, summons, or proceeding that targets a Christian school as a direct result of the school’s belief- based decision or belief-based discriminatory act.


• Financing/Accreditation/Scholarship Challenge


This includes an action against a Christian school that challenges the accreditation status of the school or the school’s right to receive state or federal scholarship funds or other financing due to the belief-based decision, practice, or discriminatory act of the school.


Belief-based decision or practice means any decision on behalf of the school to pursue a particular course of action or to implement a particular practice or policy if such action is undertaken in furtherance of the religious beliefs of the school. Belief-based discriminatory act means any act that is undertaken in furtherance of belief-based decision or practice and that would be considered discrimination under any applicable federal, state, or local law.


Examples of What the LDRP Will Cover


• The school dismisses a student for an immoral lifestyle that violates the school’s biblical beliefs, and then the parents sue the school.


• An accrediting body decides to take away the school’s accreditation because of a biblical belief and stance.


• The school decides not to admit a student from a family that is living a lifestyle that is not biblical, and the family sues.


The key is to protect our Christian schools from lawsuits that come from decisions based on our biblical beliefs.


Previously, this coverage reimbursed legal fees up to $30,000. It will now reimburse up to $35,000.


• Pre-Dismissal Counseling


Pre-dismissal counseling of an employee has been an important piece of the LDRP program, allowing schools to get legal counseling before the dismissal of an employee. LDRP will now cover legal counseling in advance of disciplining, expelling, or refusing to enroll or admit a student if such action is instituted as a belief- based decision or practice.


For example, if the school decides to expel a student based on a violation of a biblical belief or practice of the school, the school can get legal counsel before expelling the student; the cost will be covered by LDRP. If the school decides not to admit a family based on a biblical belief, the school can get legal counsel before notifying the family of nonacceptance, and the cost will be covered by LDRP.


Previously, this benefit covered legal counseling up to $500; that will be raised to $750 per year.


ACSI believes that the expansion of the LDRP will greatly benefit our member schools by helping to prevent and mitigate the damage of lawsuits.


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© 2017 by the Association of Christian Schools International


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