Robert Kim
Biographic Data
| ID | 7145084 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Robert Kim |
| GIVEN NAMES | Robert |
| FAMILY NAME | Kim |
| SIGNATURE | KIM R |
| AFFILIATIONS | Doctor CONSULT, Seoul, Korea |
| ORCID | 0000-0001-6909-8841 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 38 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 0 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 38 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2020 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2024 |
| H-INDEX | 0 |
Under The Law: The Israel-Hamas war and U.S. classrooms
Students’ reactions to the Israel-Hamas war have contributed to conflict in higher education institutions and in K-12 schools. There have been numerous reports of protests, bullying, fights, violence, and anti-Semitic and anti-Islamic rhetoric. Robert Kim discusses the legal boundaries regarding free speech and the obligation to protect students from harassment and discrimination
Under the Law: The (mis)education of Indigenous students
Indigenous students in the U.S. — including American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian children — have faced a history of serious educational mistreatment. Today, the abusive boarding school program has ended, but Indigenous children still experience formidable challenges. Robert Kim describes laws related to schools funded by the Bureau of Indian Education, studies showing how the federal government has fallen short of its responsibilit…
Under the Law: Grade retention and the law
Being retained in a grade can have long-term consequences for students, and certain students are disproportionately likely to be retained in their grade. Robert Kim considers grade retention as a potential civil rights issue. Thus far, courts have been reluctant to overrule schools’ decisions in this area. However, cases that illuminate large disparities among students or that tie grade retention clearly to other acknowledged civil rights violati…
Under The Law: Recent developments in the quest for racial diversity in K-12 schools
In June 2023, the Supreme Court held that the admissions systems at the University of North Carolina (UNC) and Harvard University were racially discriminatory, effectively ending affirmative action. Are race-neutral admissions policies at selective K-12 schools next? Bob Kim considers two circuit court cases — Coalition for TJ v. Fairfax County School Board and Boston Parent Coalition for Academic Excellence v. City of Boston — in which plaintiff…
Under The Law: Vouchers and the future of public education
Until recently, few states offered vouchers to help families pay for private schools. But over the last two years, more states have begun enacting “universal” voucher laws, which permit any school-age child in the state to attend private schools using taxpayer funds that would or could otherwise support public education. Robert Kim and Jessica Levin discuss the legal and political trends undergirding the voucher movement and why the growth of vou…
Under The Law: That’s so meta : Social media, students, and 21st-century litigation
Social media companies are increasingly being called to account for how their apps are affecting young people. Robert Kim explores In re: Social Media Addiction, a lawsuit that combines multiple cases that have been brought against social media companies for their addictive effects. The cases illustrate the tension between product liability and free speech laws. To what extent can companies be held liable for consequences resulting from speech on…
Under the Law: Virtually an education
The closure of school buildings during the pandemic made virtual instruction necessary. Since schools have reopened, its use has become more normalized than it was pre-COVID. Bob Kim discusses some of the civil rights issues education leaders and policy makers must consider if they choose to assign certain students to virtual instruction. Some students, particularly students from low-income families, students with disabilities, and English learne…
Under the Law: Title IX and the SCOTUS power grab
New Title IX regulations issued by the Department of Education expand the types of sexual harassment schools must address and give schools greater flexibility in how they handle hearings. But the Supreme Court’s recent ruling in Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo expands courts’ roles in how federal agencies interpret and enforce regulations like Title IX. Robert Kim considers how the Loper Bright ruling might affect Title IX
Under The Law: The incredibly shrinking zone of teacher free speech
Schools, districts, and states are able to place some limits on what teachers can and cannot teach, but what of teachers’ free speech rights outside the classroom? Robert Kim examines long-standing U.S. Supreme Court rulings regarding free speech in school and considers how they might apply specifically to teachers’ free speech rights. He then surveys some recent district courts cases in which teachers were penalized for speech inside and outside…
Under the law: A case for social and emotional learning
Social-emotional learning (SEL) has been a staple in U.S. schools for decades, but it’s recently drawn criticism from policy makers and advocates who believe these programs represent government intrusion into areas best reserved for families. Robert Kim describes some of the legal arguments that support the use of SEL in schools. SEL programs can help foster equitable and nondiscriminatory environments, promote independence of students with disab…
Under The Law: Oklahoma
In June 2023, the Oklahoma Virtual Charter School Board approved the establishment of a charter school by the Catholic Archdiocese of Oklahoma City. This amounts to state funding of a religious school. Robert Kim discusses how this decision goes against Oklahoma’s constitutional and legislative history, why allowing religious charters is not the same as allowing vouchers for religious schools, and the potential implications of allowing direct sta…
Under The Law: Boys, men, and Title IX
Title IX, the federal law that protects against sex discrimination in schools, is frequently considered a law to protect women from bias, harassment, and assault. However, in recent years, it has also been used to protect the rights of LGBTQ+ students and of men. Robert Kim describes how male victims of harassment have been able to seek justice under Title IX. At the same time, men accused of harassment have turned to the law when they believe th…
Under the Law: Is there a sports advantage in suburbia
Participation in school sports has a variety of benefits for students. But not all students are able to participate in school athletics programs. In this column, Robert Kim explores the different levels of access suburban, urban, and rural students have to sports programs. And he considers whether students, regardless of where they live, have a right of equitable access to sports. Rural schools may offer more opportunities to participate in sport…
Under the Law: CTE: A checkered legal history
Career and technical education (also known as vocational education) has been in existence since at least the 19th century as a means of preparing students for employment. However, for much of the 20th century, it also has served to segregate students, even after such segregation was deemed illegal. Robert Kim describes the legal history of career and technical education (CTE). Although many of today’s CTE programs show positive outcomes for stude…
Under The Law: The legal fight to preserve public education — and democracy
As challenges to U.S. democracy proliferate, public schools have been caught up in the controversies. Columnist Robert Kim explains that the challenges to both public education and democracy are not new. These attacks occur on multiple fronts, involving funding, equity, and curriculum. And efforts to respond to the threats will require various types of legal battles. But the courts alone cannot address the threats of vouchers, censorship, and the…
Under The Law: Banning books: Unlawful censorship, or within a school’s discretion
The American Library Association reported an “unprecedented spike” in the number of book removal requests in the final months of 2021, and most of these challenges focus on books about people from marginalized communities. Robert Kim asks whether such removals violate the First Amendment and explores how much discretion court have granted school officials in removing books from schools. Cases tend to hinge on the motivations behind such removals …
Under The Law: Prayer huddle
Past U.S. Supreme Court rulings have held that schools and school employees must be careful to engage in religious activities while at school that could appear to endorse a particular religion above others or coerce students to engage in religious activities. However, the June 2022 Kennedy v. Bremerton School District opinion suggests that the current Court is far more concerned about violating school employees’ free exercise rights. In this case…
Under the Law: The kids have lost their cookies
As schools have ratcheted up their online remote instruction, questions about student privacy have become more significant. Robert Kim discusses current litigation related to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) and the use of education technology. Cases against Google have alleged that the company improperly collected student data without consent. Other cases have been brought against schools that use technology to monitor studen…
Under the Law: Public schools, religion, and equality after Carson v. Makin
In Carson v. Makin, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that, if a state offers tuition assistance for students to attend private schools, then requiring that those private schools be nonsectarian violates the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment. Robert Kim discusses how this case aligns with other decisions related to the free exercise of religion as it applies to public schools and what it could mean for schools going forward. Carson v. Makin,…
Under the Law: Wanted: American educator
A recent series of bills subject educators to fines, or even jail time, for conduct lawmakers find acceptable, such as assisting transgender students with gender transition, offering potentially “harmful” material in school libraries, or teaching “critical race theory.” These laws enable private citizens to sue educators who engage in these activities for damages, essentially acting as “bounty hunters” who enforce the law when the state cannot. R…
Under the Law: School accountability: Lessons from the courts
No Child Left Behind and the Every Student Succeeds Act have made accountability central to conversations about education policy. But neither statute articulates a clear vision of what constitutes “quality” or “equity” in education, nor do they include a mechanism to ensure that schools have sufficient resources to pursue that vision. For that, Bob Kim explains, we must turn to the courts. Kim discusses some of the court cases that have set out f…
Under the law: The restraint and seclusion of students with disabilities
In recent decades, researchers have learned that the use of restraint and/or seclusion to discipline students is ineffectual at best, and sometimes fatal. The U.S. Department of Education agrees, advising schools that “every effort should be made to structure environments and provide supports so that restraint and seclusion are unnecessary.” Even so, more than 100,000 students are restrained or secluded in U.S. public schools every year. Most are…
Under the Law: School safety: A legal labyrinth
An array of federal, state, and local laws and policies come into play when situations arise that could compromise student safety. These laws and district policies combine to form an intricate and sometimes inconsistent patchwork of protocols that schools must follow. Robert Kim discusses the interplay between federal, state, and local laws governing schools’ responses to student misbehavior; the differing regulations surrounding different kinds …
Efficacy of a 4-Week Nurse-Led Exercise Rehabilitation Program in Improving the Quality of Life in Women Receiving a Post-Mastectomy Reconstruction Using the Motiva ErgonomixTM Round SilkSurface
We assessed the efficacy of a 4-week nurse-led exercise rehabilitation (ER) program in improving the quality of life (QOL) of breast cancer survivors (BCS) receiving an implant-based breast reconstruction. The eligible patients were equally randomized to either of both groups: the intervention group ( n = 30; a 4-week nurse-led ER program) and the control group ( n = 30; a 4-week physical therapist-supervised one). Both after a 4-week ER program …
Predictors of Satisfaction With Work Environment in the Context of a Mismatch in Working Hours: A Nationwide, Large-Scale, Cross-Sectional Study
This nationwide, large-scale, cross-sectional study has hypothesized that there might be differences in workers' satisfaction with work environment depending on demographic, socio-economic, and work characteristics in the context of a mismatch between actual and preferred working hours. The current study is a secondary data analysis of the Fifth Korean Working Conditions Survey. A total of 29 694 subjects (n = 29 694) were finally included in the…
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Under the Law: Gary B., Espinoza , and the fight for school funding
A pair of recent federal court decisions could have profound consequences for school funding across the country. In the first, Gary B. v. Whitmer, the Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of seven Detroit, Michigan, public school students who argued that their schools were so woefully underfunded as to deny them the opportunity to become fully literate, which is essential to the exercise of fundamental rights under the U.S. Constitu…
Under the Law: Civil rights enforcement in education: The federal role
Robert Kim provides an overview of the work of the Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights (OCR), which is responsible for enforcing civil rights laws prohibiting discrimination. They achieve this in three ways: (1) The Civil Rights Data Collection, a database containing information on school climate, teacher and staff capacity, and other measures; (2) civil rights policy guidance, which informs schools about the rules and regulations th…
Under the Law: The legal battle over high school entrance exams
New York City has sought to revise the admissions policies at its eight selective schools so that these schools will be less segregated and better reflect the demographics of the boroughs where they are located. These efforts have led to a lawsuit alleging that the policies discriminate against Asian American students. Robert Kim discusses the arguments in the McAuliffe PTO v. de Blasio case and what it signifies for schools’ efforts to provide m…
Under The Law: The historic Bostock opinion and LGBTQ rights in schools
In Bostock v. Clayton, the U.S. Supreme Court held that discrimination against employees because they are gao or transgender violates the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Robert Kim summarizes the case and explains what the ruling means for schools. LGBTQ educators have historically faced discrimination, but such actions are now prohibited in nearly all public, private, and charter schools. Religious schools, however, may be exempt, and the ruling does …
Under the Law: Do students have a right to “equal extracurricular opportunity”
Robert Kim tackles the question of whether denying students access to extracurricular programs is lawful. Historically, courts have considered the presence or absence of extracurricular activities as a factor in determining whether a district has eliminated vestiges of segregation. Outside the desegregation context, however, courts have been reluctant to recognize a legal right to participate in extracurricular activities. Today, those hoping to …
Under the law: Masking reality
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s recommendation that students, staff, and visitors at K-12 schools wear masks indoors, regardless of their COVID-19 vaccination status, led numerous states to issue mask mandates for some or all K-12 schools. Most of the remaining states have decided to allow school districts to do whatever they want around masks, but a few banned local mask mandates. These developments invite a number of legal ques…
Bookshelf: Kappan authors on their favorite reads
In this monthly column, Kappan authors discuss books and articles that have informed their views on education. Robert Kim recommends Minor Feelings: An Asian American Reckoning by Cathy Park Hong, Sarah Pazer recommends the multi-author Manifesto for Teaching Online, and Thomas Hatch recommends Tinkering Toward Utopia: A Century of Public School Reform by David Tyack and Larry Cuban
Under the Law: How is your community depicted in the curriculum? Who decides
A case in California reaffirms that courts are reluctant to intervene when families are concerned about school curricula. In CAPEEM v. Torlakson, parents of Hindu children complained that the state’s history and social science standards are framework discriminated against them by inaccurately and disparingingly representing their faith. Bob Kim describes the plaintiffs’ arguments, the case’s journey through the courts, and how the court’s ruling …
Under the law: The rights of rural students
The difficulties rural school face are well known, and some have turned to the courts for help, joining with urban districts in lawsuits that seek to force states to change how education funds are distributed. Robert Kim reviews litigation in Tennessee, South Carolina, and Pennsylvania that illustrate the challenges these schools face
Under the Law: Regulating student speech in the Snapchat era
The upcoming case Mahanoy Area School District v. B.L. will require the U.S. Supreme Court to rule on students’ rights to free speech on social media. The case involves a student who was disciplined for using foul language about her school’s cheerleading squad on Snapchat while off-campus and outside school time. Bob Kim traces the progress of the case so far and discusses what the case might mean for students and schools
Under the Law: Introducing educators to the law
Educators must constantly make decisions that have legal consequences, but understanding what the law actually says can be a challenge. Robert Kim shares how educators can access and use legal materials to help them make decisions
Under the Law: ‘Anti-critical race theory’ laws and the assault on pedagogy
A recent spate of state laws attempts to limit how much schools teach about critical race theory. Robert Kim surveys the current legislation, noting that they fail to grapple with actual problems in the teaching of history and often contain loopholes that reduce their impact. He also notes that, although states have power over school curricula, the courts have struck down laws related to school curricula when those laws appear to have a discrimin…
Under the Law: Expanding access to preK and the legacy of Abbott v. Burke
In the 1998 Abbott v. Burke decision, New Jersey’s highest court because the first in the nation to require access to high-quality preK education for three- and four-year olds as part of their constitutional right to K-12 public education. Robert Kim describes the legal landscape in New Jersey leading up to the decision and discusses the legacy of Abbott in New Jersey and its possible national influence
Under The Law: Banning books: Unlawful censorship, or within a school’s discretion
The American Library Association reported an “unprecedented spike” in the number of book removal requests in the final months of 2021, and most of these challenges focus on books about people from marginalized communities. Robert Kim asks whether such removals violate the First Amendment and explores how much discretion court have granted school officials in removing books from schools. Cases tend to hinge on the motivations behind such removals …
Under The Law: Prayer huddle
Past U.S. Supreme Court rulings have held that schools and school employees must be careful to engage in religious activities while at school that could appear to endorse a particular religion above others or coerce students to engage in religious activities. However, the June 2022 Kennedy v. Bremerton School District opinion suggests that the current Court is far more concerned about violating school employees’ free exercise rights. In this case…
Under the Law: The kids have lost their cookies
As schools have ratcheted up their online remote instruction, questions about student privacy have become more significant. Robert Kim discusses current litigation related to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) and the use of education technology. Cases against Google have alleged that the company improperly collected student data without consent. Other cases have been brought against schools that use technology to monitor studen…
Under the Law: Public schools, religion, and equality after Carson v. Makin
In Carson v. Makin, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that, if a state offers tuition assistance for students to attend private schools, then requiring that those private schools be nonsectarian violates the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment. Robert Kim discusses how this case aligns with other decisions related to the free exercise of religion as it applies to public schools and what it could mean for schools going forward. Carson v. Makin,…
Under the Law: Wanted: American educator
A recent series of bills subject educators to fines, or even jail time, for conduct lawmakers find acceptable, such as assisting transgender students with gender transition, offering potentially “harmful” material in school libraries, or teaching “critical race theory.” These laws enable private citizens to sue educators who engage in these activities for damages, essentially acting as “bounty hunters” who enforce the law when the state cannot. R…
Under the Law: School accountability: Lessons from the courts
No Child Left Behind and the Every Student Succeeds Act have made accountability central to conversations about education policy. But neither statute articulates a clear vision of what constitutes “quality” or “equity” in education, nor do they include a mechanism to ensure that schools have sufficient resources to pursue that vision. For that, Bob Kim explains, we must turn to the courts. Kim discusses some of the court cases that have set out f…
Under the law: The restraint and seclusion of students with disabilities
In recent decades, researchers have learned that the use of restraint and/or seclusion to discipline students is ineffectual at best, and sometimes fatal. The U.S. Department of Education agrees, advising schools that “every effort should be made to structure environments and provide supports so that restraint and seclusion are unnecessary.” Even so, more than 100,000 students are restrained or secluded in U.S. public schools every year. Most are…
Under the Law: School safety: A legal labyrinth
An array of federal, state, and local laws and policies come into play when situations arise that could compromise student safety. These laws and district policies combine to form an intricate and sometimes inconsistent patchwork of protocols that schools must follow. Robert Kim discusses the interplay between federal, state, and local laws governing schools’ responses to student misbehavior; the differing regulations surrounding different kinds …
Efficacy of a 4-Week Nurse-Led Exercise Rehabilitation Program in Improving the Quality of Life in Women Receiving a Post-Mastectomy Reconstruction Using the Motiva ErgonomixTM Round SilkSurface
We assessed the efficacy of a 4-week nurse-led exercise rehabilitation (ER) program in improving the quality of life (QOL) of breast cancer survivors (BCS) receiving an implant-based breast reconstruction. The eligible patients were equally randomized to either of both groups: the intervention group ( n = 30; a 4-week nurse-led ER program) and the control group ( n = 30; a 4-week physical therapist-supervised one). Both after a 4-week ER program …
Predictors of Satisfaction With Work Environment in the Context of a Mismatch in Working Hours: A Nationwide, Large-Scale, Cross-Sectional Study
This nationwide, large-scale, cross-sectional study has hypothesized that there might be differences in workers' satisfaction with work environment depending on demographic, socio-economic, and work characteristics in the context of a mismatch between actual and preferred working hours. The current study is a secondary data analysis of the Fifth Korean Working Conditions Survey. A total of 29 694 subjects (n = 29 694) were finally included in the…
Under The Law: The incredibly shrinking zone of teacher free speech
Schools, districts, and states are able to place some limits on what teachers can and cannot teach, but what of teachers’ free speech rights outside the classroom? Robert Kim examines long-standing U.S. Supreme Court rulings regarding free speech in school and considers how they might apply specifically to teachers’ free speech rights. He then surveys some recent district courts cases in which teachers were penalized for speech inside and outside…
Under the law: A case for social and emotional learning
Social-emotional learning (SEL) has been a staple in U.S. schools for decades, but it’s recently drawn criticism from policy makers and advocates who believe these programs represent government intrusion into areas best reserved for families. Robert Kim describes some of the legal arguments that support the use of SEL in schools. SEL programs can help foster equitable and nondiscriminatory environments, promote independence of students with disab…
Law (35 works) · Political science (35 works) · Sociology (30 works) · Psychology (18 works) · Legal Issues in Education (10 works) · Pedagogy (9 works) · Public Administration (9 works) · Diverse Education Studies and Reforms (8 works) · Mathematics education (8 works) · State (computer science) (8 works)