Adams and Reese attorneys Lee Reid and Jennifer Barriere worked pro bono with both the Louisiana Association of Public Charter Schools (LAPCS) and Louisiana Appleseed to produce a Legal Handbook for members of Louisiana’s charter school governing boards to serve as a guide to simplify and spell out the legal rules and regulations by which they must operate.
Reid and Barriere worked pro bono on the project with attorney Alvin Miester of Sher Garner Cahill Richter Klein & Hilbert.
The first edition of the Legal Handbook is slated for release in early 2014.
The Memorandum of Understanding formalizing the three-year partnership specifies the roles of the organizations in the production and distribution of the Handbook. The LAPCS will lend institutional and financial support to help in the research and production of the materials, as well as take the lead in the annual updates and distribution of the physical books to charter governing boards across the state. Louisiana Appleseed’s volunteer attorneys will be responsible for providing the core content in the Handbook, production of the physical book, and the online availability of the material.
“We felt producing this Legal Handbook would be an excellent way to complement the great work the LAPCS is doing with governing boards across the state,” said Jessie Schott Haynes, Esq., Program Director at Louisiana Appleseed.
The mission of the Louisiana Association of Public Charter Schools is to support, promote, and advocate for the Louisiana charter school movement, increasing student access to high quality public schools statewide. Louisiana Appleseed recruits professionals to donate pro bono time to solve problems at their root cause.
At Adams and Reese, Reid is a Partner, practicing in the areas of education, business services, aerospace, governmental relations, economic development and litigation. He has been instrumental in the development of charter schools across Louisiana, representing a diverse array of stakeholders and dedicating numerous hours of pro bono assistance to improving the environment for charter schools in the State. Barriere is a member of the Litigation Practice Group at Adams and Reese and concentrates her practice in education, class action and complex litigation.