Full Text of SB0008 101st General Assembly
SB0008sam001 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY | Sen. Iris Y. Martinez Filed: 2/21/2019
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| 1 | | AMENDMENT TO SENATE BILL 8
| 2 | | AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend Senate Bill 8 by replacing | 3 | | everything after the enacting clause with the following:
| 4 | | "Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Sections | 5 | | 21B-75, 24-12, 27A-5, and 34-85 as follows: | 6 | | (105 ILCS 5/21B-75) | 7 | | Sec. 21B-75. Suspension or revocation of license. | 8 | | (a) As used in this Section, "teacher" means any school | 9 | | district employee regularly required to be licensed, as | 10 | | provided in this Article, in order to teach or supervise in the | 11 | | public schools. | 12 | | (b) Except as provided under subsection (b-5), the The | 13 | | State Superintendent of Education has the exclusive authority, | 14 | | in accordance with this Section and any rules adopted by the | 15 | | State Board of Education, in consultation with the State | 16 | | Educator Preparation and Licensure Board, to initiate the |
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| 1 | | suspension of up to 5 calendar years or revocation of any | 2 | | license issued pursuant to this Article for abuse or neglect of | 3 | | a child, immorality, a condition of health detrimental to the | 4 | | welfare of pupils, incompetency, unprofessional conduct (which | 5 | | includes the failure to disclose on an employment application | 6 | | any previous conviction for a sex offense, as defined in | 7 | | Section 21B-80 of this Code, or any other offense committed in | 8 | | any other state or against the laws of the United States that, | 9 | | if committed in this State, would be punishable as a sex | 10 | | offense, as defined in Section 21B-80 of this Code), the | 11 | | neglect of any professional duty, willful failure to report an | 12 | | instance of suspected child abuse or neglect as required by the | 13 | | Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act, or other just cause. | 14 | | Unprofessional conduct shall include the refusal to attend or | 15 | | participate in institutes, teachers' meetings, or professional | 16 | | readings or to meet other reasonable requirements of the | 17 | | regional superintendent of schools or State Superintendent of | 18 | | Education. Unprofessional conduct also includes conduct that | 19 | | violates the standards, ethics, or rules applicable to the | 20 | | security, administration, monitoring, or scoring of or the | 21 | | reporting of scores from any assessment test or examination | 22 | | administered under Section 2-3.64a-5 of this Code or that is | 23 | | known or intended to produce or report manipulated or | 24 | | artificial, rather than actual, assessment or achievement | 25 | | results or gains from the administration of those tests or | 26 | | examinations. Unprofessional conduct shall also include |
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| 1 | | neglect or unnecessary delay in the making of statistical and | 2 | | other reports required by school officers. Incompetency shall | 3 | | include, without limitation, 2 or more school terms of service | 4 | | for which the license holder has received an unsatisfactory | 5 | | rating on a performance evaluation conducted pursuant to | 6 | | Article 24A of this Code within a period of 7 school terms of | 7 | | service. In determining whether to initiate action against one | 8 | | or more licenses based on incompetency and the recommended | 9 | | sanction for such action, the State Superintendent shall | 10 | | consider factors that include without limitation all of the | 11 | | following: | 12 | | (1) Whether the unsatisfactory evaluation ratings | 13 | | occurred prior to June 13, 2011 (the effective date of | 14 | | Public Act 97-8). | 15 | | (2) Whether the unsatisfactory evaluation ratings | 16 | | occurred prior to or after the implementation date, as | 17 | | defined in Section 24A-2.5 of this Code, of an evaluation | 18 | | system for teachers in a school district. | 19 | | (3) Whether the evaluator or evaluators who performed | 20 | | an unsatisfactory evaluation met the pre-licensure and | 21 | | training requirements set forth in Section 24A-3 of this | 22 | | Code. | 23 | | (4) The time between the unsatisfactory evaluation | 24 | | ratings. | 25 | | (5) The quality of the remediation plans associated | 26 | | with the unsatisfactory evaluation ratings and whether the |
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| 1 | | license holder successfully completed the remediation | 2 | | plans. | 3 | | (6) Whether the unsatisfactory evaluation ratings were | 4 | | related to the same or different assignments performed by | 5 | | the license holder. | 6 | | (7) Whether one or more of the unsatisfactory | 7 | | evaluation ratings occurred in the first year of a teaching | 8 | | or administrative assignment. | 9 | | When initiating an action against one or more licenses, the | 10 | | State Superintendent may seek required professional | 11 | | development as a sanction in lieu of or in addition to | 12 | | suspension or revocation. Any such required professional | 13 | | development must be at the expense of the license holder, who | 14 | | may use, if available and applicable to the requirements | 15 | | established by administrative or court order, training, | 16 | | coursework, or other professional development funds in | 17 | | accordance with the terms of an applicable collective | 18 | | bargaining agreement entered into after June 13, 2011 (the | 19 | | effective date of Public Act 97-8), unless that agreement | 20 | | specifically precludes use of funds for such purpose. | 21 | | (b-5) If an individual is dismissed by a school district | 22 | | for committing a physical or sexual act on a student, the State | 23 | | Educator Preparation and Licensure Board shall immediately | 24 | | suspend, pending revocation, any license issued to that | 25 | | individual under this Article. The State Superintendent of | 26 | | Education shall serve the individual written notice and afford |
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| 1 | | him or her the opportunity for a hearing on the proposed | 2 | | revocation. | 3 | | (c) Except as provided under subsection (b-5), the The | 4 | | State Superintendent of Education shall, upon receipt of | 5 | | evidence of abuse or neglect of a child, immorality, a | 6 | | condition of health detrimental to the welfare of pupils, | 7 | | incompetency (subject to subsection (b) of this Section), | 8 | | unprofessional conduct, the neglect of any professional duty, | 9 | | or other just cause, further investigate and, if and as | 10 | | appropriate, serve written notice to the individual and afford | 11 | | the individual opportunity for a hearing prior to suspension, | 12 | | revocation, or other sanction; provided that the State | 13 | | Superintendent is under no obligation to initiate such an | 14 | | investigation if the Department of Children and Family Services | 15 | | is investigating the same or substantially similar allegations | 16 | | and its child protective service unit has not made its | 17 | | determination, as required under Section 7.12 of the Abused and | 18 | | Neglected Child Reporting Act. If the State Superintendent of | 19 | | Education does not receive from an individual a request for a | 20 | | hearing within 10 days after the individual receives notice, | 21 | | the suspension, revocation, or other sanction shall | 22 | | immediately take effect in accordance with the notice. If a | 23 | | hearing is requested within 10 days after notice of an | 24 | | opportunity for hearing, it shall act as a stay of proceedings | 25 | | until the State Educator Preparation and Licensure Board issues | 26 | | a decision. Any hearing shall take place in the educational |
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| 1 | | service region where the educator is or was last employed and | 2 | | in accordance with rules adopted by the State Board of | 3 | | Education, in consultation with the State Educator Preparation | 4 | | and Licensure Board, and such rules shall include without | 5 | | limitation provisions for discovery and the sharing of | 6 | | information between parties prior to the hearing. The standard | 7 | | of proof for any administrative hearing held pursuant to this | 8 | | Section shall be by the preponderance of the evidence. The | 9 | | decision of the State Educator Preparation and Licensure Board | 10 | | is a final administrative decision and is subject to judicial | 11 | | review by appeal of either party. | 12 | | The State Board of Education may refuse to issue or may | 13 | | suspend the license of any person who fails to file a return or | 14 | | to pay the tax, penalty, or interest shown in a filed return or | 15 | | to pay any final assessment of tax, penalty, or interest, as | 16 | | required by any tax Act administered by the Department of | 17 | | Revenue, until such time as the requirements of any such tax | 18 | | Act are satisfied. | 19 | | The exclusive authority of the State Superintendent of | 20 | | Education to initiate suspension or revocation of a license | 21 | | pursuant to this Section does not preclude a regional | 22 | | superintendent of schools from cooperating with the State | 23 | | Superintendent or a State's Attorney with respect to an | 24 | | investigation of alleged misconduct. | 25 | | (d) The State Superintendent of Education or his or her | 26 | | designee may initiate and conduct such investigations as may be |
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| 1 | | reasonably necessary to establish the existence of any alleged | 2 | | misconduct. At any stage of the investigation, the State | 3 | | Superintendent may issue a subpoena requiring the attendance | 4 | | and testimony of a witness, including the license holder, and | 5 | | the production of any evidence, including files, records, | 6 | | correspondence, or documents, relating to any matter in | 7 | | question in the investigation. The subpoena shall require a | 8 | | witness to appear at the State Board of Education at a | 9 | | specified date and time and shall specify any evidence to be | 10 | | produced. The license holder is not entitled to be present, but | 11 | | the State Superintendent shall provide the license holder with | 12 | | a copy of any recorded testimony prior to a hearing under this | 13 | | Section. Such recorded testimony must not be used as evidence | 14 | | at a hearing, unless the license holder has adequate notice of | 15 | | the testimony and the opportunity to cross-examine the witness. | 16 | | Failure of a license holder to comply with a duly issued, | 17 | | investigatory subpoena may be grounds for revocation, | 18 | | suspension, or denial of a license. | 19 | | (e) All correspondence, documentation, and other | 20 | | information so received by the regional superintendent of | 21 | | schools, the State Superintendent of Education, the State Board | 22 | | of Education, or the State Educator Preparation and Licensure | 23 | | Board under this Section is confidential and must not be | 24 | | disclosed to third parties, except (i) as necessary for the | 25 | | State Superintendent of Education or his or her designee to | 26 | | investigate and prosecute pursuant to this Article, (ii) |
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| 1 | | pursuant to a court order, (iii) for disclosure to the license | 2 | | holder or his or her representative, or (iv) as otherwise | 3 | | required in this Article and provided that any such information | 4 | | admitted into evidence in a hearing is exempt from this | 5 | | confidentiality and non-disclosure requirement. | 6 | | (f) The State Superintendent of Education or a person | 7 | | designated by him or her shall have the power to administer | 8 | | oaths to witnesses at any hearing conducted before the State | 9 | | Educator Preparation and Licensure Board pursuant to this | 10 | | Section. The State Superintendent of Education or a person | 11 | | designated by him or her is authorized to subpoena and bring | 12 | | before the State Educator Preparation and Licensure Board any | 13 | | person in this State and to take testimony either orally or by | 14 | | deposition or by exhibit, with the same fees and mileage and in | 15 | | the same manner as prescribed by law in judicial proceedings in | 16 | | civil cases in circuit courts of this State. | 17 | | (g) Any circuit court, upon the application of the State | 18 | | Superintendent of Education or the license holder, may, by | 19 | | order duly entered, require the attendance of witnesses and the | 20 | | production of relevant books and papers as part of any | 21 | | investigation or at any hearing the State Educator Preparation | 22 | | and Licensure Board is authorized to conduct pursuant to this | 23 | | Section, and the court may compel obedience to its orders by | 24 | | proceedings for contempt. | 25 | | (h) The State Board of Education shall receive an annual | 26 | | line item appropriation to cover fees associated with the |
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| 1 | | investigation and prosecution of alleged educator misconduct | 2 | | and hearings related thereto.
| 3 | | (Source: P.A. 100-872, eff. 8-14-18.)
| 4 | | (105 ILCS 5/24-12) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-12)
| 5 | | Sec. 24-12. Removal or dismissal of teachers in contractual
| 6 | | continued service. | 7 | | (a) This subsection (a) applies only to honorable | 8 | | dismissals and recalls in which the notice of dismissal is | 9 | | provided on or before the end of the 2010-2011 school term. If | 10 | | a teacher in contractual continued service is
removed or | 11 | | dismissed as a result of a decision of the board to decrease
| 12 | | the number of teachers employed by the board or to discontinue | 13 | | some
particular type of teaching service, written notice shall | 14 | | be mailed to the
teacher and also given the
teacher either by | 15 | | certified mail, return receipt requested or
personal delivery | 16 | | with receipt at least 60
days before
the end of the school | 17 | | term, together with a statement of honorable
dismissal and the | 18 | | reason therefor, and in all such cases the board shall
first | 19 | | remove or dismiss all teachers who have not entered upon | 20 | | contractual
continued service before removing or dismissing | 21 | | any teacher who has entered
upon contractual continued service | 22 | | and who is legally qualified to hold a
position currently held | 23 | | by a teacher who has not entered upon contractual
continued | 24 | | service. | 25 | | As between teachers who have entered upon contractual
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| 1 | | continued service, the teacher or teachers with the shorter | 2 | | length of
continuing service with the district shall be | 3 | | dismissed first
unless an alternative method of determining the | 4 | | sequence of dismissal is
established in a collective bargaining | 5 | | agreement or contract between the
board and a professional | 6 | | faculty members' organization and except that
this provision | 7 | | shall not impair the operation of any affirmative action
| 8 | | program in the district, regardless of whether it exists by | 9 | | operation of
law or is conducted on a voluntary basis by the | 10 | | board. Any teacher
dismissed as a result of such decrease or | 11 | | discontinuance shall be paid
all earned compensation on or | 12 | | before the third business day following
the last day of pupil | 13 | | attendance in the regular school term. | 14 | | If the
board has any vacancies for the following school | 15 | | term or within one
calendar year from the beginning of the | 16 | | following school term, the
positions thereby becoming | 17 | | available shall be tendered to the teachers
so removed or | 18 | | dismissed so far as they are legally qualified to hold
such | 19 | | positions; provided, however, that if the number of honorable
| 20 | | dismissal notices based on economic necessity exceeds 15% of | 21 | | the number of full-time
full time equivalent positions filled | 22 | | by certified employees (excluding
principals and | 23 | | administrative personnel) during the preceding school year,
| 24 | | then if the board has any vacancies for the following school | 25 | | term or within
2 calendar years from the beginning of the | 26 | | following
school term, the positions so becoming available |
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| 1 | | shall be tendered to the
teachers who were so notified and | 2 | | removed or dismissed whenever they are
legally qualified to | 3 | | hold such positions. Each board shall, in consultation
with any | 4 | | exclusive employee representatives, each year establish a | 5 | | list,
categorized by positions, showing the length of | 6 | | continuing service of each
teacher who is qualified to hold any | 7 | | such positions, unless an alternative
method of determining a | 8 | | sequence of dismissal is established as provided
for in this | 9 | | Section, in which case a list shall be made in accordance with
| 10 | | the alternative method. Copies of the list shall be distributed | 11 | | to the
exclusive employee representative on or before February | 12 | | 1 of each year.
Whenever the number of honorable dismissal | 13 | | notices based upon economic
necessity exceeds 5, or 150% of the | 14 | | average number of teachers honorably
dismissed in the preceding | 15 | | 3 years, whichever is more, then the board also
shall hold a | 16 | | public hearing on the question of the dismissals. Following
the | 17 | | hearing and board review , the action to approve any such | 18 | | reduction shall
require a majority vote of the board members.
| 19 | | (b) This subsection (b) applies only to honorable | 20 | | dismissals and recalls in which the notice of dismissal is | 21 | | provided during the 2011-2012 school term or a subsequent | 22 | | school term. If any teacher, whether or not in contractual | 23 | | continued service, is removed or dismissed as a result of a | 24 | | decision of a school board to decrease the number of teachers | 25 | | employed by the board, a decision of a school board to | 26 | | discontinue some particular type of teaching service, or a |
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| 1 | | reduction in the number of programs or positions in a special | 2 | | education joint agreement, then written notice must be mailed | 3 | | to the teacher and also given to the teacher either by | 4 | | certified mail, return receipt requested, or personal delivery | 5 | | with receipt at least 45 days before the end of the school | 6 | | term, together with a statement of honorable dismissal and the | 7 | | reason therefor, and in all such cases the sequence of | 8 | | dismissal shall occur in accordance with this subsection (b); | 9 | | except that this subsection (b) shall not impair the operation | 10 | | of any affirmative action program in the school district, | 11 | | regardless of whether it exists by operation of law or is | 12 | | conducted on a voluntary basis by the board. | 13 | | Each teacher must be categorized into one or more positions | 14 | | for which the teacher is qualified to hold, based upon legal | 15 | | qualifications and any other qualifications established in a | 16 | | district or joint agreement job description, on or before the | 17 | | May 10 prior to the school year during which the sequence of | 18 | | dismissal is determined. Within each position and subject to | 19 | | agreements made by the joint committee on honorable dismissals | 20 | | that are authorized by subsection (c) of this Section, the | 21 | | school district or joint agreement must establish 4 groupings | 22 | | of teachers qualified to hold the position as follows: | 23 | | (1) Grouping one shall consist of each teacher who is | 24 | | not in contractual continued service and who (i) has not | 25 | | received a performance evaluation rating, (ii) is employed | 26 | | for one school term or less to replace a teacher on leave, |
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| 1 | | or (iii) is employed on a part-time basis. "Part-time | 2 | | basis" for the purposes of this subsection (b) means a | 3 | | teacher who is employed to teach less than a full-day, | 4 | | teacher workload or less than 5 days of the normal student | 5 | | attendance week, unless otherwise provided for in a | 6 | | collective bargaining agreement between the district and | 7 | | the exclusive representative of the district's teachers. | 8 | | For the purposes of this Section, a teacher (A) who is | 9 | | employed as a full-time teacher but who actually teaches or | 10 | | is otherwise present and participating in the district's | 11 | | educational program for less than a school term or (B) who, | 12 | | in the immediately previous school term, was employed on a | 13 | | full-time basis and actually taught or was otherwise | 14 | | present and participated in the district's educational | 15 | | program for 120 days or more is not considered employed on | 16 | | a part-time basis. | 17 | | (2) Grouping 2 shall consist of each teacher with a | 18 | | Needs Improvement or Unsatisfactory performance evaluation | 19 | | rating on either of the teacher's last 2 performance | 20 | | evaluation ratings. | 21 | | (3) Grouping 3 shall consist of each teacher with a | 22 | | performance evaluation rating of at least Satisfactory or | 23 | | Proficient on both of the teacher's last 2 performance | 24 | | evaluation ratings, if 2 ratings are available, or on the | 25 | | teacher's last performance evaluation rating, if only one | 26 | | rating is available, unless the teacher qualifies for |
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| 1 | | placement into grouping 4. | 2 | | (4) Grouping 4 shall consist of each teacher whose last | 3 | | 2 performance evaluation ratings are Excellent and each | 4 | | teacher with 2 Excellent performance evaluation ratings | 5 | | out of the teacher's last 3 performance evaluation ratings | 6 | | with a third rating of Satisfactory or Proficient. | 7 | | Among teachers qualified to hold a position, teachers must | 8 | | be dismissed in the order of their groupings, with teachers in | 9 | | grouping one dismissed first and teachers in grouping 4 | 10 | | dismissed last. | 11 | | Within grouping one, the sequence of dismissal must be at | 12 | | the discretion of the school district or joint agreement. | 13 | | Within grouping 2, the sequence of dismissal must be based upon | 14 | | average performance evaluation ratings, with the teacher or | 15 | | teachers with the lowest average performance evaluation rating | 16 | | dismissed first. A teacher's average performance evaluation | 17 | | rating must be calculated using the average of the teacher's | 18 | | last 2 performance evaluation ratings, if 2 ratings are | 19 | | available, or the teacher's last performance evaluation | 20 | | rating, if only one rating is available, using the following | 21 | | numerical values: 4 for Excellent; 3 for Proficient or | 22 | | Satisfactory; 2 for Needs Improvement; and 1 for | 23 | | Unsatisfactory. As between or among teachers in grouping 2 with | 24 | | the same average performance evaluation rating and within each | 25 | | of groupings 3 and 4, the teacher or teachers with the shorter | 26 | | length of continuing service with the school district or joint |
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| 1 | | agreement must be dismissed first unless an alternative method | 2 | | of determining the sequence of dismissal is established in a | 3 | | collective bargaining agreement or contract between the board | 4 | | and a professional faculty members' organization. | 5 | | Each board, including the governing board of a joint | 6 | | agreement, shall, in consultation with any exclusive employee | 7 | | representatives, each year establish a sequence of honorable | 8 | | dismissal list categorized by positions and the groupings | 9 | | defined in this subsection (b). Copies of the list showing each | 10 | | teacher by name and categorized by positions and the groupings | 11 | | defined in this subsection (b) must be distributed to the | 12 | | exclusive bargaining representative at least 75 days before the | 13 | | end of the school term, provided that the school district or | 14 | | joint agreement may, with notice to any exclusive employee | 15 | | representatives, move teachers from grouping one into another | 16 | | grouping during the period of time from 75 days until 45 days | 17 | | before the end of the school term. Each year, each board shall | 18 | | also establish, in consultation with any exclusive employee | 19 | | representatives, a list showing the length of continuing | 20 | | service of each teacher who is qualified to hold any such | 21 | | positions, unless an alternative method of determining a | 22 | | sequence of dismissal is established as provided for in this | 23 | | Section, in which case a list must be made in accordance with | 24 | | the alternative method. Copies of the list must be distributed | 25 | | to the exclusive employee representative at least 75 days | 26 | | before the end of the school term. |
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| 1 | | Any teacher dismissed as a result of such decrease or | 2 | | discontinuance must be paid all earned compensation on or | 3 | | before the third business day following the last day of pupil | 4 | | attendance in the regular school term. | 5 | | If the board or joint agreement has any vacancies for the | 6 | | following school term or within one calendar year from the | 7 | | beginning of the following school term, the positions thereby | 8 | | becoming available must be tendered to the teachers so removed | 9 | | or dismissed who were in groupings 3 or 4 of the sequence of | 10 | | dismissal and are qualified to hold the positions, based upon | 11 | | legal qualifications and any other qualifications established | 12 | | in a district or joint agreement job description, on or before | 13 | | the May 10 prior to the date of the positions becoming | 14 | | available, provided that if the number of honorable dismissal | 15 | | notices based on economic necessity exceeds 15% of the number | 16 | | of full-time equivalent positions filled by certified | 17 | | employees (excluding principals and administrative personnel) | 18 | | during the preceding school year, then the recall period is for | 19 | | the following school term or within 2 calendar years from the | 20 | | beginning of the following school term. If the board or joint | 21 | | agreement has any vacancies within the period from the | 22 | | beginning of the following school term through February 1 of | 23 | | the following school term (unless a date later than February 1, | 24 | | but no later than 6 months from the beginning of the following | 25 | | school term, is established in a collective bargaining | 26 | | agreement), the positions thereby becoming available must be |
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| 1 | | tendered to the teachers so removed or dismissed who were in | 2 | | grouping 2 of the sequence of dismissal due to one "needs | 3 | | improvement" rating on either of the teacher's last 2 | 4 | | performance evaluation ratings, provided that, if 2 ratings are | 5 | | available, the other performance evaluation rating used for | 6 | | grouping purposes is "satisfactory", "proficient", or | 7 | | "excellent", and are qualified to hold the positions, based | 8 | | upon legal qualifications and any other qualifications | 9 | | established in a district or joint agreement job description, | 10 | | on or before the May 10 prior to the date of the positions | 11 | | becoming available. On and after July 1, 2014 ( the effective | 12 | | date of Public Act 98-648) this amendatory Act of the 98th | 13 | | General Assembly , the preceding sentence shall apply to | 14 | | teachers removed or dismissed by honorable dismissal, even if | 15 | | notice of honorable dismissal occurred during the 2013-2014 | 16 | | school year. Among teachers eligible for recall pursuant to the | 17 | | preceding sentence, the order of recall must be in inverse | 18 | | order of dismissal, unless an alternative order of recall is | 19 | | established in a collective bargaining agreement or contract | 20 | | between the board and a professional faculty members' | 21 | | organization. Whenever the number of honorable dismissal | 22 | | notices based upon economic necessity exceeds 5 notices or 150% | 23 | | of the average number of teachers honorably dismissed in the | 24 | | preceding 3 years, whichever is more, then the school board or | 25 | | governing board of a joint agreement, as applicable, shall also | 26 | | hold a public hearing on the question of the dismissals. |
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| 1 | | Following the hearing and board review, the action to approve | 2 | | any such reduction shall require a majority vote of the board | 3 | | members. | 4 | | For purposes of this subsection (b), subject to agreement | 5 | | on an alternative definition reached by the joint committee | 6 | | described in subsection (c) of this Section, a teacher's | 7 | | performance evaluation rating means the overall performance | 8 | | evaluation rating resulting from an annual or biennial | 9 | | performance evaluation conducted pursuant to Article 24A of | 10 | | this Code by the school district or joint agreement determining | 11 | | the sequence of dismissal, not including any performance | 12 | | evaluation conducted during or at the end of a remediation | 13 | | period. No more than one evaluation rating each school term | 14 | | shall be one of the evaluation ratings used for the purpose of | 15 | | determining the sequence of dismissal. Except as otherwise | 16 | | provided in this subsection for any performance evaluations | 17 | | conducted during or at the end of a remediation period, if | 18 | | multiple performance evaluations are conducted in a school | 19 | | term, only the rating from the last evaluation conducted prior | 20 | | to establishing the sequence of honorable dismissal list in | 21 | | such school term shall be the one evaluation rating from that | 22 | | school term used for the purpose of determining the sequence of | 23 | | dismissal. Averaging ratings from multiple evaluations is not | 24 | | permitted unless otherwise agreed to in a collective bargaining | 25 | | agreement or contract between the board and a professional | 26 | | faculty members' organization. The preceding 3 sentences are |
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| 1 | | not a legislative declaration that existing law does or does | 2 | | not already require that only one performance evaluation each | 3 | | school term shall be used for the purpose of determining the | 4 | | sequence of dismissal. For performance evaluation ratings | 5 | | determined prior to September 1, 2012, any school district or | 6 | | joint agreement with a performance evaluation rating system | 7 | | that does not use either of the rating category systems | 8 | | specified in subsection (d) of Section 24A-5 of this Code for | 9 | | all teachers must establish a basis for assigning each teacher | 10 | | a rating that complies with subsection (d) of Section 24A-5 of | 11 | | this Code for all of the performance evaluation ratings that | 12 | | are to be used to determine the sequence of dismissal. A | 13 | | teacher's grouping and ranking on a sequence of honorable | 14 | | dismissal shall be deemed a part of the teacher's performance | 15 | | evaluation, and that information shall be disclosed to the | 16 | | exclusive bargaining representative as part of a sequence of | 17 | | honorable dismissal list, notwithstanding any laws prohibiting | 18 | | disclosure of such information. A performance evaluation | 19 | | rating may be used to determine the sequence of dismissal, | 20 | | notwithstanding the pendency of any grievance resolution or | 21 | | arbitration procedures relating to the performance evaluation. | 22 | | If a teacher has received at least one performance evaluation | 23 | | rating conducted by the school district or joint agreement | 24 | | determining the sequence of dismissal and a subsequent | 25 | | performance evaluation is not conducted in any school year in | 26 | | which such evaluation is required to be conducted under Section |
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| 1 | | 24A-5 of this Code, the teacher's performance evaluation rating | 2 | | for that school year for purposes of determining the sequence | 3 | | of dismissal is deemed Proficient. If a performance evaluation | 4 | | rating is nullified as the result of an arbitration, | 5 | | administrative agency, or court determination, then the school | 6 | | district or joint agreement is deemed to have conducted a | 7 | | performance evaluation for that school year, but the | 8 | | performance evaluation rating may not be used in determining | 9 | | the sequence of dismissal. | 10 | | Nothing in this subsection (b) shall be construed as | 11 | | limiting the right of a school board or governing board of a | 12 | | joint agreement to dismiss a teacher not in contractual | 13 | | continued service in accordance with Section 24-11 of this | 14 | | Code. | 15 | | Any provisions regarding the sequence of honorable | 16 | | dismissals and recall of honorably dismissed teachers in a | 17 | | collective bargaining agreement entered into on or before | 18 | | January 1, 2011 and in effect on June 13, 2011 ( the effective | 19 | | date of Public Act 97-8) this amendatory Act of the 97th | 20 | | General Assembly that may conflict with Public Act 97-8 this | 21 | | amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly shall remain in | 22 | | effect through the expiration of such agreement or June 30, | 23 | | 2013, whichever is earlier. | 24 | | (c) Each school district and special education joint | 25 | | agreement must use a joint committee composed of equal | 26 | | representation selected by the school board and its teachers |
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| 1 | | or, if applicable, the exclusive bargaining representative of | 2 | | its teachers, to address the matters described in paragraphs | 3 | | (1) through (5) of this subsection (c) pertaining to honorable | 4 | | dismissals under subsection (b) of this Section. | 5 | | (1) The joint committee must consider and may agree to | 6 | | criteria for excluding from grouping 2 and placing into | 7 | | grouping 3 a teacher whose last 2 performance evaluations | 8 | | include a Needs Improvement and either a Proficient or | 9 | | Excellent. | 10 | | (2) The joint committee must consider and may agree to | 11 | | an alternative definition for grouping 4, which definition | 12 | | must take into account prior performance evaluation | 13 | | ratings and may take into account other factors that relate | 14 | | to the school district's or program's educational | 15 | | objectives. An alternative definition for grouping 4 may | 16 | | not permit the inclusion of a teacher in the grouping with | 17 | | a Needs Improvement or Unsatisfactory performance | 18 | | evaluation rating on either of the teacher's last 2 | 19 | | performance evaluation ratings. | 20 | | (3) The joint committee may agree to including within | 21 | | the definition of a performance evaluation rating a | 22 | | performance evaluation rating administered by a school | 23 | | district or joint agreement other than the school district | 24 | | or joint agreement determining the sequence of dismissal. | 25 | | (4) For each school district or joint agreement that | 26 | | administers performance evaluation ratings that are |
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| 1 | | inconsistent with either of the rating category systems | 2 | | specified in subsection (d) of Section 24A-5 of this Code, | 3 | | the school district or joint agreement must consult with | 4 | | the joint committee on the basis for assigning a rating | 5 | | that complies with subsection (d) of Section 24A-5 of this | 6 | | Code to each performance evaluation rating that will be | 7 | | used in a sequence of dismissal. | 8 | | (5) Upon request by a joint committee member submitted | 9 | | to the employing board by no later than 10 days after the | 10 | | distribution of the sequence of honorable dismissal list, a | 11 | | representative of the employing board shall, within 5 days | 12 | | after the request, provide to members of the joint | 13 | | committee a list showing the most recent and prior | 14 | | performance evaluation ratings of each teacher identified | 15 | | only by length of continuing service in the district or | 16 | | joint agreement and not by name. If, after review of this | 17 | | list, a member of the joint committee has a good faith | 18 | | belief that a disproportionate number of teachers with | 19 | | greater length of continuing service with the district or | 20 | | joint agreement have received a recent performance | 21 | | evaluation rating lower than the prior rating, the member | 22 | | may request that the joint committee review the list to | 23 | | assess whether such a trend may exist. Following the joint | 24 | | committee's review, but by no later than the end of the | 25 | | applicable school term, the joint committee or any member | 26 | | or members of the joint committee may submit a report of |
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| 1 | | the review to the employing board and exclusive bargaining | 2 | | representative, if any. Nothing in this paragraph (5) shall | 3 | | impact the order of honorable dismissal or a school | 4 | | district's or joint agreement's authority to carry out a | 5 | | dismissal in accordance with subsection (b) of this | 6 | | Section. | 7 | | Agreement by the joint committee as to a matter requires | 8 | | the majority vote of all committee members, and if the joint | 9 | | committee does not reach agreement on a matter, then the | 10 | | otherwise applicable requirements of subsection (b) of this | 11 | | Section shall apply. Except as explicitly set forth in this | 12 | | subsection (c), a joint committee has no authority to agree to | 13 | | any further modifications to the requirements for honorable | 14 | | dismissals set forth in subsection (b) of this Section.
The | 15 | | joint committee must be established, and the first meeting of | 16 | | the joint committee each school year must occur on or before | 17 | | December 1. | 18 | | The joint committee must reach agreement on a matter on or | 19 | | before February 1 of a school year in order for the agreement | 20 | | of the joint committee to apply to the sequence of dismissal | 21 | | determined during that school year. Subject to the February 1 | 22 | | deadline for agreements, the agreement of a joint committee on | 23 | | a matter shall apply to the sequence of dismissal until the | 24 | | agreement is amended or terminated by the joint committee. | 25 | | The provisions of the Open Meetings Act shall not apply to | 26 | | meetings of a joint committee created under this subsection |
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| 1 | | (c). | 2 | | (d) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this | 3 | | subsection (d), the requirements and dismissal procedures of | 4 | | Section 24-16.5 of this Code shall apply to any dismissal | 5 | | sought under Section 24-16.5 of this Code. | 6 | | (1) If a dismissal of a teacher in contractual | 7 | | continued service is sought for any reason or cause other | 8 | | than an honorable dismissal under subsections (a) or (b) of | 9 | | this Section or a dismissal sought under Section 24-16.5 of | 10 | | this Code,
including those under Section 10-22.4, the board | 11 | | must first approve a
motion containing specific charges by | 12 | | a majority vote of all its
members. Written notice of such | 13 | | charges, including a bill of particulars and the teacher's | 14 | | right to request a hearing, must be mailed to the teacher | 15 | | and also given to the teacher either by certified mail, | 16 | | return receipt requested, or personal delivery with | 17 | | receipt
within 5 days of the adoption of the motion. Any | 18 | | written notice sent on or after July 1, 2012 shall inform | 19 | | the teacher of the right to request a hearing before a | 20 | | mutually selected hearing officer, with the cost of the | 21 | | hearing officer split equally between the teacher and the | 22 | | board, or a hearing before a board-selected hearing | 23 | | officer, with the cost of the hearing officer paid by the | 24 | | board. | 25 | | Before setting a hearing on charges stemming from | 26 | | causes that are considered remediable, a board must give |
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| 1 | | the teacher reasonable warning in writing, stating | 2 | | specifically the causes that, if not removed, may result in | 3 | | charges; however, no such written warning is required if | 4 | | the causes have been the subject of a remediation plan | 5 | | pursuant to Article 24A of this Code. | 6 | | If, in the opinion of the board, the interests of the | 7 | | school require it, the board may suspend the teacher | 8 | | without pay, pending the hearing, but if the board's | 9 | | dismissal or removal is not sustained, the teacher shall | 10 | | not suffer the loss of any salary or benefits by reason of | 11 | | the suspension. | 12 | | (2) No hearing upon the charges is required unless the
| 13 | | teacher within 17 days after receiving notice requests in | 14 | | writing of the
board that a hearing be scheduled before a | 15 | | mutually selected hearing officer or a hearing officer | 16 | | selected by the board.
The secretary of the school board | 17 | | shall forward a copy of the notice to the
State Board of | 18 | | Education. | 19 | | (3) Within 5 business days after receiving a notice of
| 20 | | hearing in which either notice to the teacher was sent | 21 | | before July 1, 2012 or, if the notice was sent on or after | 22 | | July 1, 2012, the teacher has requested a hearing before a | 23 | | mutually selected hearing officer, the State Board of | 24 | | Education shall provide a list of 5
prospective, impartial | 25 | | hearing officers from the master list of qualified, | 26 | | impartial hearing officers maintained by the State Board of |
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| 1 | | Education. Each person on the master list must (i) be
| 2 | | accredited by a national arbitration organization and have | 3 | | had a minimum of 5
years of experience directly related to | 4 | | labor and employment
relations matters between employers | 5 | | and employees or
their exclusive bargaining | 6 | | representatives and (ii) beginning September 1, 2012, have | 7 | | participated in training provided or approved by the State | 8 | | Board of Education for teacher dismissal hearing officers | 9 | | so that he or she is familiar with issues generally | 10 | | involved in evaluative and non-evaluative dismissals. | 11 | | If notice to the teacher was sent before July 1, 2012 | 12 | | or, if the notice was sent on or after July 1, 2012, the | 13 | | teacher has requested a hearing before a mutually selected | 14 | | hearing officer, the board and the teacher or their
legal | 15 | | representatives within 3 business days shall alternately | 16 | | strike one name from
the list provided by the State Board | 17 | | of Education until only one name remains. Unless waived by | 18 | | the teacher, the
teacher shall have the right to
proceed | 19 | | first with the striking.
Within 3 business days of receipt | 20 | | of the list provided by the State Board of
Education, the | 21 | | board and the teacher or their legal representatives shall | 22 | | each
have the right to reject all prospective hearing | 23 | | officers named on the
list and notify the State Board of | 24 | | Education of such rejection. Within 3 business days after | 25 | | receiving this notification, the State
Board of Education | 26 | | shall appoint a qualified person from the master list who |
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| 1 | | did not appear on the list sent to the parties to serve as | 2 | | the hearing officer, unless the parties notify it that they | 3 | | have chosen to alternatively select a hearing officer under | 4 | | paragraph (4) of this subsection (d). | 5 | | If the teacher has requested a hearing before a hearing | 6 | | officer selected by the board, the board shall select one | 7 | | name from the master list of qualified impartial hearing | 8 | | officers maintained by the State Board of Education within | 9 | | 3 business days after receipt and shall notify the State | 10 | | Board of Education of its selection. | 11 | | A hearing officer mutually selected by the parties, | 12 | | selected by the board, or selected through an alternative | 13 | | selection process under paragraph (4) of this subsection | 14 | | (d) (A) must not be a resident of the school district, (B) | 15 | | must be available to commence the hearing within 75 days | 16 | | and conclude the hearing within 120 days after being | 17 | | selected as the hearing officer, and (C) must issue a | 18 | | decision as to whether the teacher must be dismissed and | 19 | | give a copy of that decision to both the teacher and the | 20 | | board within 30 days from the conclusion of the hearing or | 21 | | closure of the record, whichever is later. | 22 | | (4) In the alternative
to selecting a hearing officer | 23 | | from the list received from the
State Board of Education or | 24 | | accepting the appointment of a hearing officer by the State | 25 | | Board of Education or if the State Board of Education | 26 | | cannot provide a list or appoint a hearing officer that |
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| 1 | | meets the foregoing requirements, the board and the teacher | 2 | | or their legal
representatives may mutually agree to select | 3 | | an impartial hearing officer who
is not on the master list | 4 | | either by direct
appointment by the parties or by using | 5 | | procedures for the appointment of an
arbitrator | 6 | | established by the Federal Mediation and Conciliation | 7 | | Service or the
American Arbitration Association. The | 8 | | parties shall notify the State Board of
Education of their | 9 | | intent to select a hearing officer using an alternative
| 10 | | procedure within 3 business days of receipt of a list of | 11 | | prospective hearing officers
provided by the State Board of | 12 | | Education, notice of appointment of a hearing officer by | 13 | | the State Board of Education, or receipt of notice from the | 14 | | State Board of Education that it cannot provide a list that | 15 | | meets the foregoing requirements, whichever is later. | 16 | | (5) If the notice of dismissal was sent to the teacher | 17 | | before July 1, 2012, the fees and costs for the hearing | 18 | | officer must be paid by the State Board of Education. If | 19 | | the notice of dismissal was sent to the teacher on or after | 20 | | July 1, 2012, the hearing officer's fees and costs must be | 21 | | paid as follows in this paragraph (5). The fees and | 22 | | permissible costs for the hearing officer must be | 23 | | determined by the State Board of Education. If the board | 24 | | and the teacher or their legal representatives mutually | 25 | | agree to select an impartial hearing officer who is not on | 26 | | a list received from the State Board of Education, they may |
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| 1 | | agree to supplement the fees determined by the State Board | 2 | | to the hearing officer, at a rate consistent with the | 3 | | hearing officer's published professional fees. If the | 4 | | hearing officer is mutually selected by the parties, then | 5 | | the board and the teacher or their legal representatives | 6 | | shall each pay 50% of the fees and costs and any | 7 | | supplemental allowance to which they agree. If the hearing | 8 | | officer is selected by the board, then the board shall pay | 9 | | 100% of the hearing officer's fees and costs. The fees and | 10 | | costs must be paid to the hearing officer within 14 days | 11 | | after the board and the teacher or their legal | 12 | | representatives receive the hearing officer's decision set | 13 | | forth in paragraph (7) of this subsection (d). | 14 | | (6) The teacher is required to answer the bill of | 15 | | particulars and aver affirmative matters in his or her | 16 | | defense, and the time for initially doing so and the time | 17 | | for updating such answer and defenses after pre-hearing | 18 | | discovery must be set by the hearing officer.
The State | 19 | | Board of Education shall
promulgate rules so that each | 20 | | party has a fair opportunity to present its case and to | 21 | | ensure that the dismissal process proceeds in a fair and | 22 | | expeditious manner. These rules shall address, without | 23 | | limitation, discovery and hearing scheduling conferences; | 24 | | the teacher's initial answer and affirmative defenses to | 25 | | the bill of particulars and the updating of that | 26 | | information after pre-hearing discovery; provision for |
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| 1 | | written interrogatories and requests for production of | 2 | | documents; the requirement that each party initially | 3 | | disclose to the other party and then update the disclosure | 4 | | no later than 10 calendar days prior to the commencement of | 5 | | the hearing, the names and addresses of persons who may be | 6 | | called as
witnesses at the hearing, a summary of the facts | 7 | | or opinions each witness will testify to, and all other
| 8 | | documents and materials, including information maintained | 9 | | electronically, relevant to its own as well as the other | 10 | | party's case (the hearing officer may exclude witnesses and | 11 | | exhibits not identified and shared, except those offered in | 12 | | rebuttal for which the party could not reasonably have | 13 | | anticipated prior to the hearing); pre-hearing discovery | 14 | | and preparation, including provision for written | 15 | | interrogatories and requests for production of documents, | 16 | | provided that discovery depositions are prohibited; the | 17 | | conduct of the hearing; the right of each party to be | 18 | | represented by counsel, the offer of evidence and witnesses | 19 | | and the cross-examination of witnesses; the authority of | 20 | | the hearing officer to issue subpoenas and subpoenas duces | 21 | | tecum, provided that the hearing officer may limit the | 22 | | number of witnesses to be subpoenaed on behalf of each | 23 | | party to no more than 7; the length of post-hearing briefs; | 24 | | and the form, length, and content of hearing officers' | 25 | | decisions. The hearing officer
shall hold a hearing and | 26 | | render a final decision for dismissal pursuant to Article |
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| 1 | | 24A of this Code or shall report to the school board | 2 | | findings of fact and a recommendation as to whether or not | 3 | | the teacher must be dismissed for conduct. The hearing | 4 | | officer shall commence the hearing within 75 days and | 5 | | conclude the hearing within 120 days after being selected | 6 | | as the hearing officer, provided that the hearing officer | 7 | | may modify these timelines upon the showing of good cause | 8 | | or mutual agreement of the parties. Good cause for the | 9 | | purpose of this subsection (d) shall mean the illness or | 10 | | otherwise unavoidable emergency of the teacher, district | 11 | | representative, their legal representatives, the hearing | 12 | | officer, or an essential witness as indicated in each | 13 | | party's pre-hearing submission. In a dismissal hearing | 14 | | pursuant to Article 24A of this Code in which a witness is | 15 | | a student or is under the age of 18, the hearing officer | 16 | | must make accommodations for the witness, as provided under | 17 | | paragraph (6.5) of this subsection. The , the hearing | 18 | | officer shall consider and give weight to all of the | 19 | | teacher's evaluations written pursuant to Article 24A that | 20 | | are relevant to the issues in the hearing. | 21 | | Each party shall have no more than 3 days to present | 22 | | its case, unless extended by the hearing officer to enable | 23 | | a party to present adequate evidence and testimony, | 24 | | including due to the other party's cross-examination of the | 25 | | party's witnesses, for good cause or by mutual agreement of | 26 | | the parties. The State Board of Education shall define in |
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| 1 | | rules the meaning of "day" for such purposes. All testimony | 2 | | at the hearing shall be taken under oath
administered by | 3 | | the hearing officer. The hearing officer shall cause a
| 4 | | record of the proceedings to be kept and shall employ a | 5 | | competent reporter
to take stenographic or stenotype notes | 6 | | of all the testimony. The costs of
the reporter's | 7 | | attendance and services at the hearing shall be paid by the | 8 | | party or parties who are responsible for paying the fees | 9 | | and costs of the hearing officer. Either party desiring a | 10 | | transcript of the hearing
shall pay for the cost thereof. | 11 | | Any post-hearing briefs must be submitted by the parties by | 12 | | no later than 21 days after a party's receipt of the | 13 | | transcript of the hearing, unless extended by the hearing | 14 | | officer for good cause or by mutual agreement of the | 15 | | parties. | 16 | | (6.5) In the case of charges involving physical or | 17 | | sexual contact with a student or a person under the age of | 18 | | 18, the hearing officer shall make alternative hearing | 19 | | procedures to protect a witness who is a student or who is | 20 | | under the age of 18 from being intimidated or traumatized. | 21 | | Alternative hearing procedures may include, but are not | 22 | | limited to: (i) testimony made via a telecommunication | 23 | | device in a location other than the hearing room and | 24 | | outside the physical presence of the teacher or the | 25 | | principal and other hearing participants, (ii) testimony | 26 | | outside the physical presence of the teacher or the |
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| 1 | | principal, or (iii) non-public testimony. A hearing | 2 | | officer shall admit an out-of-court statement made by a | 3 | | witness who is student or a person under the age of 18 if | 4 | | the statement concerns the teacher's or the principal's | 5 | | physical or sexual contact with the witness. The | 6 | | availability of the witness shall not bar the admission of | 7 | | the out-of-court statement into evidence. The hearing | 8 | | officer shall determine the weight to be afforded the | 9 | | statement based on an assessment of various indicia of its | 10 | | reliability. | 11 | | (7) The hearing officer shall, within 30 days from the | 12 | | conclusion of the
hearing or closure of the record, | 13 | | whichever is later,
make a decision as to whether or not | 14 | | the teacher shall be dismissed pursuant to Article 24A of | 15 | | this Code or report to the school board findings of fact | 16 | | and a recommendation as to whether or not the teacher shall | 17 | | be dismissed for cause and
shall give a copy of the | 18 | | decision or findings of fact and recommendation to both the | 19 | | teacher and the school
board.
If a hearing officer fails
| 20 | | without good cause, specifically provided in writing to | 21 | | both parties and the State Board of Education, to render a | 22 | | decision or findings of fact and recommendation within 30 | 23 | | days after the hearing is
concluded or the
record is | 24 | | closed, whichever is later,
the
parties may mutually agree | 25 | | to select a hearing officer pursuant to the
alternative
| 26 | | procedure, as provided in this Section,
to rehear the |
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| 1 | | charges heard by the hearing officer who failed to render a
| 2 | | decision or findings of fact and recommendation or to | 3 | | review the record and render a decision.
If any hearing
| 4 | | officer fails without good cause, specifically provided in | 5 | | writing to both parties and the State Board of Education, | 6 | | to render a decision or findings of fact and recommendation | 7 | | within 30 days after the
hearing is concluded or the record | 8 | | is closed, whichever is later, the hearing
officer shall be | 9 | | removed
from the master
list of hearing officers maintained | 10 | | by the State Board of Education for not more than 24 | 11 | | months. The parties and the State Board of Education may | 12 | | also take such other actions as it deems appropriate, | 13 | | including recovering, reducing, or withholding any fees | 14 | | paid or to be paid to the hearing officer. If any hearing | 15 | | officer repeats such failure, he or she must be permanently | 16 | | removed from the master list maintained by the State Board | 17 | | of Education and may not be selected by parties through the | 18 | | alternative selection process under this paragraph (7) or | 19 | | paragraph (4) of this subsection (d).
The board shall not | 20 | | lose jurisdiction to discharge a teacher if the hearing
| 21 | | officer fails to render a decision or findings of fact and | 22 | | recommendation within the time specified in this
Section. | 23 | | If the decision of the hearing officer for dismissal | 24 | | pursuant to Article 24A of this Code or of the school board | 25 | | for dismissal for cause is in favor of the teacher, then | 26 | | the hearing officer or school board shall order |
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| 1 | | reinstatement to the same or substantially equivalent | 2 | | position and shall determine the amount for which the | 3 | | school board is liable, including, but not limited to, loss | 4 | | of income and benefits. | 5 | | (8) The school board, within 45 days after receipt of | 6 | | the hearing officer's findings of fact and recommendation | 7 | | as to whether (i) the conduct at issue occurred, (ii) the | 8 | | conduct that did occur was remediable, and (iii) the | 9 | | proposed dismissal should be sustained, shall issue a | 10 | | written order as to whether the teacher must be retained or | 11 | | dismissed for cause from its employ. The school board's | 12 | | written order shall incorporate the hearing officer's | 13 | | findings of fact, except that the school board may modify | 14 | | or supplement the findings of fact if, in its opinion, the | 15 | | findings of fact are against the manifest weight of the | 16 | | evidence. | 17 | | If the school board dismisses the teacher | 18 | | notwithstanding the hearing officer's findings of fact and | 19 | | recommendation, the school board shall make a conclusion in | 20 | | its written order, giving its reasons therefor, and such | 21 | | conclusion and reasons must be included in its written | 22 | | order. The failure of the school board to strictly adhere | 23 | | to the timelines contained in this Section shall not render | 24 | | it without jurisdiction to dismiss the teacher. The school | 25 | | board shall not lose jurisdiction to discharge the teacher | 26 | | for cause if the hearing officer fails to render a |
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| 1 | | recommendation within the time specified in this Section. | 2 | | The decision of the school board is final, unless reviewed | 3 | | as provided in paragraph (9) of this subsection (d). | 4 | | If the school board retains the teacher, the school | 5 | | board shall enter a written order stating the amount of | 6 | | back pay and lost benefits, less mitigation, to be paid to | 7 | | the teacher, within 45 days after its retention order. | 8 | | Should the teacher object to the amount of the back pay and | 9 | | lost benefits or amount mitigated, the teacher shall give | 10 | | written objections to the amount within 21 days. If the | 11 | | parties fail to reach resolution within 7 days, the dispute | 12 | | shall be referred to the hearing officer, who shall | 13 | | consider the school board's written order and teacher's | 14 | | written objection and determine the amount to which the | 15 | | school board is liable. The costs of the hearing officer's | 16 | | review and determination must be paid by the board. | 17 | | (9)
The decision of the hearing officer pursuant to | 18 | | Article 24A of this Code or of the school board's decision | 19 | | to dismiss for cause is final unless reviewed as
provided | 20 | | in Section 24-16 of this Code Act . If the school board's | 21 | | decision to dismiss for cause is contrary to the hearing | 22 | | officer's recommendation, the court on review shall give | 23 | | consideration to the school board's decision and its | 24 | | supplemental findings of fact, if applicable, and the | 25 | | hearing officer's findings of fact and recommendation in | 26 | | making its decision. In the event such review is
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| 1 | | instituted, the school board shall be responsible for | 2 | | preparing and filing the record of proceedings, and such | 3 | | costs associated therewith must be divided equally between | 4 | | the parties.
| 5 | | (10) If a decision of the hearing officer for dismissal | 6 | | pursuant to Article 24A of this Code or of the school board | 7 | | for dismissal for cause is adjudicated upon review or
| 8 | | appeal in favor of the teacher, then the trial court shall | 9 | | order
reinstatement and shall remand the matter to the | 10 | | school board with direction for entry of an order setting | 11 | | the amount of back pay, lost benefits, and costs, less | 12 | | mitigation. The teacher may challenge the school board's | 13 | | order setting the amount of back pay, lost benefits, and | 14 | | costs, less mitigation, through an expedited arbitration | 15 | | procedure, with the costs of the arbitrator borne by the | 16 | | school board.
| 17 | | Any teacher who is reinstated by any hearing or | 18 | | adjudication brought
under this Section shall be assigned | 19 | | by the board to a position
substantially similar to the one | 20 | | which that teacher held prior to that
teacher's suspension | 21 | | or dismissal.
| 22 | | (11) Subject to any later effective date referenced in | 23 | | this Section for a specific aspect of the dismissal | 24 | | process, the changes made by Public Act 97-8 shall apply to | 25 | | dismissals instituted on or after September 1, 2011. Any | 26 | | dismissal instituted prior to September 1, 2011 must be |
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| 1 | | carried out in accordance with the requirements of this | 2 | | Section prior to amendment by Public Act 97-8.
| 3 | | (e) Nothing contained in Public Act 98-648 this amendatory | 4 | | Act of the 98th General Assembly repeals, supersedes, | 5 | | invalidates, or nullifies final decisions in lawsuits pending | 6 | | on July 1, 2014 ( the effective date of Public Act 98-648) this | 7 | | amendatory Act of the 98th General Assembly in Illinois courts | 8 | | involving the interpretation of Public Act 97-8. | 9 | | (Source: P.A. 99-78, eff. 7-20-15; 100-768, eff. 1-1-19; | 10 | | revised 9-28-18.)
| 11 | | (105 ILCS 5/27A-5)
| 12 | | Sec. 27A-5. Charter school; legal entity; requirements.
| 13 | | (a) A charter school shall be a public, nonsectarian, | 14 | | nonreligious, non-home
based, and non-profit school. A charter | 15 | | school shall be organized and operated
as a nonprofit | 16 | | corporation or other discrete, legal, nonprofit entity
| 17 | | authorized under the laws of the State of Illinois.
| 18 | | (b) A charter school may be established under this Article | 19 | | by creating a new
school or by converting an existing public | 20 | | school or attendance center to
charter
school status.
Beginning | 21 | | on April 16, 2003 (the effective date of Public Act 93-3), in | 22 | | all new
applications to establish
a charter
school in a city | 23 | | having a population exceeding 500,000, operation of the
charter
| 24 | | school shall be limited to one campus. The changes made to this | 25 | | Section by Public Act 93-3 do not apply to charter schools |
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| 1 | | existing or approved on or before April 16, 2003 (the
effective | 2 | | date of Public Act 93-3). | 3 | | (b-5) In this subsection (b-5), "virtual-schooling" means | 4 | | a cyber school where students engage in online curriculum and | 5 | | instruction via the Internet and electronic communication with | 6 | | their teachers at remote locations and with students | 7 | | participating at different times. | 8 | | From April 1, 2013 through December 31, 2016, there is a | 9 | | moratorium on the establishment of charter schools with | 10 | | virtual-schooling components in school districts other than a | 11 | | school district organized under Article 34 of this Code. This | 12 | | moratorium does not apply to a charter school with | 13 | | virtual-schooling components existing or approved prior to | 14 | | April 1, 2013 or to the renewal of the charter of a charter | 15 | | school with virtual-schooling components already approved | 16 | | prior to April 1, 2013. | 17 | | On or before March 1, 2014, the Commission shall submit to | 18 | | the General Assembly a report on the effect of | 19 | | virtual-schooling, including without limitation the effect on | 20 | | student performance, the costs associated with | 21 | | virtual-schooling, and issues with oversight. The report shall | 22 | | include policy recommendations for virtual-schooling.
| 23 | | (c) A charter school shall be administered and governed by | 24 | | its board of
directors or other governing body
in the manner | 25 | | provided in its charter. The governing body of a charter school
| 26 | | shall be subject to the Freedom of Information Act and the Open |
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| 1 | | Meetings Act.
| 2 | | (d) For purposes of this subsection (d), "non-curricular | 3 | | health and safety requirement" means any health and safety | 4 | | requirement created by statute or rule to provide, maintain, | 5 | | preserve, or safeguard safe or healthful conditions for | 6 | | students and school personnel or to eliminate, reduce, or | 7 | | prevent threats to the health and safety of students and school | 8 | | personnel. "Non-curricular health and safety requirement" does | 9 | | not include any course of study or specialized instructional | 10 | | requirement for which the State Board has established goals and | 11 | | learning standards or which is designed primarily to impart | 12 | | knowledge and skills for students to master and apply as an | 13 | | outcome of their education. | 14 | | A charter school shall comply with all non-curricular | 15 | | health and safety
requirements applicable to public schools | 16 | | under the laws of the State of
Illinois. On or before September | 17 | | 1, 2015, the State Board shall promulgate and post on its | 18 | | Internet website a list of non-curricular health and safety | 19 | | requirements that a charter school must meet. The list shall be | 20 | | updated annually no later than September 1. Any charter | 21 | | contract between a charter school and its authorizer must | 22 | | contain a provision that requires the charter school to follow | 23 | | the list of all non-curricular health and safety requirements | 24 | | promulgated by the State Board and any non-curricular health | 25 | | and safety requirements added by the State Board to such list | 26 | | during the term of the charter. Nothing in this subsection (d) |
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| 1 | | precludes an authorizer from including non-curricular health | 2 | | and safety requirements in a charter school contract that are | 3 | | not contained in the list promulgated by the State Board, | 4 | | including non-curricular health and safety requirements of the | 5 | | authorizing local school board.
| 6 | | (e) Except as otherwise provided in the School Code, a | 7 | | charter school shall
not charge tuition; provided that a | 8 | | charter school may charge reasonable fees
for textbooks, | 9 | | instructional materials, and student activities.
| 10 | | (f) A charter school shall be responsible for the | 11 | | management and operation
of its fiscal affairs including,
but | 12 | | not limited to, the preparation of its budget. An audit of each | 13 | | charter
school's finances shall be conducted annually by an | 14 | | outside, independent
contractor retained by the charter | 15 | | school. To ensure financial accountability for the use of | 16 | | public funds, on or before December 1 of every year of | 17 | | operation, each charter school shall submit to its authorizer | 18 | | and the State Board a copy of its audit and a copy of the Form | 19 | | 990 the charter school filed that year with the federal | 20 | | Internal Revenue Service. In addition, if deemed necessary for | 21 | | proper financial oversight of the charter school, an authorizer | 22 | | may require quarterly financial statements from each charter | 23 | | school.
| 24 | | (g) A charter school shall comply with all provisions of | 25 | | this Article, the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Act, all | 26 | | federal and State laws and rules applicable to public schools |
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| 1 | | that pertain to special education and the instruction of | 2 | | English learners, and
its charter. A charter
school is exempt | 3 | | from all other State laws and regulations in this Code
| 4 | | governing public
schools and local school board policies; | 5 | | however, a charter school is not exempt from the following:
| 6 | | (1) Sections 10-21.9 and 34-18.5 of this Code regarding | 7 | | criminal
history records checks and checks of the Statewide | 8 | | Sex Offender Database and Statewide Murderer and Violent | 9 | | Offender Against Youth Database of applicants for | 10 | | employment;
| 11 | | (2) Sections 10-20.14, 10-22.6, 24-24, 34-19, and | 12 | | 34-84a of this Code regarding discipline of
students;
| 13 | | (3) the Local Governmental and Governmental Employees | 14 | | Tort Immunity Act;
| 15 | | (4) Section 108.75 of the General Not For Profit | 16 | | Corporation Act of 1986
regarding indemnification of | 17 | | officers, directors, employees, and agents;
| 18 | | (5) the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act;
| 19 | | (5.5) subsection (b) of Section 10-23.12 and | 20 | | subsection (b) of Section 34-18.6 of this Code; | 21 | | (6) the Illinois School Student Records Act;
| 22 | | (7) Section 10-17a of this Code regarding school report | 23 | | cards;
| 24 | | (8) the P-20 Longitudinal Education Data System Act; | 25 | | (9) Section 27-23.7 of this Code regarding bullying | 26 | | prevention; |
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| 1 | | (10) Section 2-3.162 of this Code regarding student | 2 | | discipline reporting; | 3 | | (11) Sections 22-80 and 27-8.1 of this Code; | 4 | | (12) Sections 10-20.60 and 34-18.53 of this Code; | 5 | | (13) Sections 10-20.63 and 34-18.56 of this Code; and | 6 | | (14) Section 26-18 of this Code; and | 7 | | (15) Section 22-30 of this Code ; and . | 8 | | (16) Sections 24-12 and 34-85 of this Code. | 9 | | The change made by Public Act 96-104 to this subsection (g) | 10 | | is declaratory of existing law. | 11 | | (h) A charter school may negotiate and contract with a | 12 | | school district, the
governing body of a State college or | 13 | | university or public community college, or
any other public or | 14 | | for-profit or nonprofit private entity for: (i) the use
of a | 15 | | school building and grounds or any other real property or | 16 | | facilities that
the charter school desires to use or convert | 17 | | for use as a charter school site,
(ii) the operation and | 18 | | maintenance thereof, and
(iii) the provision of any service, | 19 | | activity, or undertaking that the charter
school is required to | 20 | | perform in order to carry out the terms of its charter.
| 21 | | However, a charter school
that is established on
or
after April | 22 | | 16, 2003 (the effective date of Public Act 93-3) and that | 23 | | operates
in a city having a population exceeding
500,000 may | 24 | | not contract with a for-profit entity to
manage or operate the | 25 | | school during the period that commences on April 16, 2003 (the
| 26 | | effective date of Public Act 93-3) and
concludes at the end of |
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| 1 | | the 2004-2005 school year.
Except as provided in subsection (i) | 2 | | of this Section, a school district may
charge a charter school | 3 | | reasonable rent for the use of the district's
buildings, | 4 | | grounds, and facilities. Any services for which a charter | 5 | | school
contracts
with a school district shall be provided by | 6 | | the district at cost. Any services
for which a charter school | 7 | | contracts with a local school board or with the
governing body | 8 | | of a State college or university or public community college
| 9 | | shall be provided by the public entity at cost.
| 10 | | (i) In no event shall a charter school that is established | 11 | | by converting an
existing school or attendance center to | 12 | | charter school status be required to
pay rent for space
that is | 13 | | deemed available, as negotiated and provided in the charter | 14 | | agreement,
in school district
facilities. However, all other | 15 | | costs for the operation and maintenance of
school district | 16 | | facilities that are used by the charter school shall be subject
| 17 | | to negotiation between
the charter school and the local school | 18 | | board and shall be set forth in the
charter.
| 19 | | (j) A charter school may limit student enrollment by age or | 20 | | grade level.
| 21 | | (k) If the charter school is approved by the Commission, | 22 | | then the Commission charter school is its own local education | 23 | | agency. | 24 | | (Source: P.A. 99-30, eff. 7-10-15; 99-78, eff. 7-20-15; 99-245, | 25 | | eff. 8-3-15; 99-325, eff. 8-10-15; 99-456, eff. 9-15-16; | 26 | | 99-642, eff. 7-28-16; 99-927, eff. 6-1-17; 100-29, eff. 1-1-18; |
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| 1 | | 100-156, eff. 1-1-18; 100-163, eff. 1-1-18; 100-413, eff. | 2 | | 1-1-18; 100-468, eff. 6-1-18; 100-726, eff. 1-1-19; 100-863, | 3 | | eff. 8-14-18; revised 10-5-18.)
| 4 | | (105 ILCS 5/34-85) (from Ch. 122, par. 34-85)
| 5 | | Sec. 34-85. Removal for cause; notice and hearing; | 6 | | suspension. | 7 | | (a) No
teacher employed by the board of education shall | 8 | | (after serving the
probationary period specified in Section | 9 | | 34-84) be removed
except for cause. Teachers (who have | 10 | | completed the probationary period specified in Section 34-84 of | 11 | | this Code) shall be removed for cause in accordance with the | 12 | | procedures set forth in this Section or, at the board's option, | 13 | | the procedures set forth in Section 24-16.5 of this Code or | 14 | | such other procedures established in an agreement entered into | 15 | | between the board and the exclusive representative of the | 16 | | district's teachers under Section 34-85c of this Code for | 17 | | teachers (who have completed the probationary period specified | 18 | | in Section 34-84 of this Code) assigned to schools identified | 19 | | in that agreement. No principal employed by the board of | 20 | | education shall be
removed during the term of his or her | 21 | | performance contract except for
cause, which may include but is | 22 | | not limited to the principal's repeated
failure to implement | 23 | | the school improvement plan or to comply with the
provisions of | 24 | | the Uniform Performance Contract, including additional
| 25 | | criteria established by the Council for inclusion in the |
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| 1 | | performance
contract pursuant to Section 34-2.3.
| 2 | | Before service of notice of charges on account of causes | 3 | | that may be deemed to be remediable, the teacher or principal | 4 | | must be given reasonable warning in writing, stating | 5 | | specifically the causes that, if not removed, may result in | 6 | | charges; however, no such written warning is required if the | 7 | | causes have been the subject of a remediation plan pursuant to | 8 | | Article 24A of this Code or if the board and the exclusive | 9 | | representative of the district's teachers have entered into an | 10 | | agreement pursuant to Section 34-85c of this Code, pursuant to | 11 | | an alternative system of remediation. No written warning shall | 12 | | be required for conduct on the part of a teacher or principal | 13 | | that is cruel, immoral, negligent, or criminal or that in any | 14 | | way causes psychological or physical harm or injury to a | 15 | | student, as that conduct is deemed to be irremediable. No | 16 | | written warning shall be required for a material breach of the | 17 | | uniform principal performance contract, as that conduct is | 18 | | deemed to be irremediable; provided that not less than 30 days | 19 | | before the vote of the local school council to seek the | 20 | | dismissal of a principal for a material breach of a uniform | 21 | | principal performance contract, the local school council shall | 22 | | specify the nature of the alleged breach in writing and provide | 23 | | a copy of it to the principal. | 24 | | (1) To initiate dismissal proceedings against a | 25 | | teacher or principal, the general superintendent must | 26 | | first approve written charges and specifications against |
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| 1 | | the
teacher or
principal. A local school council may direct | 2 | | the
general superintendent to approve written charges | 3 | | against its principal on behalf of the Council
upon the | 4 | | vote of 7 members of the Council. The general | 5 | | superintendent must
approve those charges within 45 | 6 | | calendar days
or provide a written
reason for not approving | 7 | | those charges. A
written notice of those charges, including | 8 | | specifications,
shall be served upon the teacher or | 9 | | principal within 10 business days of the
approval of the | 10 | | charges. Any written notice sent on or after July 1, 2012 | 11 | | shall also inform the teacher or principal of the right to | 12 | | request a hearing before a mutually selected hearing | 13 | | officer, with the cost of the hearing officer split equally | 14 | | between the teacher or principal and the board, or a | 15 | | hearing before a qualified hearing officer chosen by the | 16 | | general superintendent, with the cost of the hearing | 17 | | officer paid by the board. If the teacher or principal | 18 | | cannot be found upon diligent
inquiry, such charges may be | 19 | | served upon him by mailing a copy thereof in a
sealed | 20 | | envelope by prepaid certified mail, return receipt | 21 | | requested, to the
teacher's or principal's last known | 22 | | address. A return receipt showing
delivery to such address | 23 | | within 20 calendar days after the date of the
approval of | 24 | | the charges shall constitute proof of service.
| 25 | | (2) No hearing upon the charges is required unless the | 26 | | teacher or principal
within 17 calendar
days after |
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| 1 | | receiving notice requests in writing of the general
| 2 | | superintendent that a hearing
be scheduled. Pending the | 3 | | hearing of the charges, the general superintendent or his | 4 | | or her designee may suspend the teacher or principal | 5 | | charged without pay in accordance with rules prescribed by | 6 | | the board, provided that if the teacher or principal | 7 | | charged is not dismissed based on the charges, he or she | 8 | | must be made whole for lost earnings, less setoffs for | 9 | | mitigation. | 10 | | (3) The board shall maintain a list of at least 9 | 11 | | qualified hearing officers who will conduct hearings on | 12 | | charges and specifications. The list must be developed in | 13 | | good faith consultation with the exclusive representative | 14 | | of the board's teachers and professional associations that | 15 | | represent the board's principals. The list may be revised | 16 | | on July 1st of each year or earlier as needed. To be a | 17 | | qualified hearing officer, the person must (i)
be | 18 | | accredited by a national arbitration organization and have | 19 | | had a minimum
of 5 years of experience as an arbitrator in | 20 | | cases involving labor and
employment
relations matters | 21 | | between employers and employees or
their exclusive | 22 | | bargaining representatives and (ii) beginning September 1, | 23 | | 2012, have participated in training provided or approved by | 24 | | the State Board of Education for teacher dismissal hearing | 25 | | officers so that he or she is familiar with issues | 26 | | generally involved in evaluative and non-evaluative |
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| 1 | | dismissals.
| 2 | | Within 5 business days after receiving the notice of | 3 | | request for a hearing, the general superintendent and the | 4 | | teacher or principal or
their legal representatives
shall | 5 | | alternately strike one name
from the list until only one | 6 | | name remains. Unless waived by the teacher,
the teacher or | 7 | | principal shall
have the right to proceed first with the | 8 | | striking. If the teacher or principal fails to participate | 9 | | in the striking process, the general superintendent shall | 10 | | either select the hearing officer from the list developed | 11 | | pursuant to this paragraph (3) or select another qualified | 12 | | hearing officer from the master list maintained by the | 13 | | State Board of Education pursuant to subsection (c) of | 14 | | Section 24-12 of this Code.
| 15 | | (4) If the notice of dismissal was sent to the teacher | 16 | | or principal before July 1, 2012, the fees and costs for | 17 | | the hearing officer shall be paid by the State
Board of | 18 | | Education. If the notice of dismissal was sent to the | 19 | | teacher or principal on or after July 1, 2012, the hearing | 20 | | officer's fees and costs must be paid as follows in this | 21 | | paragraph (4). The fees and permissible costs for the | 22 | | hearing officer shall be determined by the State Board of | 23 | | Education. If the hearing officer is mutually selected by | 24 | | the parties through alternate striking in accordance with | 25 | | paragraph (3) of this subsection (a), then the board and | 26 | | the teacher or their legal representative shall each pay |
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| 1 | | 50% of the fees and costs and any supplemental allowance to | 2 | | which they agree. If the hearing officer is selected by the | 3 | | general superintendent without the participation of the | 4 | | teacher or principal, then the board shall pay 100% of the | 5 | | hearing officer fees and costs. The hearing officer shall | 6 | | submit for payment a billing statement to the parties that | 7 | | itemizes the charges and expenses and divides them in | 8 | | accordance with this Section. | 9 | | (5) The teacher or the principal charged is required to | 10 | | answer the charges and specifications and aver affirmative | 11 | | matters in his or her defense, and the time for doing so | 12 | | must be set by the hearing officer. The State Board of | 13 | | Education shall adopt rules so that each party has a fair | 14 | | opportunity to present its case and to ensure that the | 15 | | dismissal proceeding is concluded in an expeditious | 16 | | manner. The rules shall address, without limitation, the | 17 | | teacher or principal's answer and affirmative defenses to | 18 | | the charges and specifications; a requirement that each | 19 | | party make mandatory disclosures without request to the | 20 | | other party and then update the disclosure no later than 10 | 21 | | calendar days prior to the commencement of the hearing, | 22 | | including a list of the names and addresses of persons who | 23 | | may be called as witnesses at the hearing, a summary of the | 24 | | facts or opinions each witness will testify to, and all | 25 | | other documents and materials, including information | 26 | | maintained electronically, relevant to its own as well as |
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| 1 | | the other party's case (the hearing officer may exclude | 2 | | witnesses and exhibits not identified and shared, except | 3 | | those offered in rebuttal for which the party could not | 4 | | reasonably have anticipated prior to the hearing); | 5 | | pre-hearing discovery and preparation, including provision | 6 | | for written interrogatories and requests for production of | 7 | | documents, provided that discovery depositions are | 8 | | prohibited; the conduct of the hearing; the right of each | 9 | | party to be represented by counsel, the offer of evidence | 10 | | and witnesses and the cross-examination of witnesses; the | 11 | | authority of the hearing officer to issue subpoenas and | 12 | | subpoenas duces tecum, provided that the hearing officer | 13 | | may limit the number of witnesses to be subpoenaed in | 14 | | behalf of each party to no more than 7; the length of | 15 | | post-hearing briefs; and the form, length, and content of | 16 | | hearing officers' reports and recommendations to the | 17 | | general superintendent. | 18 | | The hearing officer shall commence the hearing within | 19 | | 75 calendar days and conclude the hearing within 120 | 20 | | calendar days after being selected by the parties as the | 21 | | hearing officer, provided that these timelines may be | 22 | | modified upon the showing of good cause or mutual agreement | 23 | | of the parties. Good cause for the purposes of this | 24 | | paragraph (5) shall mean the illness or otherwise | 25 | | unavoidable emergency of the teacher, district | 26 | | representative, their legal representatives, the hearing |
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| 1 | | officer, or an essential witness as indicated in each | 2 | | party's pre-hearing submission. In a dismissal hearing in | 3 | | which a witness is a student or is under the age of 18, the | 4 | | hearing officer must make accommodations for the witness, | 5 | | as provided under paragraph (5.5) of this subsection. The , | 6 | | the hearing officer shall consider and give weight to all | 7 | | of the teacher's evaluations written pursuant to Article | 8 | | 24A that are relevant to the issues in the hearing. Except | 9 | | as otherwise provided under paragraph (5.5) of this | 10 | | subsection, the The teacher or principal has the
privilege | 11 | | of being present at the hearing with counsel and of
| 12 | | cross-examining witnesses and may offer evidence and | 13 | | witnesses and present
defenses to the charges. Each party | 14 | | shall have no more than 3 days to present its case, unless | 15 | | extended by the hearing officer to enable a party to | 16 | | present adequate evidence and testimony, including due to | 17 | | the other party's cross-examination of the party's | 18 | | witnesses, for good cause or by mutual agreement of the | 19 | | parties. The State Board of Education shall define in rules | 20 | | the meaning of "day" for such purposes.
All testimony at | 21 | | the hearing shall be taken under oath administered by the
| 22 | | hearing officer. The hearing officer shall cause a record | 23 | | of the
proceedings to be kept and shall employ a competent | 24 | | reporter to take
stenographic or stenotype notes of all the | 25 | | testimony. The costs of the
reporter's attendance and | 26 | | services at the hearing shall be paid by the party or |
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| 1 | | parties who are paying the fees and costs of the hearing | 2 | | officer. Either party desiring a transcript of the
hearing | 3 | | shall pay for the cost thereof. At the close of the | 4 | | hearing, the hearing officer shall direct the parties to | 5 | | submit post-hearing briefs no later than 21 calendar days | 6 | | after receipt of the transcript. Either or both parties may | 7 | | waive submission of briefs. | 8 | | (5.5) In the case of charges involving physical or | 9 | | sexual contact with a student or a person under the age of | 10 | | 18, the hearing officer shall make alternative hearing | 11 | | procedures to protect a witness who is a student or who is | 12 | | under the age of 18 from being intimidated or traumatized. | 13 | | Alternative hearing procedures may include, but are not | 14 | | limited to: (i) testimony made via a telecommunication | 15 | | device in a location other than the hearing room and | 16 | | outside the physical presence of the teacher or the | 17 | | principal and other hearing participants, (ii) testimony | 18 | | outside the physical presence of the teacher or the | 19 | | principal, or (iii) non-public testimony. A hearing | 20 | | officer shall admit an out-of-court statement made by a | 21 | | witness who is student or a person under the age of 18 if | 22 | | the statement concerns the teacher's or the principal's | 23 | | physical or sexual contact with the witness. The | 24 | | availability of the witness shall not bar the admission of | 25 | | the out-of-court statement into evidence. The hearing | 26 | | officer shall determine the weight to be afforded the |
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| 1 | | statement based on an assessment of various indicia of its | 2 | | reliability.
| 3 | | (6) The hearing officer shall within 30 calendar days | 4 | | from the conclusion of the hearing
report to the general | 5 | | superintendent findings of fact and a recommendation as to | 6 | | whether or not the teacher or principal shall
be dismissed | 7 | | and shall give a copy of the report to both the
teacher or
| 8 | | principal and the general superintendent. The State Board | 9 | | of Education shall provide by rule the form of the hearing | 10 | | officer's report and recommendation. | 11 | | (7) The board, within 45
days of receipt of the hearing | 12 | | officer's findings of fact and recommendation,
shall make a | 13 | | decision as to whether the teacher or principal shall be | 14 | | dismissed
from its employ. The failure of the board to | 15 | | strictly adhere to the timeliness
contained herein shall | 16 | | not render it without jurisdiction to dismiss the
teacher
| 17 | | or principal. In the event that the board declines to | 18 | | dismiss the teacher or principal after review of a hearing | 19 | | officer's recommendation, the board shall set the amount of | 20 | | back pay and benefits to award the teacher or principal, | 21 | | which shall include offsets for interim earnings and | 22 | | failure to mitigate losses. The board shall establish | 23 | | procedures for the teacher's or principal's submission of | 24 | | evidence to it regarding lost earnings, lost benefits, | 25 | | mitigation, and offsets. The decision
of the board is final | 26 | | unless reviewed in accordance with paragraph (8) of this |
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| 1 | | subsection (a).
| 2 | | (8) The teacher may seek judicial review of the board's | 3 | | decision in accordance with the Administrative Review Law, | 4 | | which is specifically incorporated in this Section, except | 5 | | that the review must be initiated in the Illinois Appellate | 6 | | Court for the First District. In the event judicial review | 7 | | is instituted, any costs of preparing and
filing the record | 8 | | of proceedings shall be paid by the party instituting
the | 9 | | review. In the event the appellate court reverses a board | 10 | | decision to dismiss a teacher or principal and directs the | 11 | | board to pay the teacher or the principal back pay and | 12 | | benefits, the appellate court shall remand the matter to | 13 | | the board to issue an administrative decision as to the | 14 | | amount of back pay and benefits, which shall include a | 15 | | calculation of the lost earnings, lost benefits, | 16 | | mitigation, and offsets based on evidence submitted to the | 17 | | board in accordance with procedures established by the | 18 | | board.
| 19 | | (b) Nothing in this Section affects the validity of removal | 20 | | for cause hearings
commenced prior to June 13, 2011 (the | 21 | | effective date of Public Act 97-8).
| 22 | | The changes made by Public Act 97-8 shall apply to | 23 | | dismissals instituted on or after September 1, 2011 or the | 24 | | effective date of Public Act 97-8, whichever is later. Any | 25 | | dismissal instituted prior to the effective date of these | 26 | | changes must be carried out in accordance with the requirements |
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| 1 | | of this Section prior to amendment by Public Act 97-8. | 2 | | (Source: P.A. 99-78, eff. 7-20-15.)
| 3 | | Section 10. The Employment Record Disclosure Act is amended | 4 | | by changing Section 10 as follows:
| 5 | | (745 ILCS 46/10)
| 6 | | Sec. 10. No liability for providing truthful information. | 7 | | (a) Any employer or
authorized employee or agent acting on | 8 | | behalf of an employer who, upon inquiry
by a prospective | 9 | | employer, provides truthful written or verbal information, or
| 10 | | information that it believes in good faith is truthful, about a | 11 | | current or
former employee's job performance is presumed to be | 12 | | acting in good faith and is
immune from civil liability for the | 13 | | disclosure and the consequences of the
disclosure.
| 14 | | The presumption of good faith established in this Section | 15 | | may be rebutted by
a preponderance of evidence that the | 16 | | information disclosed was knowingly false
or in violation of a | 17 | | civil right of the employee or former employee.
| 18 | | (b) A current or former employer and any authorized | 19 | | employee or agent acting on its behalf who, whether upon | 20 | | inquiry or on its own initiative, provides information to a | 21 | | school district created under the School Code orally or in | 22 | | writing that it believes in good faith to be true or based upon | 23 | | an accurate record about a current or former employee's job | 24 | | performance, record of misconduct, disciplinary history, or |
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| 1 | | criminal history shall be immune from any cause of action or | 2 | | civil liability related to or stemming from that communication. | 3 | | Any person or entity who commences an action against a current | 4 | | or former employer related to or stemming from a communication | 5 | | covered under this subsection must plead with specificity the | 6 | | factual basis on which it alleges that the employer or its | 7 | | employee or agent did not believe that the information provided | 8 | | was true or based upon an accurate record at the time it was | 9 | | provided. If that person or entity fails to prevail against its | 10 | | current or former employer or its employee or agent, the court | 11 | | shall award the former employer and the school district the | 12 | | reasonable costs and attorney's fees for defending the action. | 13 | | (Source: P.A. 89-470, eff. 6-13-96.)
| 14 | | Section 15. The Personnel Record Review Act is amended by | 15 | | changing Sections 8 and 9 as follows:
| 16 | | (820 ILCS 40/8) (from Ch. 48, par. 2008)
| 17 | | Sec. 8.
An employer shall review a personnel record before | 18 | | releasing
information to a third party and, except when the | 19 | | release is ordered to
a party in a legal action or arbitration, | 20 | | delete disciplinary reports,
letters of reprimand, or other | 21 | | records of disciplinary action which are
more than 4 years old. | 22 | | This Section does not apply to a school district or an | 23 | | authorized employee or agent of a school district who is | 24 | | responding to an inquiry from a prospective employer.
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| 1 | | (Source: P.A. 83-1104.)
| 2 | | (820 ILCS 40/9) (from Ch. 48, par. 2009)
| 3 | | Sec. 9.
An employer shall not gather or keep a record of an
| 4 | | employee's associations, political activities, publications, | 5 | | communications or
nonemployment activities, unless the | 6 | | employee submits the information in
writing or authorizes the | 7 | | employer in writing to keep or gather the
information. This | 8 | | prohibition
shall not apply to (i) activities or associations | 9 | | with individuals or groups involved in the physical, sexual, or | 10 | | other exploitation of a minor or (ii) the activities that occur | 11 | | on the employer's premises
or during the employee's working | 12 | | hours with that employer which interfere
with the performance | 13 | | of the employee's duties or the duties
of other employees or | 14 | | activities, regardless of when and where occurring,
which | 15 | | constitute criminal conduct or may reasonably be expected to | 16 | | harm the
employer's property, operations or business, or could | 17 | | by the employee's
action cause the employer financial | 18 | | liability. A record which is kept by
the employer as permitted | 19 | | under this Section shall be part of the personnel
record.
| 20 | | (Source: P.A. 91-357, eff. 7-29-99.)".
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