Gwen J. Zittoun

Gwen’s experience drafting and reviewing contracts extends to COVID-related, crisis response and other vendor agreements. Drawing on her collective knowledge and depth of practice, Gwen strategizes in advance of receiving client questions and develops sample documents to address the myriad of issues presented in education contracts, including contracts during the COVID-19 pandemic; special education and outplacement contracts; and student data privacy contracts. With an emphasis on keeping schools legally protected and out of the public eye, Gwen identifies important contractual requirements, including background checks, upfront. In addition, Gwen’s school clients receive the collective experience of cross-disciplinary lawyers from various practices across the firm who advise schools on contract matters.  

Education is a key pillar of Gwen’s practice, and schools benefit from her dedication to drafting and maintaining Shipman’s Model Policies, an extensive collection of sample policies on student and faculty topics ranging from bullying prevention to school district budgets, currently offered to 50+ public school districts in Connecticut. Gwen’s experience in the area of board policy development and revision has played an important role preparing Connecticut school districts to handle crises and new developments in the law, such as COVID-19 and Title IX. A trusted advisor, Gwen works with school stakeholders to recommend legal or board review of existing policies, to ensure that the district saves valuable time and resources.

Gwen’s commitment to education is evidenced by her decade-long role as Adjunct Professor of the University of Connecticut’s Neag School of Education, where she educated students on general and special education law. She also maintains an active community presence as a member of the Family Advisory Council for the Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders at Connecticut Children’s Medical Center.