Outlines school boards' responsibility to follow due process procedures in dismissals of school employees who are not teachers. Refers to a recent Supreme Court decision on two court cases. (MD)

Making reference to concepts grounded in the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution, this document lists substantive and procedural due process requirements regarding employee termination that administrators must take pains to implement. Justifiable reasons for termination are identified. School administrators have the burden of…

The employment contract is the key item in superintendent firing, and thus, it should include provisions for termination. Terminations can misfire if the board does not carry out contractual obligations. Eight points of advice are included for boards that are contemplating firing a superintendent. (MD)

Summarizes issues relating to removal of school board members in the areas of grounds, methods, and parties seeking removal. The fewer than 20 successful removal actions since World War II indicate that the vulnerability of board members to litigation does not necessarily mean they are equally vulnerable to removal actions. (MLF)

The Supreme Court has resolved an issue involving public employees' due process rights. Before dismissing an employee, school administrators must (1) give the employee a clear list of the grounds for the decision, (2) explain the basis for each charge, and (3) give the employee a chance to respond. (MLF)

In the summer 1996 issue of this journal, Donal M. Sacken analyzed 252 cases of administrator-initiated litigation arising from adverse personnel decisions. Chester C. Kent criticizes Sacken for specifically: (1) the indiscriminate mixture of involuntary demotions with demotions and terminations for cause; (2) creating a nontraditional format as a…

New legislation requiring that continuing health insurance benefits be offered to employees and their families generally apply to all health care benefit plans maintained by school districts. The new regulations are explained. (MLF)

A search of published cases concerning the dismissal of superintendents revealed 22 court decisions for the period 1983-89. Offers advice to board members compiled from the reported cases. (MLF)

This book, an updated publication of the National School Boards Association Council of School Attorneys, is designed to help school board members and administrators effectively obtain and work with a competent school lawyer. Following the foreword by Benjamin J. Ferrara, contents include the following articles: (1) "Development of the School…

Teacher quality can be improved through teacher evaluation, intervention programs, incentives or rewards, and counseling. In the Toledo, Ohio, peer evaluation program, evaluation and staff development go hand in hand. The program was developed through a collaborative and cooperative process and uses teacher consultants to evaluate and supervise…

The practitioner advising a school board in connection with a reduction in force can appreciate that the board has great flexibility in implementing its decision. As long as the board's actions are not arbitrary, capricious, or pretextual, and they afford minimal due process protections to tenured teachers, the board's decisions will withstand…

The First Amendment free speech right is one of the most frequently asserted constitutional challenges to dismissal or discipline of a school district employee. In any employee's claim of violation of free speech right by a public employer, a threefold process of review should be made: (1) Was the conduct in question constitutionally protected in…

Special attention should be given to performance evaluation, contract renewal, and termination in the language of employment contracts for superintendents. (MD)

Discusses the "Cleveland Board of Education v. Loudermill" case, in which a security guard was dismissed for dishonestly completing an application without a chance to answer the charge or challenge his dismissal. Examines the United States Supreme Court ruling, immediate due process implications, unanswered questions, and lower court…

This volume is part one of a three-part report of the Educational Research Service (ERS) "National Survey of Fringe Benefits in Public Schools." Data were derived from a 2-part questionnaire that was mailed to 1,918 United States public school systems. A total of 810 school systems responded, creating a 42 percent response rate. Information is…