FILE: F-9.15
DISMISSAL OF EMPLOYEES
With the exception of lay-offs caused by programmatic changes, budget cuts, staff reorganizations, and/or other personnel actions reducing numbers of employees, no Central Community School Board employee shall be dismissed except as provided by state law and this policy.
CRIMINAL OFFENSES
The Superintendent, on behalf of the School Board, shall dismiss:
An administrator, teacher, or substitute teacher upon final conviction or submission of plea of nolo contendere to any crime listed in La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §15:587.1, even if adjudication was withheld or a pardon or expungement was granted, in accordance with statutory provisions for dismissal applicable to the employee.
However, if the person has obtained tenure, such dismissal shall occur only after a hearing held pursuant to hearing procedures outlined in policy F-9.14, Employee Discipline.
An administrator, teacher, or substitute teacher who is found to have submitted fraudulent documentation to the Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) or the Louisiana Department of Education (LDOE) as part of an application for a Louisiana teaching certificate or other teaching authorization.
An administrator, teacher, or substitute teacher who is found to have facilitated cheating on any state assessment as determined by BESE.
Any other school employee if such employee is convicted of or pleads nolo contendere to crimes enumerated in La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §15:587.1, except La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §14:74.
The Superintendent shall notify the State Superintendent of Education of any employee’s dismissal for the criminal offenses above no later than thirty (30) days after such dismissal.
In addition, employees shall be subject to removal for failure to properly report arrests for certain offenses enumerated in La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §17:16.
ABANDONMENT OF POSITION
If an employee is absent for ten (10) or more days without explanation or approved leave, the School Board may consider the job as abandoned and the employee may be terminated, unless the employee can provide acceptable and verifiable evidence of extenuating circumstances. The Superintendent or his/her designee shall be responsible for determining acceptability of evidence of extenuating circumstances.
CERTIFICATED EMPLOYEES
Non-tenured Teachers
The Superintendent may terminate the employment of any non-tenured teacher after providing such teacher with the written reasons therefor and providing the teacher the opportunity to respond. The teacher shall have seven (7) days to respond, and such response shall be included in the teacher’s personnel file. The Superintendent shall notify the teacher in writing of his/her final decision. The teacher shall not be entitled to a hearing before the School Board.
Within sixty (60) days of such notice, the teacher may seek summary review in district court of whether or not the Superintendent’s action was arbitrary or capricious.
Tenured Teachers
A tenured teacher shall not be removed from office except upon written and signed charges by the Superintendent or his/her designee of poor performance, willful neglect of duty, incompetency, dishonesty, 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 furnished with a copy of such written charges and given the opportunity to respond. Dismissal of a teacher with tenure shall be governed by the provisions for discipline of tenured teachers as included in policy, F-9.14,Employee Discipline.
Contract Appointees
Personnel who have entered into promotional employment contracts with the School Board, pursuant to La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §17:444, may be removed from their positions by non-renewal of their contracts or by termination of their contracts. Contracts may be non-renewed by the School Board for any of the following reasons:
The Superintendent has recommended against renewal of the contract based on an evaluation of the employee’s performance;
The failure to offer a new contract is based on a cause sufficient to support a mid-contract termination;
The position in question has been discontinued; or
The position in question has been eliminated as a result of district reorganization.
In a non-renewal situation, the employee shall not be entitled to a hearing before the School Board.
For mid-contract termination of promotional employment contracts, the employee shall have the right to written charges and a hearing before a disciplinary hearing officer in the manner provided in La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §17:443. A contract may be terminated if the employee is found guilty of being incompetent or inefficient or is found to have failed to fulfill the terms and performance objectives of his/her contract, or other reasons provided for by state law.
NON-CERTIFICATED EMPLOYEES
School Employees
All employees of the school system whose dismissal is not governed by the provisions of La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §§17:441-446, or by the provisions of La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §§17:491-494, shall be subject to dismissal by the Superintendent after providing the employee with the written reason(s) therefor and ten (10) days to respond. The employee’s response shall be included in his/her personnel file. The Superintendent’s decision shall be final, and such employees shall not be entitled to a hearing before a disciplinary hearing officer or the School Board.
Revised: July, 2014
Revised: March 11, 2019
Revised: November, 2019
Revised: October 10, 2022
Ref: La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §§13:3204, 15:587.1, 17:15, 17:16, 17:81.5, 17:442, 17:443, 17:444, 17:491.3, 17:492, 17:493, 17:493.1, 32:414.2
La. Code of Civil Procedure, Art. 2592
Rousselle v. Plaquemines Parish School Board, 633 So.2d 1235 (La. 2/28/94)
Board minutes, 10-14-13, 8-11-14, 3-11-19, 10-10-22
Central Community School Board