What due process are tenured teachers entitled to before their employment can be terminated involuntarily?
A school board cannot terminate a teacher’s indefinite contract until after it has served the teacher with written charges specifying the grounds it believes exist for termination and notice of the right to a hearing. A teacher who wants a hearing must request it within 10 days of receiving the notice and charges. If no request for hearing is made within 10 days, the board may, by majority vote, terminate the contract. The school board may suspend a teacher while termination proceedings are pending, but it must continue to pay the teacher’s salary during a suspension. At a termination hearing, the teacher may be represented by legal counsel and may cross examine witnesses called by the board against the teacher. The teacher may subpoena witnesses to appear and testify on his or her behalf, but the board may limit the teacher to ten witnesses. By statute, termination hearings are open to the public. The school board must pay all costs of the proceeding except for the teacher’s attorney
Related Questions
- Under what circumstances can tenured faculty, or un-tenured faculty currently under contract, have their employment terminated?
- What due process are tenured teachers entitled to before their employment can be terminated involuntarily?
- Are probationary teachers entitled to due process before their contracts can be terminated?
