Chuck Cagle, Shareholder and Chair of the Education Law and Government Relations Practice Group in Lewis Thomason’s Nashville office, has been appointed as a Trustee by the State of Tennessee for the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools – Commission on Colleges. SACSCOC serves as the recognized regional accrediting body for 800 institutions of higher education that award degrees in 11 southern states. Cagle will serve as the public delegate from Tennessee. The state delegation has six members (five representing higher education institutions and a public member). SACSCOC Trustees are responsible for determining Commission policy, reviewing and making decisions regarding the accreditation of institutions, and conducting the initial review for modifications to the accreditation standards of the Commission.
Cagle oversees the firm’s representation of over 70 public boards of education, two private schools, two private universities, and a private medical school in a variety of legal matters including employment issues related to both licensed and classified employees, employee and student discipline, employee and student rights, special education and disability accommodation, constitutional rights issues, sexual harassment and bullying issues, civil rights, desegregation, school system consolidation, tort liability, school system business practices, school funding, taxation, and school construction.
Cagle has received several honors, including the Kip Rel Award – the highest award bestowed for educational leadership by the Tennessee Organization of School Superintendents. He was selected by American Lawyer Media and Martindale-Hubbell as the Elite Lawyer of the South; and named to The Best Lawyers in America® for Education Law in Tennessee and is a Fellow in the Nashville Bar Association.
He is a member of the National School Boards Association’s Council of School Attorneys, Tennessee Council of School Board Attorneys, Education Law Association, and the American, Nashville, and Tennessee Bar Associations.