1. Catholic Schools and the Law 1
Catholic Schools and the Law –
What Catholic School Principals Need to Know
William E. Engler
American International College

2. Catholic Schools and the Law 2
Public schools operate in a complex legal environment. They must comply with
constitutional, statutory, regulatory, and judicial legal requirements at the federal, state, and local
levels. In contrast, constitutional legal requirements do not apply to private Catholic schools.
The constitution is concerned with what the government can and cannot do, not with what
private entities can do. Since the Catholic school is not an extension of the state, students and
teachers cannot ordinarily claim Constitutional protections, hence, Catholic school
administrators can prohibit behaviors that public school administrators cannot prohibit. Because
the first, fourth, and fifth Amendments do not apply to Catholic schools, school administrators
can:
 Limit students’ and teachers’ speech, press, and assembly. For example, a Catholic
school official can ban the wearing of objectionable clothing or forbid the writing of
content that is contrary to the teaching of the Catholic Church.
 Search lockers and other “personal” areas. For example, a Catholic school official can
search a student’s locker without even a “reasonable suspicion.”
 Suspend or expel students without due process. For example, a Catholic school official
can suspend a student without any kind of due process. Even if the student believes he
was treated unfairly, he has no legal recourse (Shaughnessy, 2001)
Of course, Catholic schools should have written policies in place that address these types
of potentially contentious situations and these policies should be promulgated to all staff,
students, and parents. If a rule is well-understood, the school’s response to an infraction will not
seem unfair and arbitrary.
The principal laws affecting Catholic schools include state regulations, contract law, tort
law, and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. There are five general areas of
regulation advanced by state legislatures:

3. Catholic Schools and the Law 3
 Accreditation/Registration/Licensing/Approval – For compulsory education purposes,
states generally license, register, accredit, or approve private schools. The criteria for
approval usually includes compliance with basic education requirements and health and
safety standards. Massachusetts has no requirements for accreditation, registration, and
licensing, but does have a mandatory approval provision.
 Recordkeeping and Reports – To ensure compliance with compulsory school attendance
statutes, states often require private schools to maintain student attendance records.
Annual or periodic reports must then be forwarded to state or local education agencies.
Massachusetts requires that private schools maintain and make available class rosters,
attendance records, and student transcripts.
 Health and Safety – The majority of states have statutes requiring certificates of
immunization prior to enrollment, allowing for religious or medical exemptions. In
addition, safety standards generally include regular fire drills, drug and alcohol free zones
and protective eyewear for certain laboratory classes.
 Curriculum – Curriculum requirements are generally broad, referring only to the
"subjects usually taught in the public school" or itemizing basic subject areas such as
reading, writing, English, arithmetic and history. Massachusetts has established no
mandate regarding what courses private schools must teach.
 Public Funding – The public funding of private education is restricted under the United
States Constitution. State statutes reflect the numerous decisions handed down by the
Supreme Court on the matter (U.S. Department of Education, 2009).
The primary law governing Catholic schools is contract law. The three primary sources of
contract law in these schools are the teacher/staff contract, the faculty/personnel handbook, and
the student/family handbook. Teacher cases emanating from private schools usually involve

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breach of contract. The language in any contract is extremely important. Anyone who signs an
employment contract will be held to the provisions of the contract, including members of
religious congregations (Shaughnessy, 2001). Although Constitutional legal protections do not
apply to Catholic school students, their rights and responsibilities are spelled out in the student
handbook. Student handbooks usually cover topics like mission statement, fundraising
obligations, grading policy, homework, dress code, etc. It is imperative that students and parents
read the handbook carefully. Prior to admission, students and their parents will have to sign a
document indicating that they have read the book, understood it, and would abide by it. Those
documents are legal contracts. They spell out the rules that govern the student and parent
relationship with the school. School administrators can be expected to enforce any and all of the
policies written in the handbook.
Tort law affecting private schools can be classified in four categories: school corporal
punishment, search and seizure, defamation, and negligence. At one time, school corporal
punishment meant striking a student a given number of times, but has been enlarged to include
any bodily touching that can be construed as punitive. School corporal punishment was banned
in Massachusetts public schools in 1971. Although legal in private schools, it is used very
infrequently. In my opinion, school corporal punishment should not be allowed in any Catholic
school as the conceivable negative consequences far outweigh any resultant improvement in
behavior. School officials should be aware that student claims of mental abuse (caused by other
students or teachers) are increasing.
As discussed previously, Catholic schools are allowed to search student and staff
belongings. Search and seizure problems occur when a student claims injury resulting from a
search of person or property. If a student alleges to have been harmed, Catholic school officials
could be subject to the torts of assault and battery and invasion of privacy. The level of intrusion

5. Catholic Schools and the Law 5
of the search would determine the court’s degree of scrutiny. For example, searching a student’s
locker would require a lesser degree of scrutiny than would a body search.
Defamation is the communication of a statement, spoken or written, that makes a claim that
is detrimental to a person’s reputation. The potential for defamation to be alleged certainly exists
in administrator’s relationships with students and teachers. Administrators should be factual in
their comments, whether oral or written, about the conduct of teachers and students.
The most common tort is negligence, the unintentional doing or not doing of something
which wrongfully causes injury to another. In other words, negligence is a failure to exercise the
care that a reasonably prudent person would exercise in like circumstances. Four elements must
be present before negligence can exist: A teacher or staff member was on duty, there was a
violation of duty, the violation was the proximate cause of injury, and an injury occurred.
Students have a right to safety and teachers and administrators have a responsibility to protect
the safety of all those entrusted to their care. Teachers have a duty to provide reasonable
supervision of their students. Administrators must have developed rules and regulations that
provide for their students’ safety. Teachers will generally not be held responsible for injuries
occurring at a place or at a time when they had no responsibility. Administrators should be
aware that they may be held liable for any injuries students may sustain while on school property
before or after school, even if a written policy exists stating otherwise (Shaughnessy, 2001).
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 is legislation that guarantees certain rights to
people with disabilities. Section 504 directly addresses the requirements for schools to
accommodate students with special needs. This includes all public schools as well as private
schools that receive federal financial assistance, defined broadly to include grants, loans, and
contracts, including Title I funding, National School Lunch Program subsidies, anti-drug
programs, technology grants, educational reform programs, etc. As a result, Section 504 applies

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to the majority of Catholic Schools (Scanlan, 2009). Catholic schools adhering to Section 504
are prohibited from discriminating against any person who has a “physical or mental
impairment” that “substantially limits one or more major life activities.”
While Catholic schools cannot revise admissions policies to restrict students with
disabilities, they do not legally have to adapt admissions policies to accept all students. For
Catholic schools that do not offer special education programs, there is no affirmative obligation
to identify students with disabilities. If a Catholic school does not know that a student has a
disability, the Catholic school cannot be said to have discriminated against the student.
However, Catholic Social Teaching outlines the moral duties of Catholic school leaders,
emphasizing human dignity, the common good, and a preferential option for the marginalized.
As a moral obligation, Catholic schools should develop procedures to identify students with
disabilities and to determine whether such disabilities are impeding a student’s educational
progress (Scanlan, 2009).
Compared with public schools, private schools have a smaller umbrella identifying
“qualified students” and fewer obligations to these students (Schweinbeck, 2001). In terms of
accommodations, catholic schools are obligated to make accommodations that are considered
“minor adjustments” (as opposed to the “reasonable accommodations” required by the
Americans with Disabilities Act). For example, if a student, because of his or her disability,
needs additional time to complete an exam, this accommodation would be considered a “minor
adjustment” and should be provided. If a student, because of his or disability, needs to sit in the
front row to better see the board or hear the teacher, this accommodation should be provided.
While Catholic schools must pursue an inclusive setting to the maximum extent
appropriate, they do not need to make accommodations that would fundamentally alter the nature
of a program, be unduly burdensome, or result in substantial risk of injury to members of the

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school community (Blackett, 2001). For example, Catholic schools are not expected to hire
psychologists or speech-therapists to work with special-needs students. However, if the
provision of services to disabled students results in a “substantial increase in cost,” the Catholic
school may seek reimbursement (U.S. Department of Education, 2008).
In summary, Catholic school principals and administrators need to understand the effect of
constitutional protections (or lack thereof), the contracts they establish with staff, students, and
parents, their exposure to tort cases (specifically negligence), and their obligations regarding
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.

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References
Blackett, Mary Elizabeth (2001). Recommendations for Catholic School Administrators in
Facilitating Special Education Services. Catholic Education: A Journal of Inquiry and
Practice 4(4), 479-492.
Scanlan, Martin (2009). Moral, Legal, and Functional Dimensions of Inclusive Service Delivery
in Catholic Schools. Catholic Education: A Journal of Inquiry and Practice 12(4), 536-
552.
Schweinbeck, Nikki L. (2001). Section 504 and Catholic Schools. Catholic Education: A
Journal of Inquiry and Practice 4(4), 464-478.
Shaughnessy, Mary Angela (2001). Historical Overview of Catholic Education Law: How Did
We Get Where We Are? Catholic Education: A Journal of Inquiry and Practice 4(4),
437-453.
U.S. Department of Education (2008). Provisions Related to Children With Disabilities Enrolled
by Their Parents in Private Schools. Retrieved from
http://www2.ed.gov/admins/lead/speced/privateschools/idea.pdf.
U.S. Department of Education (2009). State Regulation of Private Schools. Retrieved from
http://www.ed.gov/admins/comm/choice/regprivschl/regprivschl.pdf.