How hard is it to fire a tenured teacher? They might find out in Salamanca, NY.
October 26, 2008 - When a teacher was arrested recently, Salamanca school officials discovered that it was just the beginning of the process that might take years to resolve. The article is called, "Salamanca Blindsided."
Salamanca City School District superintendent Doug Hay said he believes the state Education Department will take charge in deciding what happens to Dupont professionally. If the Education Department decides to revoke Dupont's certification, it may allow the district to move more quickly through the hearing process to ultimately fire Dupont.
''My understanding from a legal aspect is the state Education Department will take ... this,'' he said. ''An individual certification will be removed by the state.''
However, if Dupont is found guilty of the charges, it still may be difficult for school officials to remove the teacher, especially since he is tenured. The district may have to hold a 3020a hearing, which would require someone impartial to the case to hear both sides. The process is lengthy even after a teacher's certification is revoked.Even if a teacher is convicted of a sex crime, the district would have to go through the 3020a hearing process to fire a tenured teacher.
''That's a law that's only applicable to tenured teachers,'' said Jay Worona, New York State School Boards Association general counsel. ''It affords a great degree of due process for those people who would be facing charges ... in some type of disciplinary proceeding. It really is very much like a real trial in the sense that it takes a long time.''
According to Brian Butry, New York State School Boards Association spokesperson, the hearing process can be expensive and time consuming. He said 10 years ago, the average length of proceedings was 319 days and it costs an average of $94,000. Now, the hearings, on average, last 520 days and cost almost $130,000.
''We think that process is flawed,'' Butry said. ''We've helped sponsor legislation in the last year that was actually introduced.''
Taxpayers are also responsible for additional costs, Worona said, including, in most cases, having to pay the suspended teacher, the substitute who is replacing him and any litigation expenses.
''A big chunk of that expense is the fact that the teacher in most cases collects their full salary while the hearing is (proceeding),'' said Patricia Gould, New York State School Boards Association assistant council, adding upon a conviction, then the individual is no longer paid his salary.
TT Entry for Michael Dupont
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RESOURCES: Wikipedia entry for Salamanca, NY
The population was 6,097 at the 2000 census. The city is located located inside the Allegany Indian Reservation.
RECOMMENDED READING: Award-winning series by Scott Reeder of the Small Newspaper group, "The Hidden Cost of Tenure" was the result of months of investigation that included 1,500 Freedom of Information Act requests, hundreds of interviews and one of the largest media document searches in the history of Cook County courts.
The state is Illinois, but what they found out about tenure is true in every state.
NY State TENURE HEARING: New York State Education Department Teacher Tenure Hearing (3020a)
Note: You will not find a list of disciplined teachers at the site. Nor will you find any information about teachers whose licenses have been revoked. You will find a Code of Ethics, but with this proviso:
This Code shall not be used as a basis for discipline by any employer and shall not be used by the State Education Department as a basis for a proceeding under Part 83 of Commissioner's Regulations, nor shall it serve as a basis for decisions pertaining to certification or employment in New York State.
