FILE: GBN
DISMISSAL OF EMPLOYEES
CERTIFICATED EMPLOYEES
It shall be the policy of the Acadia Parish School Board to strive to assist personnel in every way possible to adjust to their positions and to perform their duties satisfactorily. Every reasonable effort shall be made to avoid the necessity of dismissing personnel at any level.
A permanent teacher shall not be removed from his/her position except upon written and signed charges of willful neglect of duty, or incompetency, dishonesty, or immorality, or of being a member of or contributing to any group, organization, movement, or corporation that is by law or injunction prohibited from operating in the state of Louisiana, and then only if found guilty after a hearing by the School Board.
The Board, if it decides to proceed upon the charges, shall notify the teacher in writing at least twenty (20) days prior to the hearing, stating the charges brought against him, and shall arrange for a hearing to be held in accordance with due process provisions of the law, such hearing to be public or private at the option of the teacher. Prior to the recommendation for dismissal being presented to the Board, the employee shall be advised of the alleged charges and be given the opportunity to resign and/or retire.
During the probationary term of an employee of the school district, the Board may dismiss an employee upon the written recommendation of the Superintendent; said recommendation to include valid reasons for the dismissal.
Any permanent teacher or other school employee having supervisory or disciplinary authority over school children shall be dismissed by the Board, in accordance with statutory provisions, upon final conviction or pleading nolo contendere to certain crimes outlined in state law.
Performance Contracts
Professional personnel who have entered into employment contracts with the Board may be removed from employment upon being found incompetent, inefficient, or failing to fulfill the terms and performance objectives of his/her contract during the term of his contract. Notification of termination of an employment contract shall be provided at least one hundred twenty (120) days prior to termination. The 120 days shall not apply to the expiration and/or renewal of the initial contract. Any person so removed shall be entitled to written charges, notice of hearings, and a fair hearing before the Board. If the person so removed had previously acquired tenure, then upon removal or non-renewal of contract, he/she shall be returned to his/her former position or one of equal salary as his/her former position, unless the employee chooses to terminate his/her employment.
SUPPORT PERSONNEL
With the exception of lay-offs caused by programmatic changes, budget cuts, staff reorganizations, and/or reductions in force, no employee of the Acadia Parish School Board shall be dismissed without Board approval. Any school employee having supervisory or disciplinary authority over school children shall be dismissed by the School Board, in accordance with statutory provisions, upon final conviction or pleading nolo contendere of certain crimes outlined in state law.
Bus Operators
During his/her probationary term, a bus operator may be dismissed by the Board upon the Superintendent's written recommendation, accompanied by valid reasons therefore.
Any school bus operator found unsatisfactory by the Board at the expiration of his/her probationary term shall be notified in writing by the Board that he/she has been discharged or dismissed.
A permanent school bus operator shall not be removed from his/her position except upon written and signed charges of willful neglect of duty, or incompetence, or immorality, or drunkenness while on duty, or physical disability to perform his/her duties, or failure to keep his/her transfer equipment in a safe, comfortable, and practical operating condition, or of being a member of or contributing to any group, organization, movement, or corporation that is prohibited by law or injunction from operating in the state, and then only if found guilty after a hearing by the School Board. An additional ground for the removal from office of any permanent school bus operator shall be the abolition, discontinuance, or consolidation of routes, but then only if it is found as a fact, after a hearing by the School Board, that it is in the best interests of the school system to abolish, discontinue, or consolidate said route or routes.
All hearings shall be private or public, at the option of the operator affected thereby. At least twenty (20) days in advance of the date of the hearing the Superintendent, with approval of the School Board, shall furnish the affected operator a copy of the written grounds on which said abolition, discontinuance, or consolidation of routes is sought. The operator affected shall have the right to appear before the Board with witnesses in his/her behalf and with counsel of his/her selection, all of whom shall be heard by the Board at said hearing.
If a permanent school bus operator is found guilty, the Superintendent shall furnish to the school bus operator a written statement of recommendation of removal or discipline, which shall include but not be limited to the exact reason, offense, or instance upon which the recommendation is based.
In the event that one or more school bus operators must be removed due to the abolition, discontinuance, or consolidation of routes, the principle of seniority shall apply so that the last school bus operator hired to serve within the school system to be affected shall be the first to be removed.
Support Employees Other Than Bus Operators
Dismissal of any non-tenured support employee shall be accomplished in accordance with the following procedure:
Any employee of the district who is not in a tenure system or under contract to the Board may be terminated at will.
The immediate supervisor shall make a recommendation for termination to the Superintendent/designee along with documentation of charges.
The Superintendent/designee shall prepare and forward to the Board a written recommendation for termination. The Board may accept or reject the recommendation.
If an employee leaves without resigning, after ten (10) days, such action shall be considered as willful neglect of duty and a recommendation shall be made by the Superintendent to the Board for dismissal of the employee.
Revised: November, 2003
Ref: La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §§15:587.1, 17:15, 17:16, 17:81.5, 17:443, 17:444, 17:491.3, 17:493, 32:414.2
Rousselle v. Plaquemines Parish School Board, 633 So.2d 1235 (La. 2/28/94)
Board minutes, 6-6-94, 3-1-04
Acadia Parish School Board