Dr. Victoria Pettis

Summer Cohort 2006

EOCS 7450

September 5, 2006

 

EOCS 7450

Practicum in Leadership

Case Study 5

 

ISLLC Standard 5: A school administrator is an educational leader who promotes the success of all students by acting with integrity, fairness, and in an ethical manner.

 

Name of the Case Study: You Are So Fired![1]

 

Problem: Getting Rid of Sour Apples (Teachers) Without Spoiling the Ripe Ones

 

Questions:

1. In the case study below, what implications does the principal’s decision have for educational leaders?

2.  What is a teacher entitled to under “due process”?

 

The Situation:

            “So you’re firing me?” screamed high school English teacher Glenn O’Brien. “The accident wasn’t my fault!”

            “Mr. O’Brien, I did not do anything. You fired yourself when you knowingly chose not to follow school board policy on field trips!” Principal Ginger Blackmon stated calmly.

            “I didn’t think it made any sense to go through all of that red tape just to transport one student across town to the spelling bee competition! How was I to know that a drunk driver would sideswipe my SUV, and Akeelah would be injured? How do you think I feel?”

 “When I said you had my support for this trip, I specifically warned you to go through the proper channels for field trips! I knew you would think the rules didn’t apply to you, Mr. O’Brien. That’s your usual M-O. That’s even how you run your classes. Always on the edge. Reckless. Oh! The only reason I have kept you around for the past 15 years is because I know you’re one of the best damn teachers at this school! The kids respect you so much that they’d walk on water if you asked! But this! You have gone too far even for me!”

            “So why are you choosing to fire me now? Pressure from board members? Did our superintendent order this? You know he’s never liked me. Of all people, I would never have thought you’d let me down this way, Dr. Blackmon.”

            “Well…Mr. O’Brien, you crossed waaay over the line this time. And this time – you’ll have to pay the piper. I’m sorry. Clean out your desk. We’ll box up the rest of your classroom things and send them to you.”  

 

Response to Questions: Dr. Blackmon’s decision to fire English teacher Glenn O’Brien without affording him due process shows this principal lacks knowledge of both education and law. Consulting professional publications and contacting one’s school district’s lawyer would have been appropriate and precautionary steps to protect the school district from law suits. Either resource would have provided Dr. Blackmon with sound advice about this case: Make sure the process for dismissing O’Brien is fair. The dismissal of O’Brien was both unjust and unfair. He should have been provided a fair hearing, which should have included a written statement of the charges and the evidence, and explanation of the procedural right, adequate time to prepare a defense, and an opportunity for a formal hearing.

 

 

Evaluation: The administrator’s decision to fire the teacher without due process represents leadership in the rudimentary stage of development in support of ISLLC standard 5.  First, the principal’s accusations about O’Brien’s past behavior may lead readers to conclude that this is not Dr. Blackmon’s first time dealing with what she called O’Brien’s “reckless” disregard for school rules and policies. It is unclear what actions Dr. Blackmon sought with O’Brien when he operated recklessly on previous occasions. For whatever reason (maybe because a student was injured or pressure from the superintendent and/or board members), Dr. Blackmon felt compelled to fire him. Second, firing a teacher – especially one with tenure – is a serious decision and by law, educational leaders must follow certain procedural steps if they are deemed as acting with integrity, fairness, and in an ethical manner.

When a teacher is fired, administrators must afford the accused teacher of the following: the teacher must be notified of the charges; the teacher must be given an opportunity for a hearing; the teacher must be provided with adequate time to prepare a rebuttal to the charges; the teacher must have access to evidence and names of witnesses; the teacher must be given a hearing before an impartial tribunal; the teacher must be given an opportunity to be represented by legal counsel; the teacher must be given an opportunity to present evidence and witnesses; the decision on the teacher’s case must be based on evidence and findings of the hearing; the hearing must be transcribed or recorded; and the teacher must be given the opportunity to appeal an adverse decision.[2]

Because Dr. Blackmon chose to simply fire O’Brien, she did act with reasonable fairness. The fact that she chose to ignore O’Brien’s previous acts of reckless behavior and shield him from consequences demonstrates her personal and professional values, beliefs, attitudes, and code of ethics may be deemed at “shady and questionable.” If O’Brien is smart, he will hire a lawyer and take Dr. Blackmon and the school district to court.