School Policy Bootcamp 2027
Navigating Risk, Compliance, and Best Practice
High Point Christian Academy - Green Street Baptist Church
303 North Rotary DriveHigh Point, NC 27262-6971
United States
School Policy Bootcamp: Navigating Risk, Compliance, and Best Practice
Policies that may have been adequate three years ago, can create liabilities today. Join us for a comprehensive discussion of the most significant policy developments impacting independent schools, along with practical guidance on how these changes should inform updates to student and employee handbooks. Grounded in current legal and operational realities, this session will help school leaders understand not only what has changed, but how to respond in thoughtful, proactive ways.
Participants will explore emerging risks and key areas where schools should strengthen policy language, clarify procedures, and ensure alignment with best practices in governance and compliance. Particular attention will be given to how schools can balance mission, culture, and legal responsibility when making policy decisions.
Topics will include, but are not limited to:
Student-facing policies, including:
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The use of AI and emerging technologies in schools
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Student discipline and process best practices
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Student accommodations and support frameworks
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Preventing and responding to sexual misconduct
Employee-facing policies, including:
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Professional boundaries and employee conduct
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ADA and FMLA considerations, including leave and accommodations
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Maintaining student safety and upholding the school’s duty of care
Through the use of case studies and real-world scenarios, participants will gain a “view from the trenches,” examining how schools have navigated complex situations and identifying where stronger policies and clearer procedures could reduce risk and improve outcomes.
This interactive “bootcamp” is designed for school leaders, administrators, and business officers who are responsible for policy development, implementation, and oversight, and who are seeking to ensure their school’s policies are current, comprehensive, and aligned with today’s challenges.
Registration Options
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Registration Options
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Credits | Price |
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NCAIS Member School Registration
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6.00 (CEU) |
$195.00
Price will increase to $245.00 on
3/11/27 12:00 AM EDT
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Guest Registration
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6.00 (CEU) |
$245.00
Price will increase to $295.00 on
3/11/27 12:00 AM EDT
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2027 School Policy Bootcamp by Meghan Hilleboe
Tara Walker is a partner in the Portland, Maine office who focuses her practice in both labor and employment law and education law. Representing employers, independent schools, and higher educational institutions across Northern New England, Tara provides strategic legal counsel and litigation defense in complex and high-profile matters.
Labor and Employment Law
Tara defends employers in complex discrimination, harassment, and retaliation disputes, as well as handling labor law litigation and compliance. With more than 12 years of experience, Tara has spent more than a decade litigating in federal and state courts and before administrative agencies in cases involving Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendments Act, The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the Rehabilitation Act, Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), the Maine Human Rights Act (MHRA), and various civil rights matters.
A trusted advisor in labor relations, Tara has guided private sector clients through all aspects of union organization campaigns, including acting as lead counsel and advising senior leadership through several campaigns, conducting direct messaging, and training management and supervisors. For her clients, Tara has secured favorable decisions in campaigns from the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and separately has served as lead negotiator, securing successful contracts.
Education Law
Tara also focuses her practice on counseling independent K-12 schools, special purpose private schools, and public and private institutions of higher education in a wide range of matters including student safety and institutional liability, policy development, governance, employment matters, student conduct and disciplinary matters, faculty relations, and crisis management. Tara regularly advises clients on the full spectrum of school community and employee issues, drafting and negotiating employment agreements for senior leadership, advising on reporting obligations, leading and overseeing misconduct investigations, and guiding educational institutions through responses to high-profile incidents. Tara also conducts on-campus trainings on a wide array of topics including professional boundaries for faculty and staff, mandatory reporting obligations, harassment and bullying prevention, school safety and risk mitigation, and maintaining student privacy and confidentiality, among others.
In addition, Tara represents educational institutions in litigation involving Title IX and related sexual misconduct claims by students and employees, injury cases by students, and issues relating to the regulation of independent schools under state and federal law. Through practical legal experience and deep industry insight, Tara helps employers, independent schools, and universities navigate complex challenges.
Prior to joining Fisher Phillips, Tara was a partner and member of the Labor and Employment Practice Group in the Portland office of a large diversified New England-based law firm. She also formerly served as Legal & Policy Director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Alaska, where she spearheaded strategic litigation and lobbying efforts. Earlier in her legal career, Tara served as law clerk to Justice Joseph M. Jabar of the Maine Supreme Judicial Court. Prior to law school, Tara worked at a nonprofit supporting and advocating for free and fair elections in Moscow, Russia, and served as a volunteer English teacher with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in Budapest, Hungary. Tara is a Registered Maine Guide, and in her free time, Tara enjoys sea kayaking near her home on the coast of Maine, wildlife tracking, and working on her 1973 Volkswagen Westfalia camper van.
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