Christian Schools have been experiencing ever-increasing attacks. We
must be prepared to successfully fend off these attacks. Attorney David
Gibbs, J.A., gives the following three suggestions every school MUST
follow in order to be adequately prepared should your school need to
defend it's record in court.
1. Your records must be Show-off quality!
The single, most legally damaging thing Christian Schools do is
inadequate record-keeping. Your records must be so good that you can't
wait to show them off. They must be neat, complete, and comprehensive.
(We are working on getting some suggested record templates for Christian
Schools to download from this site.) In court, your records represent
your school. They are you! The court does not care that your graduates
have gone on to become honors students at Harvard, they only care about
the quality of your records. You must create incredible student records
immediately, and not only from day one of this school year, they must be
from day one of your schools existence. The courts are not going to
subpoena only the records of the student in question, they will subpoena
ALL of your records. The best way to have show-off quality records is to
give ownership to a staff member. If a sole staff member is responsible
for the record-keeping, you will find much better results. Please,
please, please, if you only follow one of these suggestions, make it
this one! When can you throw away your records? AT THE RAPTURE!
2. Your attendance records must be complete!
The second most damaging thing Christian Schools neglect is their daily
attendance records. A simple principle to follow is: If the student is
there, the student is THERE, if the student is not there, the student is
NOT THERE! If the student is present for attendance but leaves for a
doctors appointment NOTE IT IN YOUR ATTENDANCE RECORDS! If the student
is only there for a half-day NOTE IT IN YOUR ATTENDANCE RECORDS! A
simple 'P" for Present is not enough, you must note anything, and
everything that happens for each student from the beginning of the day
until the end! Also, make sure these records are neat, understandable,
and complete! When can you throw away your records? AT THE RAPTURE!
3. Note any and all alterations in the
curriculum!
It is NOT illegal to make changes, skip, or alter the curriculum. IT IS
ILLEGAL not to note the exact changes in the students file! If you
deviate from the scope and sequence even in the smallest, NOTE IT IN THE
STUDENTS FILE! It is also legal to give a struggling student the answer
to questions! IT IS ILLEGAL not to note that fact in the students file!
It happens all the time, and it is not a problem, just be sure to note
that in the file. These suggestions are not really suggestions, they are
MUSTS! When can you throw away your records? AT THE RAPTURE!
